There is a scene in the documentary film, “How to Run 100 Miles,” when the subject of the film is sitting in front of his computer laughing. When his buddy behind the camera asks him why he is laughing, he responds, “I just signed up to run a 100 mile race.” I had the same reflex anytime I told somebody I was going to ride my bike across Iowa this summer.
Let’s back up to October 2017 when on camping trip with some friends and the following idea was thrown around camp. Was anyone interested in biking the C&O trail from D.C. to Harpers Ferry, WV? Of course the answer was yes. It is always yes. But my answer was predicated on the fact that this trip had always been on my to-do list since moving to the District in 2014; but I always had some excuse why it wasn’t the right time to make the trip. Not in shape to ride 120 plus miles in a weekend. Don’t have the appropriate gear. Bike isn’t suited for gravel riding. Who would I ride with?
Like most ridiculously crazy ideas, we all left the campsite that weekend stoked on the idea. In theory. None of us believed the trip would actually be organized, so we were all cool with the idea stoke. About a week later we received an email from Mauricio asking who was in on this adventure. A weekend three weeks out had been identified. Suddenly that “hell yes, I’m in!” from the campground was a “yeah, I’m in! (what the eff have I signed up for?).” I had never ridden my bike longer than 20 miles in a single day. Long story short, it was an epic trip, and each of us embraced the suck on the second day as we were destroyed by a cold rain and brutal trail conditions. The moment we rode back into Georgetown on day two, the pain and suffering miraculously vanished and we were asking ourselves what came next. We would soon find out the answer was: RAGBRAI.
Obviously, the logical progression after completing a 140 mile two day trip is to tackle seven days and 420 plus miles across an entire state. Do you understand why I a laugh anytime I utter those words? The whole idea was ridiculous but damn, what an epic time we had at RAGBRAI. The best way to describe the experience is that RAGBRAI resembles a rolling summer festival through small town Americana. And pie. And pork chops. Tenderloins. Beer. And quite possibly my favorite snack of the entire week was two ham and cheese sandwiches from an Amish family. So simple yet so, so perfect.
Stats from the week:
7 days, 500 miles
Shortest day - 40 miles
Longest day - 120 miles
Number of cornfields peed in - 4(?)
Number of KYBOs (look it up) - A lifetime’s worth
Stops at the Iowa Craft Beer Trailer - 14 (out of 14) - Damn right I #EarnedIt
10 total days camping
River dips - 2 (Missouri and Mississippi)
Total elevation gained - waaaay more than you’d think for Iowa. It ain’t flat, people!!
Special shout out to the U.S. Air Force Cycling Team who are heroes in every way. If you were stopped on the side of road with a mechanical issue, they were there to assist you before you figured out what was wrong. And they are damn good cyclists. They saved my bacon on the century loop and the least I could do was pull a few miles to express my gratitude.
