By Mark Wyatt, Iowa Bicycle Coalition

Wow, it has been cold this year!  It has been really hard to get any decent training miles in.  But, the big ride is about two months away.  It is time to start making plans to ride RAGBRAI.

If you have committed to riding RAGBRAI this year, it all starts with Tip #1, the RIGHT stuff.  And when I say stuff, I mean bicycle.  Every RAGBRAI veteran knows having a smooth running, well-serviced bicycle can mean the difference between an enjoyable or not very enjoyable RAGBRAI.

Over the past 40 years of RAGBRAI, every type of bicycle imaginable has crossed the state.  The most famous bicycle might be Clarence Pickard’s ladies Schwinn.  Pickard’s bike must have weighed 50 pounds, but it carried him from river to river.

A klunker or bargain basement special might be just fine for getting around town, but if you are going to ride across Iowa, you might need a better bike.   Investing in a road bike (that fits) can make riding the 60 to 90 miles per day on RAGBRAI much easier and more comfortable.

On of my friends told me, “I know you said a road bike would make a difference in my ride.  I just didn’t believe you until I test rode one and you were right.  It made riding effortless and fun.”

Road bikes are usually the double diamond frame bicycles with dropped handlebars that give you multiple positions to rest your hands.  They have skinny tires that have less drag friction on the road.  There are many variations and brands of road bicycles. You need to pick a bike that suits you.

Start with a budget in mind.  Decide how much you can afford to spend on your new bike.  But remember, you will likely keep this bike for more than a decade – longer than your cell phone or laptop.  Purchase as much of a bicycle as you can afford.

If you need a new bicycle, the first place to start is your local bicycle retail store.  Many people are going to the local bicycle stores right now to shop for that new bike that will take them from Council Bluffs to Fort Madison.  Your local bicycle store will have knowledge and experience to find the bicycle that fits your needs.  You can find a list of all Iowa bicycle stores at http://iowabicyclecoalition.org/bikeshop

So maybe a new bicycle isn’t in your budget.  Many people purchase used bicycles or borrow one from a friend.  If you are going that route, be sure the bicycle is in good working order and has serviceable parts.  Take it to a local bicycle retailer for a tune-up.

Also, be sure your used or borrowed bicycle actually fits you.  Bicycles come in different sizes.  A tall person needs a larger bicycle and a short person needs a smaller bicycle.  They are not generally interchangeable.  One of the simple ways to measure is stand-over height.  Stand astride your bike with your feet planted firmly on the ground.  You could be able to lift your bike 1-2 inches off the ground.  Watch this Expert Village Video on standover height at http://youtu.be/bCcmLhsMIsI

For a more exact fit, visit your local bicycle retailer and schedule a fitting session.  It could cost a little bit or they may include it with a purchase.  A good fitting bike will make you more comfortable on the long rides.

A little planning for the RIGHT Stuff now, can equal more riding this summer.  If you need to invest in a new bicycle for RAGBRAI, make sure it is smooth running and efficient.  If you are going with a used bicycle, be sure it fits.

If you are going to ride RAGBRAI safely, you are going to keep in mind the following safety tips:

1. The RIGHT stuff.

2. The RIGHT gear.

3. The RIGHT communications.

4. The RIGHT riding.

5. The legal RIGHT.

6. The RIGHT frame of mind.

7. The RIGHT abilities

8. The RIGHT attitude

9. The RIGHT attention.

10. The RIGHT condition

Mark Wyatt is the executive director of the Iowa Bicycle Coalition, a statewide advocacy organization for bicycling.  Mark is also a League Cycling Instructor (LCI), board member for the Alliance for Bicycling and Walking.  More information about the Iowa Bicycle Coalition can be found at www.iowabicyclecoalition.org.  

via RAGBRAI http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RAGBRAI/~3/ipyF3QCjIVs/

It is with great sadness to report that the Dream Team lost one of their former members in a tragic house fire this week.  Nyakouth Choul, 17, was found by firefighters inside a home in Boone.  Chuol transferred from East High School in Des Moines to Future’s Alternative High School in Boone in March.  Nyakouth last rode with the Dream Team in 2011.

She will be missed by her Dream Team teammates and mentors.  Our thoughts and prayers are with her family and friends.

MEMORIAL FUND

A memorial fund  has been established to help pay for funeral expenses. Money gathered will also help buy new clothes and personal items for the other woman who lived in the house and lost her belongings. She will relocate to a house in Ames. Money can be sent to Youth & Shelter Services, 420 Kellogg Ave., Ames, IA 50014.

Click to read a full story in the Des Moines Register

via RAGBRAI http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RAGBRAI/~3/j88HvFJpv3o/

Forest City, Iowa – Waldorf College Strength & Conditioning Department is pleased to announce the first Tour De Tree Town Road Ride on May 25, 2013.

This bike ride is a community event offering 60, 42 and 26 mile bike routes, with a 5 mile family fun ride through Forest City.  The longer routes will travel to Crystal Lake, Britt, Garner and Miller.  All rides begin at Waldorf College (Next to the Hanson Library) at 9AM on Saturday, May 25, 2013 with late registration and check-in starting at 7:30am.  Entry fees for the road rides are $25.00 per person and a special rate of $35.00 for a family of five.  Included in the fees:  road ride entry, all you can eat pasta feed, access to the National Guard rock climbing wall and inflatable obstacle course, goodie bag, door prizes, and “play against a Warrior” in basketball, baseball, soccer, and hockey.  Community members are encouraged to ride or come for food and fun.

Ride profits will benefit Waldorf College Strength and Conditioning Department and the Forest City Emergency Services Center.

Tour De Tree Town is designed as a bike ride that promotes healthy activity within the community.  Team challenges among local businesses and youth are encouraged. “This event promotes the Forest City trails and we encourage visitors and residents to join us for biking, pasta feed and youth activities,” said Norma Hertzer, Grow Forest City Project Manager

Registration is available online at www.TourDeTreetown.com or the day of the event.

National Bike to Work Day is one of our favorite times of the year, and it proved its salt again this morning.  The League staff was stationed at several pit stops in and around Washington, D.C., to say hello to bicyclists on their way to work.  We passed out bike pins, urged visitors to become members and listened to local politicians as they extolled the benefits of bicycling.

Scroll through some of our photos from this morning in D.C., and be sure to send us yours via Facebook, Twitter or in the comments below!

Thank you to everyone who participated in Bike to Work Day 2013!

via Bikeleague.org Blog http://blog.bikeleague.org/blog/2013/05/bike-to-work-day-tk/

I remember the thrill I got the first time my dad let go of the bicycle seat — and I felt the Schwinn moving 100% under in my control. My 5-year-old self immediately recognized the power I possessed. Little did I know how the bike would give me many gifts throughout my life — the most important being refuge for my health challenges.

I found out when I was 16 (like my father found out when he was 26) that I had type 1 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes requires diligent attention to balancing food, insulin, stress and exercise. It’s a balancing act that sometimes feels like I need a medical degree, an exercise physiology degree and a dietitian credential to manage.

When I was in my late 30s, after many years of poorly managed diabetes, I discovered that the key to it all was riding my bike — riding long slow distances to be precise.

I trained for and completed a 400-mile bike tour of Colorado and maintained the best blood sugar control of my life. All the while eating plenty of carbohydrates to fuel my effort climbing all those mountain passes. I finished the bike ride and, much to my chagrin, I couldn’t seem to recover. A few months later I found a lump in my right breast. I had Stage II breast cancer. I rode my bike on a trainer in my living room during chemo treatments and I rode my bike to and from the majority of my radiation sessions.

As the bike had given me hope with my diabetes management, the bike grounded me in who I was as I moved through breast cancer treatments. The week after finishing cancer treatments, I participated in my first triathlon and I loved the healing that came from being in the Survivor Wave. People celebrated and cheered for my survivorship, and that touched me.

I wanted to bring that same healing love to the world of diabetes.

I got involved with the American Diabetes Association Tour de Cure and started the Red Rider Recognition Program. Red Riders are the more than 7,000 cyclists who ride in the Tour de Cure who have diabetes. Red Riders are the heroes of the ride, for we are not victims of our health struggles, but rather we courageously get on our bikes and take charge of our wellness.

During the Tour de Cure, cyclists call out “Go Red Rider!” to those of us with diabetes who wear the Red Rider jersey. “Go Red Rider!” offers encouragement and love for the challenge it is to live well with a difficult disease like diabetes. It touches my heart deeply to hear “Go Red Ride!” It makes all I’ve survived seem not so bad.

I found out in July of 2010 that I had a second primary occurrence of breast cancer. It was the Red Rider community who supported me through those treatments. And you better believe I rode my bike through it all! I’m again cancer-free, though I still have diabetes. So, I keep riding and I keep talking about the power of riding the bike for health.

See you out there!

Carolyn Szczepanski
Communications Director

Carolyn joined the League in March 2012, after two years at the Alliance for Biking & Walking. In addition to managing the League’s blog, magazine and other communications, Carolyn organized the first National Women’s Bicycling Summit and launched the League’s newest program: Women Bike. Before she crossed over to advocacy, she was a professional journalist for nearly 10 years.

via Bikeleague.org Blog http://blog.bikeleague.org/blog/2013/05/where-the-ride-takes-us-surviving-cancer-and-living-with-diabetes/

The past decade has seen dramatic growth in biking, with the total number of trips more than doubling from 1.7 billion in 2001 to 4 billion in 2009, according to the National Household Travel Survey.

But where has bike commuting grown the most? In Bicycle Friendly Communities (BFC) that have made smart, strategic investments to make biking better.

From 2000 to 2011, the bicycle commuting rate has risen 80% in the largest Bicycle Friendly Communities — far above the average growth of 47% nationwide and more than double the rate of 32% in the cities not designated as bicycle-friendly.

In some Bicycle Friendly Communities, bicycle commuting rates have skyrocketed by more than 400% since 1990, including cities as diverse as Portland, Ore., and Lexington, Ky. Meanwhile, cities like Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and Denver have more than doubled their bike commuter share since 2000.

Click here to download the infographic as a PDF.

Take it from League President, Andy Clarke: “I see the dramatic increase in ridership on my own daily bike commute, and it’s definitely more pronounced in those communities — like Arlington County and the District of Columbia — that are proactively improving conditions for bicycling and following the Bicycle Friendly Community blueprint.”

Looking for bike commute data for your area?

• Click here to download 2010 bicycle commuting data for all 375 cities included in the American Community Survey

• Click here to download bicycle commute data from 1990 to 2011 for the 70 largest U.S. cities, including percentage of bicycle commuters and percent change

• Click here for 2011 state commute rates, including bicycle commuting by gender

Learn more about Bike to Work Day, find events in your area and statistics about bicycle commuting at www.bikeleague.org/bikemonth. Is your community a BFC? Find out here — and get involved in the program to make biking better in your area!

Carolyn Szczepanski
Communications Director

Carolyn joined the League in March 2012, after two years at the Alliance for Biking & Walking. In addition to managing the League’s blog, magazine and other communications, Carolyn organized the first National Women’s Bicycling Summit and launched the League’s newest program: Women Bike. Before she crossed over to advocacy, she was a professional journalist for nearly 10 years.

via Bikeleague.org Blog http://blog.bikeleague.org/blog/2013/05/infographics-where-is-bike-commuting-growing-the-fastest/

We were not only celebrating Bike to Work Day a day early, we were also celebrating their new Silver Bicycle Friendly Business award.

Neon yellow shirts were being passed out as we convened at Thompson Boat House in Washington, D.C., to ride the last 2 miles together.  It was an ecclectic group of riders: high heels, ties, dress shoes, slacks, and some spandex. We snapped photos, gave high-fives, and talked about our routes into and around the city.

I presented the Silver BFB award to the World Bank Group this morning.

The day would be a celebratory and informative event of bicycling. Following our ride there was a Confident City Cycling class led by WABA with a bike maintenance class soon after.

The World Bank Group has been part of the Bicycle Friendly Business program since 2009 when they received a Bronze designation. Now with their recent bike facility improvements, promotion of DC’s Bike Share system through subsidized membership to employees, and increased education efforts, they moved up the BFB ranks last month.

Congratulations, World Bank Group, thanks for the ride!

Alison Dewey
League Program Manager, BFB & BFU

Dewey joined the League in 2008. For four years prior to that, Dewey worked for Massachusetts- based Landry’s Bicycles and served on the board of the Massachusetts Bicycle Coalition. Dewey has a MA in International Relations and Communications from Boston University and is a graduate of St. Olaf College. She spent three years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Senegal.

via Bikeleague.org Blog http://blog.bikeleague.org/blog/2013/05/riding-with-the-world-bank-group/

Saturday June 22, 2013

Free breakfast and lunch to the 25, 60, and 100 mile riders!
Family Ride participants will receive free refreshments and games for the kids. Many Prizes given away!
Register at:
www.allsportscentral.com
Early registration: $20.00
Day of Ride: $25.00
Family Ride $5.00 (register day of)
Questions or Details? call or email Kevin
at 712-540-1587 / vegte@yahoo.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
Fareway, Culligan, Bike
Central, Chesterman’s, HyVee, Floyd Valley Hospital,
Carb Boom, Hardware Hank,
and Wells Enterprises!
This is a great event to get ready for RAGBRAI!
Choose from an easy paced family ride on the rec trail, a 25
mile, 60 mile, or a 100 mile ride through Plymouth County. All
rides depart from BIKE CENTRAL at:
100 mile Century Ride – 7:30 AM
25 mile and 60 mile Ride – 8:00 AM
Family Ride on rec trail – 8:30 AM
Free Ride Refreshments and SAG will be available!
Free Adult Bike Give away to 25, 60, and 100 mile riders!
Many other prizes awarded! (Need not be present to win)

http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/196275336

http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/207842057

If you have any questions please e-mail me at this address or call
me at 319-217-1509.

The Valley Junction Foundation will be organizing a West Des Moines street party along Fifth Avenue, where many cyclists are expected to stop for a break on their 49.9 mile stretch from Perry to Des Moines.

Individuals and vendors who wish to participate in the event or entertain RAGBRAI participants with a booth along Fifth Avenue must contact the Valley Junction Foundation, according to city officials. Individual booths will not require permits because they will operate under the VJF street party permit.

RAGBRAI officials say cyclists coming from Van Meter will be passing through West Des Moines at all hours of the day. Those participating in the street party are expected to stop entertainment by 5 p.m. to allow riders to reach Water Works Park in Des Moines before 6 p.m.

via RAGBRAI http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RAGBRAI/~3/HxvAkObBnvc/