RAGBRAI update, Day 3
Monday RAGBRAI summary:
Jefferson, Ia. — Riders crawled out of their beds and sleeping bags early Monday to tackle the 83 miles between Harlan and Jefferson, the longest single-day stretch during the 2008 edition of the Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa.
Many joined the rolling river of bikes well before sunrise, when hundreds of blinking red taillights lined the road leading east from Harlan.
Although many of the hills were steeper along the previous day's route, riders on Monday faced an almost endless series of long, punishing inclines. One biker who grew up in the area flashed a wicked grin and described the terrain as "rolling."
The 28-mile stretch from Exira to Coon Rapids was particularly challenging. Thousands stopped for free bananas or cups of ice water offered by the Iowa Air National Guard halfway between the towns.
Other riders simply filed behind Robert Kiefer of Cedar Rapids, who hauled a solar-powered stereo behind his bike.
Like a spandex-clad Pied Piper, he pedaled past a hillside covered with blue cornflowers and cattle while the speakers thumped out Aqua's 1997 hit "Barbie Girl."
The cows didn't seem to notice, but it motivated the bikers.
"I usually average about 15 miles per hour, which most people can manage," Kiefer said. "I've done RAGBRAI for four years and pulled a stereo for the last three. The first year I pulled a cooler of beer."
Hazy clouds came and went, and humidity lingered. Temperatures peaked in the mid-80s, but a steady breeze kept things from feeling as hot as they could have.
Still, the paramedics at the University of Iowa's medical trailer had their hands full most of the day. "Today was much busier than yesterday," Dr. Chris Hogrefe said. "People knew about the distance, but they didn't pay much attention to the changes in elevation, which got to them. If people get tired, they just stop thinking."
But in case anyone felt overconfident, a 250-foot climb out of the Raccoon River valley lurked on the final stretch into Jefferson.
It turned out heat wasn't the riders' nemesis Monday. A late-afternoon storm drenched riders in the Scranton area.
While some riders soldiered on toward town, about a dozen cyclists pulled off the road at a farmhouse to seek shelter. The name on the mailbox: Stormer.
Picture of a RAGBRAI cycling hazard: Team Roadkill from Coon Rapids, Iowa 
Tuesday Route and Mileage: 57 miles Climb: 1,377 feet
With the second shortest mileage of the route, the ride to Ames is 57 miles. The road stays flat until it reaches Boone and the Des Moines River valley, where there a few hills will await riders. We can be thankful that none of the hills rivals Pilot Mound. A flat section and a few little hills later, riders will arrive in the heart of Cyclone country.
GO NICK!!
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?categ ory=ragbrai&template=landing
Just click on the Mr. Pork Chop video lower middle right of page.
Boner
