Good point, Child.
I visited your thread and found it very thought provoking, but I did want to say one thing here. I think the reason most of Tolkein's central characters are fifty or above in LotR is that one of his central themes is that of change, the old ways disappearing into the folds of time. Youth is generally not concerned with that sort of thing as a rule. You need older characters with some life experience to draw on in order to carry that theme off successfully and with the right degree of melancholia.