The route is in!

The title says it all, the route has been announced and it's definitely not without it challenges (uh, can you say hills!)

Glenwood to Davenport - check out the route here: http://ragbrai.com/2011/01/29/this-years-route-glenwood-to-davenport/

So as I'd said previously, we are not going to do the full route this year. I'll admit when I was getting excited text messages about the route (and had drank a couple margaritas) I thought why not do the full week again! But then I read about the hills of day one being 1000 ft more in elevation than last years first day, I decided otherwise.

We plan to start our journey by heading to Altoona on Wednesday night to go to the festival and hang out with our Des Moines area friends and then start riding the next morning. So that means 3 days, Altoona to Davenport.

The interesting thing about this year is that it is ending in Davenport the same weekend as Bix, I'm a little unsure about that because honestly its CROWDED in Davenport that weekend. I'm sure though they have a plan to make it all work, and I'm kind of excited to end in basically my hometown. That also means we can go to Bix fest and listen to some great Jazz music at the end of the ride so I'm pretty pumped up about that. I just hope we have a bit more energy to enjoy it than we did at our end of week bonfire last year... Basically my Dad made us this great bonfire, my aunt and uncle and family friends came out, and all we wanted to was sleep, haha.

Other than that, no actual bike buying or training updates. As I look at my ankle that I managed to fall on a few weeks ago I think that no training will be getting done until I have it looked at by a doctor, and I can't have it looked at by a doctor until I have insurance, but really that's a whole other topic for another time. The real point here is that it definitely doesn't look right and I fear further injuring it while training and I think a foot and ankle doc will be able to tell me exactly just how much training I can do. So prayers that it's just a bad sprain and it is healing and I can be back at the gym soon!

Hard to believe I started this process last year with a broken wrist/hand and no bike, and this year I have a questionable injury to my ankle and no bike, oh wait that's not hard to believe at all that is pretty much the story of my life.

And the worst bloggers ever award goes too....

US! Or me more specifically because this was my crazy idea. But anyway, I would like to make more of an effort to blog more and so this is my first try back.

So, we did it! We did RAGBRAI! I think we all had totally different experiences and perceptions at different points throughout the week but I think that's what made it even more amazing. I'll give you a recap of my week...

Saturday (day before the ride starts): I'd say I was a bundle of nerves, though I was really really excited. We road tripped across Iowa with our escorts Mackenzie Lorenzen and her friend Richard, and it was a blast. Especially since we started the day with Hardees breakfast! We got to Sioux City, set up camp, and then tried to get our bikes ready for the next day. This was easier said than done but we learned very quickly just how helpful and awesome the other riders are. We even met a guy who's done it ever year for 25 years and now leads a group of kids of the Des Moines area, very cool guy. Then we went to the kick off which was great! Sioux city really threw a great party, and Smashmouth performed! (haha.) After enjoying some of Smashmouth's "hits" we headed back to camp and packed up our bags so we could get an early start the next day. Oh and Andrea and I got "branded" by team rough riders (aka, he stamped our chest) welcome to RAGBRAI!

Sunday (day 1) Hill day: We started the day with bike issues, Lex's brakes weren't working and Andrea was having a gear issue. I surprisingly had no problems. So we got a bit later of a start and then we met the hills of day one. Let me tell you, I very quickly had a WTF was I thinking moment. Needless to say I didn't have a great day one, I kept over heating, felt dizzy and ill, so I finally I decided it was time to call it quits for that day and hop on the sag wagon. The good thing about that is I was able to meet up with Jen Rundall and hang out with her and Mike! They were awesome hosts, we were able to stay with them and it was our only night not in a tent. We grilled, had a fire, and hung out with a couple other riders we got to be friends with throughout the week Neil and Trent. Love the RAGBRAI camaraderie!

Monday (day 2) Long and flatter day: This day started off much better, we got an early start and I was in a much better mood. I realized that it's important to eat, eat and eat and eat (and drink, of course). My day one issue was that I didn't really eat anything all day. So we ate, we rode, we really had a great time! Until the last ten miles, then, I dunno, I just got in a bad mental state I was tired, sore, angry and just exhausted. I finished, and I had a good LONG cry, haha. I find it pretty comical when I look back but at the time I was just at my breaking point. I called my Mom and begged them to come get me the next day and went to bed.

Tuesday (day 3) HOT HOT HOT!: So I woke up in not a good mental state again but decided I had to push through this day, I mean the hobo museum was in our future! I started out with the intention of quitting at the end of the day, but then we got to the first town we were eating breakfast in, and I read a message my little brother sent me and it still makes me tear up, he told me not to give up and he was proud of me and honestly that's the reason I kept going. I realized I didn't want to quit, I wanted to say I rode it. I also decided it was time to do what I wanted to do to have fun and not worry about others. So day three we had fun! We met real Hobo's in Brit Iowa! Had some beers ate some delicious RAGBRAI food and just enjoyed the day. OH Lex also had sun poisoning on her legs and couldn't be out in the 105 degree heat and sun so I took one for the team and sagged the rest of the day with her ;). What can I say I this was my vacation for the year and I was going to have fun! That night the overnight town was Clear Lake (so pretty). We got to relive the 90's with some live music from Spin Doctors and met up with Dawn, Andy and Oakley. That over night was the first Thunderstorm of the week, and the night we realized our tent was set up wrong and sides kind of blew in and there was a drip that landed right on my forehead, think water torture.

Wednesday (day 4) Pasta Dinner: This was by far my best riding day. The weather was perfect, the scenery was beautiful and the food/drinks were delicious. I can't remember a lot of specific things from the ride that day so I'll move onto the night in Charles City. This is when we realized we should ALWAYS try to go to the pasta dinner that the local church or school is undoubtedly hosting in each town talk about delicious and worth the long line. Plus, it was kind of nice to eat something other than festival food. We went downtown to the festival after and I was able to meet up with my brother in law and his team. Had a great time at this festival, listened to the worst cover band in history (which made it even better) and there were these crazy people running around with a clown punching bag balloon and it was hilarious, though definitely a had to be there moment.

Thursday (day 5) Delaney and Addison day!: This was to be another long ride, but I'd already decided that I wasn't riding the whole day because I wanted to spend time with my Sister and niece who were driving the route and picking up Mike. This is the day that Lex and I stopped at a van on the side of the road selling brownies that if you purchased you got a free beer, score! So we ate our brownie, had a couple of beers (2 beers on RAGBRAI = tipsy Abbie, good times!) then rode to Parkersburg. We headed to the beer garden and met up with Jen and De! So much fun! Delaney and I danced to the band and played and then we drove onto Dyke. We picked up Mike and they dropped me off in Waterloo. Waterloo = worst campsite ever. Oh well at this point I was able to sleep about anywhere. In Waterloo we went to my college roommate Laura's place and hung out with her and her husband, and most importantly got to meet their 1 month old daughter Addison! Oh we also did laundry which was very necessary at that point.

Friday (day 6) rain rain go away!: The theme of the morning was rain, and lots and lots of it. But we made it to Guttenberg and met up with my good friend Diana. She was selling some oh so delicious pie, and we sat and sat and sat, trying to wait out the storm. While waiting, I kissed a frog, and I still cannot believe I did that. Long story short while waiting and waiting, we gave up and decided we rather just take a nice dry car ride to Manchester and spend the day with Diana (and baby boy Mount set to arrive the following October.) It was a fun day though not a fun discovery was that my bag had been thrown in a puddle and EVERYTHING was wet. Yes, that was the only day I was to lazy to bag everything, good one me. So deciding to call it quits for the day was a good thing since I had to hang up everything to dry! We went down to the festival early, had some drinks, and ate lunch with Diana before she had to head back. That night we went back to the festival, met up with my brother who rode that day and ended the night listening to the Nada's, met up with Neil and Trent again, and watched as a group of people attempted to pick up beer cans off the ground with their mouths balancing on one leg. I really thought I was going to see someone loose a tooth. I also saw the best shirt ever, it had a bike on it and said "My other rides your Mom".

Saturday (day 7) "One more hill my a**": This brings us to the last day, it was pretty bittersweet. I couldn't believe at the beginning of the week I thought we'd never get there, and then all of a sudden it was the last day. The last day definitely had it's ups and downs, and no I'm not just talking about the hills. The day started with breakfast in Dyersville, THEN we rode to the Field of Dreams, and even though I've been it was still a lot of fun! Well then the hills started, some were long and slow... some were practically a mountain (ahem, Potter's hill) and there was always one more despite what the locals were saying. Just when it seemed were going to "coast" to the finish we discovered Lex's tire had a slow leak that was no longer very slow. The last 8 miles took FOREVER, we had to stop several times to air up her tire, she couldn't ride larger hills because of to much tire pressure, and finally we got lost! Well it all ended well, we ran into someone that escorted us to the dipping point, met up with Andrea, and realized we just finished our first RAGBRAI! Cue the rush of emotions that came with that and we waded into the river and were basically in shock that it was all over. That night at my parents we toasted champagne around the camp fire and relived our week. At the end, unlike the beginning, I realized I cannot wait to do it again.

So this brings us to today, while we aren't doing the full week this year, we are doing 2 to 3 days, and I learned a lot from my first ride. Just a few of the lessons:

1. Train for RAGBRAI... seriously. Don't listen to the person that says "what, you don't have to train, it's easy!" Because it's not easy.
2. Put on sunscreen constantly because you will get sunburnt.
3. Butt butter is a life saver.
4. Disposable toilet paper wipes are useful in numerous ways.
5. A corn fields makes and adequate bathroom and port-o-pottys are unavoidable.
6. Have the right bike and equipment.
7. Eat as much pie possible.
8. Don't worry about your hair, there's nothing you can do.
9. Rather than packing a towel just spend the extra bit in each town and rent one.
10. Do whatever you have to do to make the most of your week, do the 100 foot water slide, jump off the rope into the carp filled pond make it one of the most memorable experiences of your life!

I start this next journey towards RAGBRAI 2011 in much the same condition I was in at the beginning of my 2010 journey. I have to buy a bike (mine was stolen a week after last RAGBRAI.) I have an injury, my ankle this time. And I'm still babysitting to save money for that new bicycle! :)

2011 Route is announced tonight!

The pictures are from each day I described.