August 26-31, 1973: 114 riders completed the inaugural trip across the state from Sioux City to Davenport.  That ride has grown into a tradition, with more riders joining year over year.

My dad rode a few RAGBRAI's (as early as '98 and as late as '05, I think), and one of my brothers joined him for two-and-a-half (they both decided they had ridden their bikes as far as they wanted to, and headed back home to South Dakota).  I was living halfway across the country (in Virginia) and it never lined up for me to join them.

I took a break from biking for no good reason for a decade or more, and I only put two wheels under me again in June '23.  It was a slow start, but since then I've been riding more and more.  I started by changing my commute from car to bike 'sometimes' and then 'often' and then all the time.  Once I had my seat back, I found myself riding instead of driving for almost everything else.  I'm riding year-round now and the miles have been adding up.

I've wondered what it would have been like to ride with my dad on RAGBRAI.  We camped, canoed, hiked, fished, backpacked, and road tripped together.  We'd ridden together around town and on a few longer day-rides, but never done a trip by bike together.  My dad passed in late '24, but the window to do something like that with him had already closed years before.  When I started cycling again, I think he got a lot of vicarious enjoyment in seeing me doing something he loved for so many years.

I passed by 50 last year and I'm not feeling dread, but it's becoming harder to ignore the fact that I won't always be able to do things 'some day' anymore.  I decided that I could keep waiting and wondering or I could register for RAGBRAI this year and make it happen.

This year, I'm joining about 20,000 other riders in July.

I'll be a first-time rider.  I'm not looking forward to the heat, I'm much better built for cold tolerance.  I'm not sure how I'll feel about the crowds, but it sounds like everyone finds their own smaller circles based on pace and attitude.  I looked at some of the more comprehensive charter options offered, but I found the Dubuque Bicycle Club (perfectly positioned at the ending town) and they'll be supporting me along the ride.