Hello,
So I know that there will be a ton of vendors and places to eat along the route, but I am wondering if one should not just eat from vendors and instead plan for making some light (and healthy) meals?
I am not thinking anything complicated, but should one have a camping stove and plan on making some oats in the morning, and most importantly, coffee?
How do folks eat on RAGBRAI and what are your recommendations?
15 Replies
When I go to RAGBRAI I become a soldier in General Sherman’s army. With one notable exception: I pay for what I eat! But I live off the land. The people of Iowa are fully prepared to feed you. You will find plenty of Church and civic groups offering reasonably healthy food. Some of the commercial vendors are healthy, others less so. Coffee? I feel like it is everywhere but I don’t drink the stuff so I could be wrong about that.
If you want to cook your own then you have to make sure you have room in your bag(s) and margin in your weight allowance for the stove, fuel, etc. And you will have to make trips to the local grocery outlets to get supplies or have the room and weight to carry that all week too. I have mostly done RAGBRAI by traveling in a motorhome with virtually no limit on weight or space and we literally bring the kitchen sink along with the rest of the kitchen! We will, however, store cold drinks in the fridge.
And last year I came home with a freezer full of Beekmans….
And of course I meant to say that even with a full kitchen along I have never once been tempted to cook anything!!
Are you using a charter? If so, they’ll probably have coffee in the morning.
RAGBRA isn’t really camping (unless you want it to be). Most things you need are available on the route or the towns
I wouldn’t pack a stove. As matter of fact, when it comes to packing, you’ll learn less is is better.
Moneer Rifai — I agree with KenH and BarryT — less is more. I’d stock up on Clif Bars and a good water bottle, which is easily refilled at filling stations. I have a single burner LPG burner. Incredibly small for mountain hiking, unbelievably unnecessary for RAGBRAI. I’ll also leave my laptop at home this year. :-) Now there was a stupid thing to tote along! I will, however, bring my portable battery pack – to charge my headlamp and my cell. There is often not enough room at the charging stations to even plug in. I have an Ankar and it’s the bees knees. This year, I’ll turn off my Wi-fi and Bluetooth as I ride. Food? This is not the trip to try and lose weight, or to eat healthy. Eat, drink, and be merry!
Just joke, I won’t bring a flint stone to try to start my own fire. If I couldn’t eat healthy without preparing my own oat meal, I’d be in bigger trouble.
Moneer,
Welcome to RAGBRAI and the Forum.
You pose a great Virgin question and one that all Virgins have asked at some point, mostly to themselves. Regarding your exact question, I think preparing to cook yourself will be an exercise in frustration. I would encourage you to trust that you’ll be able to find whatever your heart desires in towns, camp and along the way.
Information gathering suggestions, 1) comb the boards by search word for some history, e.g., “food”. You’ll get more feedback that you can read between now and July! 2) Try to allow for some extra time on Saturday to just wander all the vendors & locals (healthy/light and unhealthy/hearty). 3) Don’t be shy once you arrive. Everyone (riders and town folks) have info/experience to share. 4) Use a map program to look up each overnight town for their current restaurants. 5) Read the RAGBRAI blogs and listen to the “justgobike” podcast (another great source of info).
Finally, the best advice, the less stuff you bring from home, the happier you’ll be. You’re not going to another planet, just Iowa! Ride the corn! See you there, D
Thank you so much for great responses!
I am doing this with my wife through the official RAGBRAI registration but no charter.
It sounds like the consensus is not to mess with cooking or the supplies/equipment that this will entail. It is a relief because I was thinking I will need to buy the necessary gear for that.
Coffee is important to me because I cannot get going in the morning without my cup of joe but it sounds like there are plenty of options for that…
Thanks again!
Niles: Yeah this is exactly what I was thinking. A backpacking stove (I was thinking of the MSR brand) just to make coffee and such, but I am glad to know that this won’t be needed! Thank you.
I’m not a coffee drinker, so I don’t know how soon you need it in the morning. I used to ride the first fifteen miles or so to find Chris Cakes or Farm Boys. They would have coffee. If nothing else, I think all of the overnight towns have a Casey’s.
I wouldn’t pack a stove or fuel. If you’re thinking about budget… RAGBRAI is for all budgets. If you are concerned about finding something specific, don’t worry, it’ll be found. If you don’t want to pay $8-10 for food at a church or school, overnight towns have a grocery stores, some with sandwich deli. Have a great ride. You’ll enjoy it however and wherever you decide to dine.
Just eating out from town to town
You will not go hungry on RAGBRAI! If you need a little something before breakfast to get you moving then keep a cliff bar or some granola. Otherwise, ride a couple minutes and choose from a great variety of foods. Coffee is everywhere and often free or donation. I always look for the church and service group feeds, usually more than you can eat, for cheap. Just ask the locals who is hosting a breakfast, dinner, etc… Iowan’s are very hospitable, no worries about cleanliness or food preparation. One caution though, avoid ice from ice-chests open to the public. If someone is giving ice straight out of commercial bag that’s ok. During the heat riders like to plunge hands into cold water ice chests, and considering there’s few places to wash hands after using kybo, it’s not a good idea to put dirty ice in your water bottle…
You can find coffee every day with ease. If nothing else almost every town in Iowa has a Casey’s obviously with coffee (and ice). I normally drink strong coffee every day but never on RAGBRAI because if I do I tend to get leg cramps. However to prevent caffeine withdrawal headaches I use various flavors of GU packs (or many other brands) with 20-50 mg of caffeine every morning. That’s all it takes. If you stop at Casey’s for coffee you can also fill up with ice. I fill my 70 ounce backpack with ice every day before leaving the host town. At Casey’s it is usually free, especially if you buy anything else. Do not plan on cooking. There is food everywhere on RAGBRAI. I think if you take anything to cook with, you will just carry it all week and never use it.
in Ames there are coffee shops downtown, not on the route out but easy enough to get to get back to route. Only a Kum and go or something like that out by the hotels on S16th and Dayton. no other stores between the campgrounds and Nevada
One solution to the ice contamination issue is to learn to drink warm water. It keeps the boiler full even if it isn’t as refreshing!
For newbies kybo = porta-potty
Also cornfield = porta-porty, bring your own TP
On the first or second Sunday of June you will see day by day posts on this site from the pre-ride the RAGBRAI staff conducts to assess the route and preparations. It will have details on food vendors and other items of interest. Don’t miss it!