Thursday, July 28, 2005

RAGBRAI Day Pass- Algona to Northwood

Several months ago, my parents told us that the ride was stopping overnight in their town of 2000 people. There would be an estimated 10,000 riders that would turn the small town into something of a tent city. The town had been on the route before, but never as an overnight stop. This was history in the making. We simply had to attend.

I've never ridden RAGBRAI before, but having lived in Iowa, I was familiar with the phenomenon, albeit as an outsider. I had all sorts of preconceived ideas about what it would be like. I was even somewhat ambivalent about the idea. We knew we didn't have the time for the entire week-long ride, so we opted for a day pass. I realize many people ride "unofficially," but since my parents were volunteers, and since we could, we applied for a day pass. The process was so complicated that I understood why some people poached the ride. Additionally, the week passes were full- so apparently they didn't want or need any additional money.

My wife and I drove down to stay with my parents, who live in Northwood, after the Rosemount crit. I had considered taking a fixed gear for RAGBRAI, but it was enough effort squeezing my racing bike and my wife's road bike into the back of the Toyota. I took along my regular wheels as well, since I didn't want to risk cutting up my racing tires. We unpacked and prepared for tomorrow's 6am departure for Algona.

We somehow left on time, despite the early hour, and drove to Algona. I was shocked to see acres and acres of huge windmills on a series of "wind farms." I had been almost 14 years since I'd really been anywhere in Iowa beyond the three mile corridor off I35 to my parents' house. They practically live on the border. As approached Algona, there appeared to be a long caravan of RVs, buses, and support vehicles headed the opposite direction to set up camps for the impending onslaught or riders later in the day. This also raised a bit of anxiety that we would be quite late to leave.

We actually were ready to ride the 82 mile leg shortly before 8am. The weather was quite cool- almost cold- and we had nothing but our summer gear. We easily found the route out of Algona, and started toward Titonka, the first stop. There were all kinds of bikes and cyclists- as far as the eye could see, stretched out across the ribbon of county blacktops and back roads. Many rode two or three abreast, rendering passing a lane-changing proposition. It felt like riding in a rush hour traffic snarl of bikes. Comfortable speeds seemed to range in the 16-18 mph range- without appearing crazed or frenetic. This did not appear to be a good place to try a rotating paceline to maintain a 20+ mph average with a group or racing buddies. In fact, even at its slower speeds, it felt more dangerous than the previous night's race.

We had a fun ride, soaking in the sights and ambience of the ride. As we crossed I35, I was a bit sad that our ride was so close to being finished. When we rolled into Northwood, I could barely recognize the town. Streets had been blocked off downtown for two stages and a huge "beer garden." The high school grounds, the fairgrounds, and the city park were converted into tent cities. Tents and RVs were parked on many yards. Porta-potties were everywhere. This was probably the most people that had ever been in town in its history. Food and beer were plentiful- and dirt cheap.

In the evening, the Governor's wife (apparently the governor couldn't make it) presented Bob Breedlove's family with a plaque and a proclamation honoring today as Bob Breedlove day, in recognition of his death a few months ago. It was very emotional for his family. I thought it was a bit creepy that all sorts of people were wearing orange T-shirts in his honor that read, "It's another day in paradise." Apparently, that was his favorite quote.

A few general observations: the average age of a RAGBRAI rider was much older than I'd imagined. I'd guess it was closer to 45, if not older. Also, there were riders from all over the country- Texas, California, Florida, Ohio, everywhere. Oddly, there seemed to be a bizarre crossover with stereotypic Sturgis, Harley-riding bike culture. While still clad in plenty of lycra, these weren't your effete, stuck-up elitist, road bikers. I also saw plenty of old road bikes, tandems, and what you would call a tandem for three, recumbents, recumbent tandems, mountain bikes, cruisers, and the most hardcore of all, in my opinion: the tourers that carried all their own gear without benefit of a support truck (or bus, or RV).

In all, it was a great time- something that should be experienced for at least a day, by anyone interested in crazy organized ride culture.


Titonka- The first town on the route
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Woden- Another tiny village




Lake Mills


Me- (I ran into four other GP guys- that I didn't even know)


More Lake Mills


Northwood- A happening place for a night




2 comments:

Funknuggets said...

nice post man, Ive always wondered what Ragbrai offered for racers. Sounds a lot like MS150, but more beer. I will try to avoid, unless I go with a bunch of friends who don't mind imbibing a few.

filtersweep said...

Bob Breedlove was apparently a huge Ragbrai fan... and rumor has it, some serious racer types leave at the crack of dawn to miss the mobs of bikes... but I never saw anything like that. Frankly, I felt a bit odd riding a full carbon Look, considering how many "vintage" road bikes I saw- not to mention all the non-road bikes.

I think Ragbrai would be a very cool way to spend an entire week on a bike- and food and beverages were embarassingly cheap by my city price standards. But I'd probably enjoy it even more if I had a grey beard and a Brooks saddle ;)