10 Things You Didn’t Know About RAGBRAI - America’s Largest Bike Ride

It's that time of year again! What better way to start your day than reading about ten things you didn't know about the popular week-long biking trip across Iowa known as RAGBRAI. Preparation for RAGBRAI started many weeks ago for you-I would hope, unless you spontaneously decided that you want to spend the week biking miles and miles without any practice, in that case,  good luck! Now, RAGBRAI is not only a week-long biking adventure across the whole state of Iowa, it is basically a week full of fun.  It takes place the last full week of July (yes, July is very hot and humid in Iowa, but it is well worth the experience) and starts somewhere near Iowa's western border and ends along the eastern border at the Mississippi. Many wonder how RAGBRAI ever came about, well, it all started when a columnist of The Des Moines Register was challenged by another columnist to bike across the state of Iowa; turns out, they both ended up accepting the challenge of biking across Iowa and decided to invite whoever else wanted to join, the rest is history! Take a look at ten interesting facts that many people don't know about RAGBRAI.

10 Things You Didn't Know about RAGBRAI:

1. RAGBRAI, started in 1973, is known as the Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa
2. It is the longest (468 miles), largest (20,000+ participants), and oldest (going on the 43rd year) bicycle tour event in the world
3. Throughout the years, more than 326,650 participants have biked the state of Iowa in RAGBRAI. This totals 19,542 total miles biked.
4. 780 towns and 99 counties in Iowa have been passed through- that is 80% of Iowa's towns!
5. 40% of riders are from Iowa and nearly 100 participants come from out of the country just for RAGBRAI.
6. From young kids to older adults, there is a wide range of ages involved in RAGBRAI, the average age is 46.9 years old.
7. Although RAGBRAI is a lot of fun, there are still dangers involved in the week-long bike tour:
   • Dehydration/sunstroke- drink lots of water and take breaks when needed.
   • Destroyed knees can develop due to a lack of training
     • BraceAbility knee braces can help minimize and protect your knee from pain (check them out).
   • Saddle sores also occur from lack of training
   • Sunburn (bring your sunscreen!!)
8. Activities on activities- eating, drinking, and concerts make up basically every night.
9. Eat your way across Iowa!
   • Every town has their most delicious food advertised and ready to serve you.
10. Camping out every night is the popular thing to do.
    • Go to bed late after an exhausting day and wake up early the next!

The facts just keep coming, there are months and months of preparation that goes into the long, fun-filled week of RAGBRAI. Taking the proper safety precautions and correctly preparing yourself for your trip across Iowa will ensure that you have one of the best experiences and weeks of your life.