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Iowa hospitality shines as RAGBRAI nears end
‘I didn’t know that I could love Iowa and be more proud’
Thousands of cyclists streamed Friday into their last overnight stop of Mount Pleasant as they neared the end of their 434-mile trek across the state in the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa — the hilliest route in the event’s 51-year history.
The southern route this year bypassed the Corridor, bringing cyclists instead through the closest meetup town of Fairfield and the overnight stop of Mount Pleasant. The ride, which got underway Sunday in Glenwood and ends today in Burlington, included an optional 15.5-mile century loop — which made for a 100-mile day — on Friday near Wayland.
Riders began their next-to-the-last day in Ottumwa, and stopped briefly in Eldon before coming to Fairfield to grab lunch, dance to live music and rest their legs before hitting the road again and traveling to Brighton, Wayland, Trenton and eventually Mount Pleasant.
Holly Frary of Mount Pleasant was on her maiden voyage of RAGBRAI. She had been training since February, and logged 1,200 miles in five months to get in shape.
“I’ve cycled for many years, but never had the opportunity to take an entire week to ride,” she said. “This is the first opportunity I’ve had to ride the entire week, so I jumped.”
Frary said the highlight of the ride so far has been an increased appreciation for her home state.
“I didn’t know that I could love Iowa and be more proud of this state, but RAGBRAI has proved me wrong,” she said. “The overall hospitality of the towns and the riders. I’ve met people from all over the world this week. When you’re riding with 20,000-30,000 people every day, you have that one common thread. You’re all here for the same passion, the same reason, and that’s really cool to me.”
Frary said most riders assumed that the most grueling day of the week would be Day 3 from Atlantic to Winterset because it would be so long (82 miles, the second longest day) and the day with the most feet of climb at 4,519, when no other day had more than 3,200 feet.
However, Frary said it was actually the following day, from Winterset to Knoxville, that really wore her down.
“We rode about 160 miles in two days with 8,000 feet of elevation, so that last 10-15 miles of Wednesday’s ride was really mental for me,” she said. “It got really hot, and I was starting to feel some fatigue. But there were a ton of farmhouse stands with pickle juice, electrolytes and lemonade. There are tents and tables set up the entire route to fuel us as we go.”
Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com
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