RAGBRAI 2022

During the period July 23-30, I participated in the Register's Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI). This event started with an exposition on Saturday (Day 0) in the town of Sergeant Bluff, then consisted of a seven day bike ride, with overnight stays in several towns, concluding in Lansing. The entire course is shown below, color-coded by day.

RAGBRAI 2022 Course

You may think that Iowa is flat. I assure you it is not. The first day took us through the Loess Hills. The last day wound through hills near the Mississippi River. In between, the terrain was a lot of rolling hills.

This year the event included an Imperial century day as part of the official course. In recent years there has been no century day, but on one day each year, there was the option to complete an additional loop to bring the total miles for that day to at least 100.

The weather was nearly perfect. It rained a few times, but never on me while I was out on my bike. Last year, it was so hot and humid that I left the campground in the dark every morning just to get as many miles in as possible before the heat of the day could build. This year, the temperatures topped out in the mid 80s and it was actually chilly several mornings, as low as 55 degrees. I was staying in campgrounds and was glad I brought a sleeping bag.

I stopped for ice cream at Beekman’s only once, on the century day. The rest and calories were wonderful even though it was only 9AM. I had already been on the road for 4 hours at this point.

Beekman’s Ice Cream

In Pocahontas, I wandered by the main campground and its baggage claim area. Most riders put their gear (tent, clothing, etc) on a truck each morning and meet the truck at the next overnight town. Claiming your luggage can be an exercise in searching...

Baggage Claim

The skies got gloomy but did not open up in Emmetsburg.

Emmetsburg Campground

On the last day, it is a tradition for riders to dip their front wheels in the Mississippi River. Because I started early, I was finished early, before the crowd, and there was no line at the wheel dip site in Lansing.

Lansing Wheel Dip

I haven't seen official counts of actual registered participants. The only thing I can say is that I personally saw thousands of riders. How can I say this? I finished early on Day 7 (Saturday) and was in my car heading home to Virginia when my route crossed the official RAGBRAI route. For about 2 miles, in the town of Waukon, I saw the oncoming lane completely filled with riders who were still on the course.

Notes

• Total Mileage: 469.2
• Total Climb: 13,041 feet
• Longest Single Day: 104.8 miles (new personal record and first century ride)
• Greatest Single Day Climb Total: 2,963 feet (new personal record)

Daily Summary

I stayed in charter service campgrounds. These numbers are directly off my Garmin bike computer and they do not exactly match the official course because my ride each day was from/to the charter service's campgrounds, not the main RAGBRAI campgrounds.

Day 1: Sergeant Bluff to Ida Grove, 53.9 miles, 2467 feet of climb

Day 1: Sergeant Bluff to Ida Grove

Day 1 Elevation Profile

Day 2: Ida Grove to Pocahontas, 72.6 miles, 1873 feet of climb

Day 2: Ida Grove to Pocahontas

Day 2 Elevation Profile

Day 3: Pocahontas to Emmetsburg, 57.3 miles, 669 feet of climb

Day 3: Pocahontas to Emmetsburg

Day 3 Elevation Profile

Day 4: Emmetsburg to Mason City, 104.8 miles, 1847 feet of climb, thankfully there was a consistent wind from the West. The first part of this day's course backtracked the end of the previous day's course.

Day 4: Emmetsburg to Mason City

Day 4 Elevation Profile

Day 5: Mason City to Charles City, 48.7 miles, 1240 feet of climb

Day 5: Mason City to Charles City

Day 5 Elevation Profile

Day 6: Charles City to West Union: 63.6 miles, 1982 feet of climb

Day 6: Charles City to West Union

Day 6 Elevation Profile

Day 7: West Union to Lansing, 68.3 miles, 2963 feet of climb, the hill climb at mile 15 was very steep: at one point my GPS unit reported a 9% grade. The descent to the Mississippi River around mile 60 was very fast, with sustained speeds in the high 20s, peaking at 38mph.

Day 7: West Union to Lansing

Day 7 Elevation Profile

I had a great time biking, seeing Iowa from the Missouri River to the Mississippi River, meeting lots of fellow riders, and enjoying Iowa hospitality.

RAGBRAI Training #2 (2022)

RAGBRAI starts in a few days. It feels like I’ve been a training slacker because I spent two weeks in Alaska, then was really tired when I returned home, and then there was rain. I haven’t spent much time on my bike lately. I’ve used the indoor trainer some.

So far in 2022, I’ve ridden 1273 miles outdoors, with an additional 1952 virtual miles on Zwift. I’ve had two weekends of three days off during which I rode on the W&OD all three days, for roughly 180 miles each of those weekends. Hopefully I’m at least as well-prepared this year as I was last year at this time.

What’s different this year is the century day. I’ve never ridden 100 miles in a day. Next week, I’ll do it in the middle of a week of riding every day. I have a nutrition and hydration plan. I hope it’s a good plan.

Alaska

Earlier this year, the Air Force reassigned my daughter to Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson. She reported for duty early in January. She planned to bring her dog, but at the last minute, was told by the airline that they could not take her dog because it was too cold in Alaska.

So, she sent her dog to me in Virginia. Ironically, it was colder that day in Northern Virginia than in Anchorage. We selected a time frame during which it would be neither too hot in Virginia nor too cold in Alaska for the dog to travel. I delivered the dog, visited my daughter, then took a cruise.

Of course I was jet lagged that first morning in Alaska. I went for a walk in my daughter’s neighborhood and saw some moose.

Moose with calves

During the week in Anchorage:

• We hiked.

  

  Anchorage from Flattop Mountain

• Tried to see Denali on a partly cloudy day. By the time we got there, it was overcast.
• Visited some parks in Anchorage.

  

  Moose in Earthquake Park

  
  
• Saw lots of moose.

My daughter drove us to the cruise port in Whittier, where my wife and I boarded the Royal Princess. This was our second Alaska cruise, having previously cruised from Vancouver to Whittier on the Pacific Princess.

Royal Princess at the Dock in Skagway

On this cruise:

• We visited Hubbard Glacier on a dreary overcast day.

  

  Hubbard Glacier

  
  
• We visited Glacier Bay.

  

  Glacier Bay

  
  
• We made port calls in Skagway, Juneau, and Victoria, ending in Vancouver.

The cruise ship used the new medallion instead of a cruise card. It would unlock our stateroom door from 50 feet away, which was kind of weird.

The check in experience at the Vancouver airport was the worst of my life. After 80 minutes in line for the check in agent, there was another long line to get through security and yet another long line at US passport control. It was a full 2.5 hours from our arrival at the airport to our arrival at our boarding gate. Thankfully we deliberately took a flight that gave us LOTS of time. Then our flight took off a little late. That cut our margin at our already tight connection in Chicago. We had one of those customary long O’Hare taxi rides after landing to get to the arrival gate. Finally off the plane, we dashed to our next gate, only to find that the flight was delayed. And delayed again. And again delayed. Finally we boarded and departed, only to spend a long time in a long line of other aircraft waiting for takeoff. When we landed, it took a long time to get our baggage. We finally arrived home about 2AM.

Armed Forces Cycling Classic Challenge Ride

Armed Forces Cycling Classic Challenge Ride Route

Today I participated in the Armed Forces Cycling Classic Challenge Ride. I’ve never, until today, participated in any timed cycling event. The challenge was to ride as many laps as possible in three hours. This was not a race against people; it was a race against the clock.

When I signed up, I looked at the course: 6.5 miles. I looked at my best speeds for my rides this year. I did the math. I could expect to complete 7 laps, or maybe 8 if I had a good day.

So I showed up, stood in the starting area with hundreds of other riders, and waited for the start. I was worried that I might crash in the mass of riders as the race began. It was crowded for a while but eventually people spread out. My first lap could have been faster, but for all the slower riders in the way for the first mile or so.

The first few laps were ridiculously fast (for me anyway). I occasionally got stuck in a bunch of slower riders or crowded by pace lines, but mostly I could ride at my own pace. When I finished lap 4 and I was still managing to hold 20 mph, I had the first inkling that maybe I could complete 9 laps.

But then the wind picked up and I started to tire. My lap times started to increase. There were 2 portions of the outbound course that were particularly tough climbs (not steep, but hard to do when I was tired) directly into the wind. Nothing on the entire course was all that steep, but I found it hard to keep my speed up. I forced myself to drink even though I wasn’t thirsty. I ate Blok energy food even though I wasn’t hungry: I was afraid I would bonk.

I passed the Start/Finish line with about 25 minutes left at the end of lap 8. Lots of riders were leaving the course. I knew I’d regret it if I didn’t try for a 9th lap. I started lap 9. I had a cramp right after the turnaround in Rosslyn. I saw the broom wagon on the outbound side of the course as I was passing Arlington National Cemetery inbound. I finished the 9th lap with 1 minute to spare.

Notes:

• 9 laps was the minimum for the gold medal group, so I got my gold medal.
• Total distance: 58.4 miles, 1775 feet of climb, 19.6 mph average speed.
• At one point I was riding along mostly by myself when I was overtaken by a peloton. I had riders passing me on both sides.
• I saw one crash happen about 100 feet in front of me.
• This was the “Armed Forces Cycling Classic”. I wore my US Army Jersey. There were lots of Navy and Army and Air Force jerseys. Some spectators near the end of each lap yelled “Go Army!”, several times as I went by.
• I rested for several days before the event. I’m certain that helped a lot. 
• I was worried about hydration, but it was a cool morning so I didn’t sweat much. I had 2 bottles of water mixed with Skratch. I ate a breakfast with carbs and sugar before the event. I have no idea if the calories in the water and the 4 Bloks that I ate had any effect, but I never felt close to bonking.
• My usual training ride course on the W&OD trail is almost 60 miles and I usually take a break halfway. This ride was nearly as far but faster and with no breaks. I was worried that I’d fade. And I did fade: my last few laps were significantly slower than my first few. But even those slower laps were faster than I usually ride on the W&OD.
• I set 2 personal records: max speed over a 40 km course and max average power over 20 minutes. I have no idea why I was so fast relative to my usual speed. I’m speculating that it’s the combination of relatively flat course, rest, adrenaline, great weather (except for the wind), a good road surface, and a clear performance goal.
• If I do it again: drink and eat more on the bike, eat a snack in the starting area, drink water in the car on the way to the event.

Overall, I’m very happy with my results, having exceeded even my stretch goal of 8 laps.

Shortly Before the Start

Gold Finisher Medal

RAGBRAI Training #1 (2022)

I signed up for RAGBRAI again. I had so much fun in 2021, I decided to do it again. Actually, in addition to the fun, I liked having a goal that guided my training.

I’ve been using Zwift all Winter and Spring so, as the weather finally warmed up here in Virginia, I’m starting the outdoor riding season in good shape. My crucial test last year about my RAGBRAI readiness was a 3 day weekend during which I rode 60 miles each day. This year I accomplished that same goal pretty early in the season.

This year there is a century day during RAGBRAI. I’ve never ridden a century and I wanted to do one before going to Iowa. I signed up for the 6 Pillars Century Ride, but the weather was awful that day and I reluctantly rolled my registration to next year. So my first century ride ever will be during RAGBRAI. This is easily the biggest concern I have about RAGBRAI this year: whether I’ll have a hard time on the century day. Last year there were 2 days of 80+ miles. The century day is not THAT much longer. Nevertheless, I’ve never done it so I’m concerned about preparation.

So far (late May), I’ve done my usual W&OD trail training ride 12+ times this year. That compares with 15 times last year before RAGBRAI. I still have 2 months to train; undoubtedly I’ll get more of those 60+ mile rides done.

Of note:

• This was the first hot weekend. I took deliberate steps to drink more, eat more, and rest more. I’m testing my hydration strategy (Skratch mix) and food strategy (eat before riding, Clif bar, then Blok energy food).
• I LIKE MY NEW BIKE. My Canyon Endurace is a dream to ride. This weekend marked a thousand miles on it. The electronic shifting is smooth and reliable and I don’t have to index the gears. The stiff frame transfers power nicely.
• I put a great saddle on it. No ass problems yet.
• My winter training did wonders. I’m setting personal records on courses that I’ve ridden a hundred times.
• Yesterday I took a break in Purcellville. I was sitting there, quietly eating and drinking, when a car went by. The driver slowed down, rolled his window down, and yelled, “Geaux Tigers!”. I was wearing an LSU jersey. Later that day, I passed a biker going in the opposite direction. After he passed me, he yelled back, “War Eagle!” The lesson: wear interesting jerseys.

Alpe du Zwift and Winter Training

When my son graduated from high school in 2019, I suddenly had a lot more time on my hands. His sporting events were over. I no longer had to drive him around to school and practice and other events because he finally got his driver’s license. What to do with the extra time? I bought a new bike.

I’m now in my third winter since getting that bike. I’m in my Winter training time. But let me digress…

I’ve had several phases in life during which I would get excited about bike riding, then ride all Summer, building fitness, only to stop for the Winter because it was just too cold to ride outside. I tried stationary trainers but just didn’t stay with the routine. Then Spring would arrive, and my first few rides outside were cold and I was in awful shape so I was always sore at the beginning of the outdoor riding season. After years of this cycle, I would get busy with other things and stop riding altogether. This “ride for a few years then quit” cycle happened a few times.

Now I’m back on the bike, and had the same problem: I need a way to stay fit over the Winter. This time I have some advantages: technology has improved and I have a bigger budget.

I bought a turbo trainer and, for the first Winter, I used Rouvy. It was OK, and I definitely improved my fitness over the Winter, but I decided to try Zwift during my second Winter training cycle.

After a few months of regular Zwift use, I decided to do the Alpe du Zwift climb. I had ridden (virtually) every day for a few weeks before that and I was pushing myself a lot, knowing that I was about to leave on vacation and have a break from training. I finished that climb absolutely exhausted and my first few days of vacation were a new experience in soreness. But, I did it.

Upon my return from vacation, I spent a lot of time on the trainer, climbed Alpe du Zwift a few more times, and entered the outdoor riding season in the best shape in 20+ years. I trained indoors to build power. Once I got outside, I started training for distance to be ready for RAGBRAI.

OK, nice review of history, but what’s the point?

I’m taking a moment to reflect upon my fitness improvement progress:

• In 2019, when I first got my new bike, I was tired after only eight miles. I was getting passed by other bikers all the time. My average ride speed was awful.
• In 2020, my stamina was better, my speed was better, and I was still awfully slow. I had a lot of time off from work because of the COVID-19 pandemic and I rode a lot.
• In 2021, my fitness continued to improve, my average ride speed finally topped 16mph (in hills), and it’s no big deal for me to ride 50+ miles at any time.
• In early 2022, just yesterday, I climbed Alpe du Zwift for the 9th time (finally got the wheels), and I feel good enough to climb it again today.

After nearly three years of riding, I’m in good shape, I feel great, I’ve lost weight, and my resting heart rate is in the high 40s. And most importantly, I still enjoy cycling.

Sauna

I’ve never understood saunas. Why? What makes people sit in an uncomfortably hot room?

Recently, I stumbled upon several videos and web articles about the benefits of saunas. To sum them up:

• They spur the production of heat shock proteins. These proteins help the body to naturally eliminate bad cells, such as the precursors to cancer and dementia.
• Blood pressure is reduced because so much blood has to be sent to the skin to assist in cooling.
• All cause mortality is reduced in men who regularly bathe in a sauna.

This piqued my interest. I did a lot more research. I’m convinced that it’s in my best interest to at least try sauna bathing. My wife really likes scalding-hot baths. She loves the heat. Between the two of us, it seems like a home sauna would get a lot of use. We bought one.

So, with only a week of experience with it, here’s my initial reaction:

• Jumping in right after a workout seems to lead to faster recovery. I feel less tired after a post-workout sauna session. This could just be in my head of course.
• I start sweating profusely. I need three towels: one to sit on, one to wipe the sweat off my body, and one to put under my feet to keep a pool of sweat from forming on the floor.
• My heart rate goes up to the same rate as if I was doing a moderate cycling workout, even when I’m sitting still in the sauna.
• I’m still thirsty after drinking 32 ounces of water during/after a sauna session.
• I feel good for the rest of the day, even if the preceding workout was very demanding.

Will I stick with it after the novelty wears off? Too early to tell. Is it going to help my long term health? I’ll probably never know because I don’t know what would happen if I never bathe in a sauna again. Do I like it so far? YES.

UPDATE #1

After two more weeks, I still like it. I haven’t skipped a day. I have to wash towels ridiculously often. And I’m going to continue using it.

UPDATE #2

After 6 months, I still use the sauna several times per week, usually right after a cycling workout. It’s part of my exercise routine.