RAGBRAI - Monday

Dad wakes me up at 4:45 am and I hurriedly pack up my things, do my back exercises, fill my water bottles, and pump up my tires. At 5:59:50 we are on the road. This is much better and less stressful because there are so many less bikes. I still feel a little queasy from last night so when we stop 10 miles in for breakfast I just have some yogurt, fruit and granola. Today is going to be the longest ride I've ever done, 80 miles so it feels good to get in something healthy after eating pure junk for "dinner" last night.

(In line for breakfast)

I need to stretch my back every 5 miles so we decide to switch who is in the lead then. I tap my right hip to stretch, move over to the left and Dad bursts into the front. I do my best to pedal hard while I'm stretching so I don't lose him. I don't have much experience with drafting, but pedaling into a headwind will teach you in a hurry. Before long, I'm riding 1 foot behind Dad. This means I only get to look around at the scenery for the 5 miles I'm in the lead, because I have to focus on Dad's back tire when I'm drafting.

We're making great time. Today is relatively flat. We pull over at a free banana and water for a $1.00 stand. I have to pee so I ask the farmer if he has a kybo (what they call port-o-potties). He hands me a paper towel and says, "Walk out into the corn." This I have never done before so when I get about 10 feet out into the corn field I take a picture. Then I squat down, go pee, and not knowing what to do with the paper towel, brought it back out to throw in the trash. 15 miles later or so, I step into a kybo, pull down my cycling shorts and half a dozen big corn leaves fall out of my pants. My legs are all scraped up because corn leaves are sharp! I wonder what the next person who went into that kybo thought when they saw all that corn on the floor.
5 miles from camp, Dad gets a little sluggish. We stop so he can eat a Gu. Almost immediately he feels better. We get into camp at 12:13. 80 miles on yogurt, pie, ice cream, corn. There is no line in the shower and I meet a lovely 20-time veteran named Gwen who rides a tandem (VERY quickly) with her husband Paul (30 times). I drink a Sprite to soothe my stomach followed by some beer.


For dinner, Bike World hosts a barbecue. This ends up being my biggest meal of the week. The heat is coming. Forecast predicts a heat index of 110 degrees for tomorrow.