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In the beginning, when a few friends got
together for a casual bike ride across Iowa in 1973, no one
imagined that a tradition would be born, let alone that it would
become the longest, largest and oldest bicycle touring event in
the world.
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RAGBRAI's
Beginnings & The First Year
August 26-31, 1973
The Register's bicycling tradition began with an idea (a kind of
a challenge) between Des Moines Register feature writer/copy
editor John
Karras, an avid bicyclist, and Don Kaul,
author of The Des Moines Register's "Over The Coffee"
column. Karras suggested to Kaul that he ride his bicycle across
Iowa and write columns about what he saw from that perspective.
Kaul, also an accomplished rider, lived in Washington, D.C., and
wrote his column from The Register's Washington Bureau.
Kaul liked the idea but issued the challenge that he
would ride across Iowa if Karras rode with him. Karras agreed
and the plan was approved by the managing editor. Coordination
of the ride was assigned to Don Benson, public relations
director, and the RAGBRAI trio was formed. Benson served as
coordinator of the ride until his retirement in 1991, when Jim
Green took over the duties.
Kaul and Karras then invited 'a
few friends' (the public) to ride along. The route was laid out
on maps and readers were told that the ride would start in Sioux
City on August 26 and end on August 31 in Davenport. Overnight
stops were scheduled in Storm Lake, Fort Dodge, Ames, Des Moines
and Williamsburg. (Year One's overnight towns had the largest
average population of any RAGBRAI through RAGBRAI XXIV.) The
ride was informally referred to as ' The Great Six-Day Bicycle
Ride' and was scheduled to tie in with a Register and Tribune
circulation sales meeting in Des Moines.
Because the readers were only given six weeks notice
before the late-August ride, response was light, which may have
been fortunate since the route had not been driven prior to the
ride and no camping arrangements had been made. Don Benson had
made motel reservations for himself, Kaul and Karras, because,
after all, it was their ride. Motel operators along the way and
the Naval Reserve Center in Des Moines came to the rescue of the
riders by letting them pitch tents on their lawns.
An estimated 300 people showed up for the start of the
ride in Sioux City. By actual count, 114 riders made the entire
distance that first year. The number swelled to 500 riders on
the stretch of the route between Ames and Des Moines.
Among the many interesting people the ride attracted
was Clarence
Pickard of Indianola. This 83-year-old gentleman, who hadn't
ridden a bicycle much in recent years, showed up for that first
ride with a used ladies Schwinn and rode all the way to
Davenport, including the 100 degree plus day from Des Moines to
Williamsburg, a 110-mile trek. Pickard's attire for the ride was
a long-sleeved shirt, trousers, woolen long underwear and a
silver pith helmet.
Kaul's and Karras' articles and columns about Pickard,
and points of interest along the way were, perhaps, responsible
for the growth of the ride. After the ride, letters and calls
poured in from people excited about the ride but upset because
it was held the first week of school so students and teachers
couldn't go. Others were upset because the ride started on the
final weekend of the Iowa State Fair. And still others wished
more notice had been given so vacation arrangements could have
been made.
Basically, the theme was the same "please offer
another opportunity to participat in the ride! So the seven-day,
Second Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa "SAGBRAI"
was scheduled for August 4-10, 1974.
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SAGBRAI
The
Second Year
August 4-10, 1974
Benson had more time to organize the ride that year, so
arrangements were made to involve the Iowa State Patrol and
include other services, such as medical aid, sag wagons and
baggage trucks. The route was driven ahead of time and the
communities on the route were contacted.
The SAGBRAI route went from Council Bluffs to Dubuque
with stops in Atlantic, Guthrie Center, Camp Dodge (north of Des
Moines), Marshalltown, Waterloo and Monticello. Approximately
2,700 riders showed up that Sunday morning in early August. The
Howard Johnson motel in Council Bluffs was packed and an
adjacent golf course was filled with campers!
The first two days were tough and hilly. That, plus
the fact that many riders hadn't trained for the ride and it was
a rainy day with head winds between Waterloo and Monticello,
took a toll. An estimated 1,700 made it all the way to Eagle
Point Park in Dubuque.
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RAGBRAI
III
August
3-9, 1975
The overnight stay in Guthrie Center during the 1974 ride was
such a pleasant experience that ride organizers were convinced
that smaller towns should not be overlooked as overnight hosts.
So, in 1975, the little town of Hawarden, with a population of
about 2,700, was chosen as the August 3 starting point.
It had become a tradition for the ride to begin on the
Missouri River, so riders could dip their back wheel in its
waters, and end at the Mississippi River, where they could dip
their front wheel as a finale to the ride. Hawarden is on the
Big Sioux, but the organizers decided it qualified because the
Big Sioux is a branch of the Missouri on the South Dakota
border. That year's ride spent the night in Cherokee, Lake View,
Boone, Newton, Sigourney, Mount Pleasant and ended in Fort
Madison on August 9. There were about 3,200 riders and probably
2,400 made it all the way.
It became apparent that the ride's popularity would
not allow it to end with the 1975 event, so it was given an
official name "the Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride
Across Iowa" along with the acronym RAGBRAI, with the year
designated in Roman numerals.
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RAGBRAI
IV
August
1-7, 1976
RAGBRAI IV in 1976 began in Sidney in southwest Iowa on August
1. Riders remember the sand burrs in the campgrounds that caused
the thin bicycle tires to explode, sounding like fireworks on
the Fourth of July. It was a roundabout ride to Muscatine
through Red Oak, Harlan, Jefferson, Nevada, Grinnell and Iowa
City.
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RAGBRAI
V
July
31-August 6, 1977
RAGBRAI V in 1977 began July 31 in Onawa and followed our
shortest and flattest route of 400 miles through Ida Grove,
Laurens, Algona, Clear Lake, New Hampton and Decorah before
finally ending in Lansing on August 6. Everyone expected the
hills in northeast Iowa to be killers, but the roads there were
laid out in the early development of the state and followed the
valleys and ridges, avoiding many of the hills. However, the
roads in the remainder of the state followed the section lines
over the hills.
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RAGBRAI
VI
July
30-August 5, 1978
On July 30, 1978, RAGBRAI VI started in Sioux City again and
closely followed the route of the first ride as far as Storm
Lake. Then the ride went to Humboldt, Iowa Falls, Vinton, Mount
Vernon and Maquoketa, and ended in Clinton on August 5. It was
RAGBRAI's second experience on a college campus, Cornell College
in Mount Vernon. (RAGBRAI had been at Luther College in Decorah
the year before.) It was wonderful for the riders, the college
and the town.
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RAGBRAI
VII
July 29-August 4, 1979
RAGBRAI VII in 1979 started July 29 in extreme northwest Iowa at
Rock Rapids on the Rock River, a branch of the Sioux River, and
ended in Burlington on August 4, with stops in Spencer (where
riders encountered the first major rain storm during RAGBRAI),
Rockwell City, Story City, Tama-Toledo, Fairfield and Wapello.
It had become a tradition to have a ' Century Day,' which was a
100-mile day between two overnight host towns. The Century Day
in 1979 was between Tama-Toledo and Fairfield.
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RAGBRAI
VIII
July
27-August 2, 1980
In 1980, RAGBRAI VIII returned to southwest Iowa. The ride
started at Glenwood on July 27, made a repeat visit to Atlantic,
then went on to Carroll, Perry, Webster City, Waverly (Wartburg
College), Elkader and finished at Guttenberg on August 2.
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RAGBRAI
IX
July
26-August 1, 1981
RAGBRAI IX had the distinction of having the worst weather of
any year in the ride's history. The beginning campground at
Missouri Valley was damp from continuous rains, and it poured
off and on as the riders went up over the Loess Hills to
Mapleton on Sunday. The next day between Mapleton and Lake City
the temperature dropped to the upper 40s (remember, this was
July!) and riders rode the hills into a strong headwind and
pouring rain. Very few made it beyond Schleswig, which was the
first town of the day. Farmers and townspeople pitched in to
haul riders into Lake City in cattle trucks, campers, pickup
trucks, etc. The campgrounds in Lake City were under water so
residents came to the rescue and put the riders up in homes and
garages, and even on the newly refinished gym floor at the high
school. The day later was named ' Soggy Monday' and The Register
marketed a patch commemorating that day. The weather then turned
beautiful and stayed that way the rest of the week for the ride
to Greenfield, Leon, Centerville, Keosauqua (the second smallest
overnight town with just 1,000 residents) and Keokuk.
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RAGBRAI
X
The
10th Ride
July 25-31, 1982
The tenth ride in 1982, RAGBRAI X, was the longest ride to this
point, at 523 miles. It was seven days of fantastic weather from
Akron to Cherokee , Estherville, Forest City, Charles City,
Independence, Tipton and Davenport. The dates were July 25-31.
Since then it's been a tradition that RAGBRAI never ends in
August. The ride now is always planned for the last full week in
July, beginning on a Sunday and ending on a Saturday, and never
creeping into August.
After the 1982 ride, co-founder and co-host Donald
Kaul decided he had ridden across Iowa plenty of times and quit
the ride. He later also left The Register. "Iowa Boy"
columnist Chuck Offenburger joined John Karras as co-host in
1983.
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RAGBRAI
XI
July
24-30, 1983
In the winter of 1982, Clarence Pickard was struck and killed by
a car while walking across a street in Indianola, his hometown.
Although he had only ridden a complete RAGBRAI the first year of
the ride and on just one day the following year, he had become a
legend. The 1983 event, RAGBRAI XI, was named the ' Clarence
Pickard Memorial Ride' in his memory, and the commemorative
patch The Register designed that year was similar to the shape
of the helmet he wore.
The ride started in Onawa for the second time on July
24 in 1983, and stopped along the way in Harlan, Guthrie Center,
Ames, Grundy Center and Manchester before ending in Dubuque
again on July 30.
It was a pleasant week, bracketed by 100 degree
weather and a sudden wind and rain storm in Grundy Center, which
failed to dampen the riders' spirits.
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RAGBRAI
XII
July
22-28, 1984
Register columnist Chuck Offenburger really got into the act
with RAGBRAI XII, July 22- 28, 1984. He insisted that the route
include his hometown, Shenandoah, and the town went all out for
him and the 7,500 riders. For a second time, RAGBRAI started in
Glenwood, then rode to Shenandoah, Creston, Adel, Pella, Ottumwa
and Mount Pleasant before finishing again in Burlington. Because
of increasing costs and growth in the size of the ride, The
Register found it necessary to charge a fee for the first time.
The 1984 ride was blessed by near-perfect weather
except for an early-morning rain in Pella and showers in Mount
Pleasant.
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RAGBRAI
XIII
July
21-27, 1985
A few superstitious types wanted to change the 1985 ride to some
number other than XIII, but RAGBRAI officials held out. Hawarden
had been such a good starting point 10 years before that RAGBRAI
went back again that year. Almost 40 communities had written,
asking to be included in the RAGBRAI XIII route, so RAGBRAI
officials tried to include as many of them as possible. With the
gloomy farm economy, RAGBRAI provided a lift to Iowans' spirits,
especially in the rural areas.
The riders left Hawarden July 21 and rode to Sibley,
Emmetsburg, Humboldt (which had asked Cleveland-born Karras to
be its adopted native son, sort of in response to Offenburger's
reception in Shenandoah the year before), Mason City, Waterloo
and Monticello, ending for a second time in Clinton on July 27.
The 540-mile route was the longest in RAGBRAI history. The
wonderful receptions given the riders in previous years by Ames,
Ottumwa, Mason City and Waterloo served to alter our belief that
only the smaller communities knew how to be good hosts.
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RAGBRAI
XIV
July
20-26, 1986
Council Bluffs launched an intense campaign to get RAGBRAI back
to their city, and officials were able to accommodate them in
1986. RAGBRAI XIV, July 20-26, started on the grounds of Lewis
Central schools and the Iowa School for the Deaf, then proceeded
across the state stopping at Red Oak (in recognition of State
Trooper Bill Zenor and our baggage honcho, Dave England, both
RAGBRAI veterans), Audubon, Perry, Eldora, Belle Plaine and
Washington, ending in Muscatine. A loop through St. Anthony
provided a 100-mile day.
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RAGBRAI
XV
July
19-25, 1987
RAGBRAI XV in 1987, July 19-25, saw the ride returning to Onawa
for the third time as the starting point. The 437-mile long ride
stopped overnight in Denison, Storm Lake, Fort Dodge, Forest
City, Osage, West Union and ended in Guttenberg. Along the way,
riders went through Worth, Howard and Mitchell counties for the
first time. There was a loop through Corwith that provided a
Century Day. As the riders went through Worth County, more than
200 riders volunteered to search for an 18-month-old child who
had strayed into a cornfield. She was found primarily because of
their efforts. The week's weather was warm and humid. Karras
missed this ride with a heart attack.
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RAGBRAI
XVI
July
24-30, 1988
RAGBRAI officials didn't know what to expect in 1988. Iowa was
in the midst of a drought as the result of temperatures near the
100-degree mark for weeks on end. Officials had also selected a
route with more large communities than ever before. It was
uncertain whether they could put together hospitality to match
the receptions for which smaller towns had become famous. But,
they did, and it was a fantastic ride. The 433-mile RAGBRAI XVI,
July 24-30, started in a city park along the Missouri River in
Sioux City and continued through Ida Grove, Carroll, Boone, Des
Moines, Oskaloosa, Fairfield, ending in Fort Madison in
Riverside Park near the newly restored fort along the
Mississippi River.
Ida Grove, the smallest overnight town of the week,
outdid itself in hosting the riders, as did Des Moines, the
largest town of the week, where riders were allowed to camp on
the State Capitol lawn near downtown. A loop through Farlin
provided the now-traditional Century Day.
The earmark for the 1988 ride probably was a man named
Malcolm Starr. During registration for the ride it was brought
to the attention of RAGBRAI coordinator Don Benson that all
states in the U.S. were represented except Rhode Island. Rhode
Island took this as a challenge and made it their mission to
find a representative to send on the ride. A drawing was held
and a man named Malcolm Starr was the winner. Starr completed
the ride and has not been seen on RAGBRAI since.
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RAGBRAI
XVII
July
22-28, 1989
RAGBRAI XVII in 1989, started July 22 in Glenwood for the third
time, and 479 miles later ended in Bellevue for the first time.
(The ride also ended in the rain for the first time ever.) Stops
along the way included Clarinda (for the first time), Atlantic
(third time), Jefferson and Story City (both for the second
time), and first-time towns Cedar Falls and Dyersville. The
overnight stop in Cedar Falls, with the cool comfort of the
UNI-Dome and a spectacular light show at the University of
Northern Iowa, was one of the highlights of the week. The
Century Day loop on Day Five sent the riders through Wellsburg a
second time. Because of the hills in southwest Iowa and Jackson
County in the east, RAGBRAI XVII was dubbed by some to be the
toughest RAGBRAI ever. But, it has also been described as one of
the prettiest.
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RAGBRAI
XVIII
July
22-28, 1990
RAGBRAI XVIII, July 22-28, 1990, was laid out as the fourth
longest at 495 miles. It began in Sioux Center in northwest Iowa
for the first time. Sunday morning dawned clear and cool. It was
a perfect day, with the high in the low 80s and a tailwind. The
first three days from Sioux Center to Spencer and on to Algona
and Hampton were among the nicest in RAGBRAI history. (It was a
second time for both Spencer and Algona, the first for Hampton.)
But Wednesday brought the riders a 20-plus MPH headwind, making
the 86-mile day from Hampton to Oelwein one of the toughest
ever.
Those who rode the 16-mile Century Loop that day
appreciated the short tailwind stretches. The headwind continued
Thursday between Oelwein and Cedar Rapids (both first-time
communities). On top of the wind, it began raining about
mid-afternoon and continued most of the night, resulting in the
washout of most of Cedar Rapids' wonderful plans.
The wind was not as strong Friday when the riders left
Cedar Rapids, and it was a pretty ride through the Lake McBride
area. Iowa City welcomed the riders with open arms as they
passed through on their way to Washington (RAGBRAI's second time
there). Saturday dawned with more rain, which continued until
about 11 a.m. The ending reception in Burlington (the third
time), where the riders were given the option of riding down
famous ' Snake Alley,' was again outstanding. The 1990 ride
probably took the title of 'toughest' away from RAGBRAI XVII the
previous year.
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RAGBRAI
XIX
July
21-27, 1991
In 1991, RAGBRAI XIX, began in Missouri Valley on July 21 for
the third time and ended in Bellevue on July 27 for the second
time. That year, riders were hosted overnight for the fourth
time by Atlantic, Winterset and Knoxville (each for the first
time), Grinnell for the second time and Amana and Anamosa, both
first-time hosts. After the rainy ending that washed the
ceremonies out in Bellevue in 1989, RAGBRAI organizers had made
a concerted effort to take the ride back there in 1991. And, the
weather cooperated with a beautiful day.
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RAGBRAI
XX
The
20th Ride
July 19-25, 1992
For the fourth time in RAGBRAI history Glenwood was the setting
when the 1992 ride began on July 19. The riders pedaled from
Glenwood to Shenandoah for their second visit, then on to
first-time overnight hosts, the tiny towns of Bedford (to this
point the smallest town on RAGBRAI) and Osceola, both of which
did a marvelous job of hosting the ride. After an exhausting
ride in rain and headwinds when the riders left Osceola, they
entered ' Emerald City,' Des Moines' nickname and theme during
its second time as host of the ride. After bidding farewell to
Toto, Dorothy and the Scarecrow, riders pedaled on to Oskaloosa
for their second visit there, stayed in Mt. Pleasant (a town
that hosts Threshers and Old Settlers Day and is used to crowds)
and ended in Keokuk (for the second time) on July 25.
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RAGBRAI
XXI
July
25-31, 1993
In 1993, Sioux City saw the riders off (for the fourth time) on
July 25 for their ride to the first-time host town of Sheldon.
Then it was on to Emmetsburg, which had hosted the riders for
the first time in 1985; Clarion, another second-time host;
Osage, which had last seen the riders in 1987; Decorah, which
had waited since 1977 to host the riders again; and Manchester,
an overnight host 10 years earlier in 1983. Dubuque played
ending host town for the third time and was rained out for the
first time.
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RAGBRAI
XXII
July
24-30, 1994
The 1994 ride began in Council Bluffs for the third time on July
24 and ended in Clinton for the third time on July 30. Overnight
stops were Harlan, which had hosted riders in 1976 and 1983;
Carroll and Perry, which each put out the welcome mat for the
riders for the third time; Marshalltown, which had not seen the
riders since SAGBRAI in 1974; Marion, which hosted the riders
for the first time; and Maquoketa, the beautiful eastern Iowa
town which hosted the riders for the first time since 1978.
Nearly everyone agrees that this RAGBRAI enjoyed some of the
best weather ever "temperatures of 75-80 degrees each day
with low humidity and a tailwind on most days. Riders got to
enjoy 55 pass-through towns on this ride.
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RAGBRAI
XXIII
July
23-29, 1995
RAGBRAI XXIII took riders through several familiar stops after
beginning in Onawa for the fourth time. Lake View was a
pass-through town back in 1981, and with just 1,300 residents,
welcomed riders as one of the smallest overnight towns ever in
RAGBRAI history. Next, the riders traveled to Fort Dodge for the
third time and Iowa Falls for the second time. Riders
encountered their first ever 'century spur' during the leg from
Iowa Falls to Tama-Toledo, which also hosted riders for the
second time. The ride on to Sigourney, which hosted riders for
the first time in 20 years, proved that Iowa is not flat! In
fact, RAGBRAI XXIII will go down in history as producing Saggy
Thursday, a day as infamous as Soggy Monday was during RAGBRAI
IX. Not only did riders have to cope with a challenging terrain
on the Thursday that took them from Tama-Toledo to Sigourney,
they also had to withstand headwinds of up to 35 miles per hour,
plus heat and humidity! After Sigourney, they had a tremendous
stay in Coralville, a first-time host community which really did
things up right all in one location, before ending in Muscatine,
which was also the ending town in 1976 and 1986.
RAGBRAI XXIII riders also were joined in their trip
across Iowa by a group of about 300 cyclists making their way
across the country as part of the Iowa 150 Bike Ride/ A
Sesquicentennial Expedition headed up by ' Iowa Boy' Chuck
Offenburger. The Iowa 150 began in Long Beach on Memorial Day
and ended in Washington, D.C., on Labor Day as a prelude to
Iowa's Sesquicentennial celebration.
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RAGBRAI
XXIV
July
21-27, 1996
One thing that set the 1996 ride apart from other years was that
the hosting overnight towns were the smallest "both in
physical size and population " in RAGBRAI history, with
Fayette taking the title with fewer than 1,000 residents. The
ride started for a second time in Sioux Center (1990) and also
put in second visits to Sibley (1976), Estherville (1982) and
Charles City (1982). The ride stopped for a first time in Lake
Mills, Cresco and Fayette, before ending in Guttenburg for the
third time (1980, 1987). The other thing that will make this
ride stand out in riders' minds was the magnificent weather.
With cool temperatures in the 70s and low 80s accompanied by
tailwinds nearly every day, RAGBRAI XXIV was a breeze for many
seasoned riders. Total mileage for the year was 437 miles, with
the traditional optional 100-mile 'century loop.' But, for those
looking for a real challenge, the ride offered an optional
150-mile loop in conjunction with the Iowa Sesquicentennial
celebration, with nearly 1,100 riders accepting the challenge
and successfully completing the mileage.
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RAGBRAI
XXV
The
25th Ride
July 20-26, 1997
It's the general feeling of the old-timers that RAGBRAI's silver
anniversary provided the most difficult ride yet. The week
provided a hearty stew of heat, humidity and relentless hills
that challenged even the most accomplished riders.
The first day's ride of 82 miles from Missouri Valley
to Red Oak provided a rise of 3,403 feet while the humidity
climbed to 90 percent plus. That first day took a toll on many
riders, and the sag wagons ran much later than usual.
The following days were progressively less hilly,
though never flat. The route covered 464 miles and rose a total
of 14,493 feet -- that's more than 2.7 miles. And the humidity
was relentless. Overcast skies helped early in the week, but the
sun shown fiercely from Thursday through the end of the ride.
Though few riders had to be hospitalized, many were ill from
heat exhaustion.
On the up side, the towns were marvelously prepared
all across the state. The route itself was gorgeous, dipping
into wooded valleys and looping around Lake Rathbun on the
optional 100-mile loop. The ride began in Missouri Valley with
overnights in Creston, Des Moines, Chariton, Bloomfield and
Fairfield. The route went through Amish country, and the Amish
were out in force providing a warm welcome and great food.
RAGBRAI XXV also marked the realization of a goal the
founders had in mind almost from the beginning -- to take the
ride into each of Iowa's 99 counties. The last of the 99 was
Lucas, and its community of Chariton was a wonderful host.
Though one of the toughest ever, RAGBRAI XXV will also
be one of the most memorable.
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RAGBRAI
XXVI
The
26th Ride
July 19-25, 1998
RAGBRAI XXVI began as RAGBRAI XXV had - hot, humid and hilly -
and most hearts sank at the thought of a repeat of the previous
year. The first day, Hawarden to Cherokee, was continuous up and
down, and the forecast was for continuing heat through Thursday.
Partly compensating for the discomfort was RAGBRAI's first
symphony concert ever by the Cherokee Symphony Orchestra.
The second day, Cherokee to Rockwell City, was less
hilly but longer (83 miles) and just as hot. A lot of the
cyclists jumped into Twin Lakes and just sat there for awhile
before riding the last five miles to town into a headwind. The
third day dawned just as hot, but lo, about 9 a.m., a front came
sweeping through bringing cool relief along with it.
The rest of the week's ride was a delight. Rockwell
City to Boone was basically flat except for the infamous Pilot
Mound hill, which - despite new pavement - is just as steep as
ever. Boone to Eldora included a century koop through the
beatiful hills northeast of Marshalltown, and the next day,
Eldora to Cedar Falls, was only 46 miles. The big day, Cedar
Falls to Monticello, ws over 90 miles, but the weather was
benign, the terrain friendly and little towns along the way
rocked with food and entertainment.
The las day - 67 miles to the island town of Sabula -
was lovely, although there was one hill after another. All in
all, a good week.
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RAGBRAI
XXVII
The
27th Ride
July 25-31, 1999
Veteran RAGBRAIers agreed at the end of the week that the 1999
ride was the most challenging, the most difficult and the most
taxing ever. No previous RAGBRAI had been as intensely hot with
matching humidity. The official temperatures the first five days
were in the high 90s, which meant the temperature on the road in
the sun was over 100 degrees. The official temperature the sixth
day was 101 degrees. On that Decorah-to-Manchester day, the
stuff used to patch cracks in the road between Wadena and
Arlington actually turned into liquid. Tires made splashing
sounds as they went through it. The Fayette County engineer said
the pavement temperatures had to be between 120 and 140 degrees
to create that effect. To make matters more difficult, the days
were long and the last three very hilly. By Friday, many
participants had dropped out, whether going home or taking rides
in vehicles. The Iowa State Patrol had estimated that 13,000
riders left Rock Rapids at week's start and only 6,000 rode into
Manchester. On the plus side, all of the overnight and
pass-through communities were fantastically well prepared with
great quantities of food and drink, a lot of entertainment and
most imaginative decorations. The Des Moines Register celebrated
its 150th birthday with a light show and cupcakes on July 26 in
Algona. The northeast Iowa scenery, as always, was gorgeous. The
weather finally broke and cooled down to a comfortable level for
Saturday's finale into Bellevue. Other host communities were
Spencer, Algona, Clear Lake and Waverly.
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RAGBRAI
XXVIII
The
28th Ride
July 23-29, 2000
Brian Duffy,
the Register's political cartoonist, joined the short list of
RAGBRAI co-hosts, sharing the duties with John Karras, Grampa
RAGBRAI. After the hottest week of weather in RAGBRAI history
the year before, the week of RAGBRAI XXVIII turned out to be
balmy-high temperatures in the low 80s and partly cloudy most
days. There were a couple days of headwinds and one day of rain,
but on the whole a very pleasant week. But it was hilly, very
hilly, Rich
Ketcham, who graphs the hills on RAGBRAI routes, found this
one to be the fourth hilliest of all. The second day, from
Harlan to Greenfield was especially hilly with no help from a
headwind. There was not one totally flat day on the route. There
also was more gravel than usual, but not nearly as much as was
found when the route was first scouted in February. And wonder
of wonders, State Route 191 out of Council Bluffs, which looked
dreadful in February, had been repaved by July and was
wonderful. As for the challenging days, they were, indeed,
difficult, but RAGBRAI veterans were able to recall many, many
days that had been more difficult. And several of the most
difficult hills on the original route north of Stuart were
eliminated when the route had to be changed because paving of
that stretch had not been completed. The week started in Council
Bluffs at Harvey's Recreation Area, and overnighted in Harlan,
Greenfield, Ankeny ( a first), Knoxville, Ottumwa and Washington
before ending in Burlington. The route into Burlington also was
changed form the original plan and eliminated the legendary
Irish Hill, but added another that is shorter but steeper as the
ride entered Burlington. All of the communities were extremely
well prepared for the riders. There were four that RAGBRAI had
never visited: Fontanelle, Santiago, Olds and Winfield. It is
fair to say that a good time was had by most.
A sad note to the 28th ride was the announcement by
John Karras that this was his last as co-host, although he
admitted it would not be the last time he would be on the ride.
He says he is looking forward to being simply a participant and
not "working" on the ride. To commemorate Karras' role
as one of the co-creators of RAGBRAI, the RAGBRAI Century Loop
will join his name with that of the town through which it
travels - the John Karras Century Loop.
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RAGBRAI
XXIX
The
29th Ride
July 22-28, 2001
Four rainy weeks in May unexpectedly made RAGBRAI XXIX the
second longest and hilliest in the history of RAGBRAI. Because
of the rain, many of the highway construction projects were not
completed in time. The original ride had to be re-routed many
times for safety reasons in the last few weeks before the ride,
which added miles to an already long route. The good news is
there was no gravel on the ride this year, and any myths about
Iowa being flat were dispelled.
The ride offered very scenic vistas, terraced rolling
hills and occasional wooded valley floors. Many riders said the
high mileage days would have been manageable were it not for the
head winds. No matter which direction the route turned, the wind
faced the riders.
RAGBRAIers left Sioux City, the starting town, in a
downpour, and it continued to rain off and on all day. One of
the world
First time visits to the communities of Atalissa,
Baxter, Mingo and Ira proved well worth the trip. Although the
ride was too long, too hilly and too windy, ride organizers are
thankful that it also was not too hot and too humid.
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RAGBRAI
XXX
The 30th Ride
July 21-27,2002
Heat and humidity greeted RAGBRAI XXX participants on Saturday
afternoon in Sioux Center. As they pitched their tents, the
temperature rose to 102 degrees. The host town of Sioux Center
put on a memorable opening ceremony. Service personnel from all
branches of the military were represented. Featured was Team
Escape from New York that had been directly impacted by the
September 11, 2001 tragedy of the World Trade Center and
composed of firefighters and police officers from New York City.
The 30th RAGBRAI became a commemorative ride for our country and
a time to heal.
The heat and humidity continued Sunday, but riders reveled as
they traveled through Sioux County passing through the towns of
Orange City and Alton, onward across flat to undulating terrain
into Cherokee for the night. The heat broke with an intense
storm in Cherokee in the late afternoon.
Monday was the second hilliest day of the ride, with nearly
1,775 feet of climb through rolling hills. At 79 miles, it was
also the longest day of the ride. Emmetsburg, which takes pride
in its Irish roots was the third overnight stop.
Day four was flat to gently rolling with plenty of time to stop
and enjoy the prairie farming communities along the way. The day
included the optional John Karras Century Loop for those who
wanted to get in a 100-mile day. Coming into Forest City for the
night, the route passed the factory where Winnebago motor homes
are manufactured. Wednesday the riders left Forest City through
an avenue lined with American flags to kick off 9/11 Remembrance
Day, and riders decked themselves in patriotic attire. Charles
City greeted riders with an impressive arch of water from fire
trucks lining the entrance and a fly over by military fighter
planes.
Couples renewed their vows at the famous Little Brown Church
outside of Nashua Thursday morning. Rolling country roads guided
riders to the flats and into Oelwein for the night.
The overnight stop in Anamosa, known for its Grant Wood legacy,
is where the rain started in the middle of the night and
continued through Saturday morning. Local farmers with tractors
had to pull buses and the RAGBRAI baggage semi-truck from the
mud. Along with the rain, riders encountered the hilliest day
with a dozen hills that required granny gear. Those who rode
their bicycles into Bellevue, but those who rode their bikes
dipped their front wheel in the Mississippi River with a huge
feeling of accomplishment.
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RAGBRAI
XXXI
July 20-26, 2003
RAGBRAI 2003 set a course due
south for the first time in over ten years. After departing
Glenwood in a fog, the riders made their way through the heat to
Shenandoah where they were greeted by several thousand pink
flamingos - the theme Shenandoah chose for their welcome. The
temperature turned comfortable the next day, and with the
exception of a few rain showers, stayed that way for the rest of
the week.
While RAGBRAI XXXI weighed in as
the sixth hilliest ever, at one point passing through the Des
Moines River Valley, the consensus was that the history of the
area and scenery made the effort all worthwhile. The wave-like
terrain continued the rest of the ride through our overnight
stops in Bedford, Osceola, Oskaloosa, Bloomfield, Mount Pleasant
and into Fort Madison. On the way, veterans of the ride found
themselves passing through 11 towns never before visited by
RAGBRAI. As in years past, the hospitality extended to the
riders is what keeps them coming back to the state year after
year.
RAGBRAI
FACTOIDS
The Model to Follow
More than 40 other rides have been established throughout the
years taking their inspiration from RAGBRAI, including bicycle
rides in Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Georgia, Tennessee,
Florida, Colorado, Oregon,
Maryland, Ohio, Maine, Missouri, Illinois, Virginia, Rhode
Island, Minnesota, Delaware, New Mexico, Michigan, North Dakota,
New York, California, Washington, Arizona, Wyoming, Mississippi,
Texas, Kentucky, Utah,
Wisconsin, Indiana, New Hampshire, District of Columbia,
Massachusetts and North Carolina.
A Worldwide Attraction
RAGBRAI riders have come from throughout the world, primarily
because of newspaper coverage and articles written in newspapers
such as the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Chicago
Tribune, St. Paul Pioneer-Press,
San Francisco Chronicle, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, San
Diego Union, Miami Herald, Kansas City Star, and the Christian
Science Monitor.
Magazine Coverage
Major magazines such as TIME, Reader's Digest, Sports
Illustrated, Ford Times, Smithsonian, Saturday Evening Post,
National Geographic's Traveler, SHAPE, Bicycling and many others
have offered coverage of RAGBRAI.
Foreign magazines including VELO Tonic in France, and Sportrad
and National Geographic's Globo in Germany have sent reporters
who have ridden the ride and then reported on it in their
magazines. RAGBRAI officials receive many inquiries after the
articles are published. One key to RAGBRAI's success could be
Bil Gilbert of Sports Illustrated who came on the second ride
and wrote enthusiastically about it, prompting thousands to
come.
Nationwide Broadcast Coverage
In 1986, the NBC-TV TODAY Show was on the ride and in 1987
featured RAGBRAI on the Sunday evening news. CBS Television
included a report on RAGBRAI XVI in 1988 on its Friday evening
news. The NBC-TV TODAY Show returned to the ride in 1995 and
aired a live segment after spending three days on the ride. And
in 1997, CBS reporter Harry Smith rode part of RAGBRAI XXV and
prepared a report that aired on Travels with Harry. The networks
have produced at least three half-hour television shows
featuring the ride. IPTV has repeatedly broadcast coverage of
the ride through the years and in 1997 produced a video. A
German broadcast network joined the ride in 1996, along with a
news team from Rochester, Minnesota and a large contingent from
the United States Air Force.
8500 Annual Riders
In fact, the ride has become so popular that RAGBRAI officials
now limit the number of week-long riders to 8,500
in order to maintain a sense of control and insure fewer
injuries.
223,650 People Pedaled 14,560
Miles
At the end of RAGBRAI XXX, more than 223,650 people rode at
least some part of the 29 RAGBRAIs.Nobody knows how many people
have been touched in some way along the 14,650 total miles
covered by
RAGBRAI during its 31-year history.
Largest Daily Rider Counts
In 1988, an estimated 23,000 riders had taken part in the leg of
the ride from Boone to Des Moines by 3 p.m. In 1992, an
estimated 17,000 riders rode the leg of the ride into Des
Moines. And in 1997, an estimated 20,000 riders
pedaled into Des Moines from Creston.
Bicycle Shops
14 bicycle shops now participate in RAGBRAI, up from two in the
early years.
Visited 747 Towns
In 31 years, RAGBRAI has passed through 742 Iowa towns, spent
the night in 117 different overnight towns and with completion
of the 25th ride in 1997, has been in all of Iowa's 99 counties.
RAGBRAI has been through 78 percent of the incorporated towns in
Iowa.
In
Memory of 23
There have been 23 deaths in the course of 31 runnings of the
Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa, plus another
more than two years later form injuries suffered during the
ride. Remarkably, only two of the deaths was directly related to
the ride itself, and more remarkably yet, the event ran 11 years
before the first deaths occurred.
Those first two happened in 1984 when Mark Alfred
Knief, 28, of Oelwein, Iowa, suffered a heart attack and
died about 4 miles west of Corning. Later that week, Jan
Newell, 30, of Merced, Calif., unexplainably drowned in the
Des Moines River at Ottumwa. Both were in the medical field, he
an emergency medical technician and she a pediatrics nurse.
The next year, Charles Wallace Kithcart, 40, of
North Liberty, Iowa, was struck and killed by an out-of-control
van while walking his bicycle on a sidewalk in Emmetsburg. He
was a state employee at Oakdale.
The following year, 1986, Ramani Ramachandran,
29, of Madras, India, a University of Iowa doctoral candidate in
computer engineering, drowned in a farm pond north of Green
Mountain.
In 1987, John Boyle, 19, of Rockwell City,
Iowa, fell under the wheels of a flatbed trailer carrying a
fiberglass swimming pool about 9 miles north of Hardy and was
killed. His was the first death on RAGBRAI directly connected to
cycling.
The next year, Allen Gene Polikowski, 45, of
Denison, Iowa, died of a heart attack in his sleep.
There were no deaths in 1989 and 1990, but in the
latter year Thomas Short, 26, of Wheaton, Ill., broke his
neck in a mud-sliding accident in Cedar Rapids. After extensive
hospital treatment and rehabilitation, he lived three years as a
quadriplegic before passing away in 1993.
In 1991, Darrell Fox, 46, of Council Bluffs,
Iowa, suffered a heart attack and died about 6 miles west of
Underwood. He was an insurance agent with no history of heart
problems.
There were no deaths in 1992, but in 1993, Jon
Dominick, 31, of Iowa City, Iowa, was found dead at his
campsite the morning the ride was to begin in Sioux City. He had
a history of allergies and asthma. Two others, Shirley Mae
Cottrell, 50, of Dubuque, Iowa, and her mother-in-law, June
Cottrell, in her 70s, were killed later that week when their
van ran a stop sign at U.S. Highway 18 and was struck by a
truck. The women were accompanying a group of RAGBRAI riders.
The next fatality occurred in 1995 when Madeleo
Blake, 81, of Letts, Iowa, died of a heart attack while he
slept in a RAGBRAI campground in Tama. He was riding his 20th
RAGBRAI at the time.
Three riders died during RAGBRAI XXIV (1996). Dying of
heart attacks were Charles W. Lackmann, 55, of Mason
City, Iowa, and Normann Dietrich, 60, of Ames, Iowa, an
associate professor of landscape architecture. The third death,
that of Kurt Schuchart, 25, of Cedar Falls, Iowa, was
caused by complications of a rare malady called Ehlers-Danlos
Syndrome, relating to blood vessels bursting easily.
In 1997, LeRoy Curry, 61, an engineer from
Windsor Locks, Connecticut, collapsed of a heart attack in
northeast Union County. Mr. Curry was in excellent shape, and
though his death was difficult for his family, they knew he was
doing something he really loved.
There were no deaths in 1998, but in 1999 an
unfortunate accident took the life of Robert Thompson,
70, of Urbandale, Iowa. He had taken a ride on a golf cart in
the campground in Spencer, fell when the cart took a sharp turn,
and hit his head, resulting in a fatal injury. He had been on
RAGBRAI before, and on this ride was participating as a support
driver for his two sons, Dennis and Jerry.
The second death related to the ride occurred in 2000
the day before the ride began. Carl Cutchins of Amherst,
Mass., hit a concrete barrier and fell into the path of traffic
while cycling on an overpass of Interstate Highway 80 in Council
Bluffs. He was pronounced dead at St. Joseph's Hospital in
Omaha. Cutchins, a counselor, had planned to ride RAGBRAI XXVIII
with his son, Doug, an administrator at Grinnell College.
A heart attack claimed the life of another RAGBRAI
rider in 2001. Richard Arndt, 74, of Storm
Lake, Iowa, was riding with his son and daughter-in-law a few
miles outside of Storm Lake, the first overnight town, when he
fell from his bike. He was taken by ambulance to Buena Vista
Regional Medical Center where he died. His son, Tom, said that
his father was doing exactly what he wanted to be doing. Mr.
Arndt was a retired meat inspector with the USDA.
Heart attacks were also the cause of death for two riders in
2002 on RAGBRAI XXX. Lawrence Grable, 53, of Jenks,
Oklahoma collapsed on Monday near Cherokee. Roger Horn, 62, of
Clear Lake, Iowa, who was staying in the home of a host family
in Rudd, died in his sleep on Wednesday night. Grable, an
account rep for Cain's Coffee, was aware of a heart condition
prior to joining the ride, and Horn, a former dentist, reported
not feeling well before going to bed.
Two deaths occurred in 2003; both from heart attacks. Joseph
Hartogh, 66, of Cedar Rapids was riding with his two sons when
he collapsed about four miles outside of Blakesburg on Thursday.
One of the sons, who is a nurse, performed CPR until the
ambulance arrived about three or four minutes later. His wife
wrote that he "couldn't have had quicker help, it just
wasn't meant to be." Robert Guthrie, Jr., 48, of
Marshalltown died in his sleep in his tent in Bloomfield on
Friday, July 25.
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