I finally decided that I would replace the fuel line on my 22 yr old cub cadet.
Someone posted a video on YouTube showing their experience (
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GF9yPqmz1ng).
The process is pretty straightforward and took me about 2 hrs.
The main takeaway is that the fuel hose was in ok condition everywhere except where it connects to the tank. The tank hose connection is right above the hydro oil pump which gets hot. Over time the hose degraded to 'crunchy' at the tank connection.
I couldn't see any evidence of fuel leaking, but leaking fuel on a hot oil pump sounds like a bad combination. At the very least, this section of 'crunchy' hose probably let air get sucked in and contributed to my ongoing 'slow to start when sitting for a long time' issue.
So for all those 20+ yr old 2000 series cub cadets with original fuel hoses - think about changing them out!