Short and flat. If I had to pick it might be a little longer and start at the river. But hey, every RAGBRAI is a blast and this one will be as well. No complaints.

I like it. I guess since I grew up in SW MN it just feels like home a little bit riding through NW Iowa. Lansing as the finish town is awesome! I’ve always wanted to finish there and Keokuk. Maybe then it’ll Keokuk in 2018.

Too short. They need to focus less on the drinking and more on the cycling and small towns.

Unfortunately in NW Iowa there aren’t many options for towns right on the river. It would be nice to start at Hawarden just so the route can actually be from river to river, rather than tributary to river. Akron is another one on the river but maybe its too small to be a start town? Or who knows, maybe those two town don’t even put bids in to get the event. Hopefully Orange City is willing to be flexible with some of their “rules” on a Saturday night/Sunday morning as far as the alcohol and festivities go. Sure we can go to Alton for that but it seems like an unnecessary hassle. And I like Lansing is an end town.

I like that it is coming through Clear Lake again. I was excited when it was coming through Mason City in 2014 but I got hit by that pesky SUV and life flighted away. I haven’t ridden RAGBRAI since that happened but I will ride at least a couple days this year.

I am happy.

RIDE RIGHT

I loved Clear Lake back in 2014. Everyone should stop at the Surf Ballroom! (Google if you don’t know why.) Pretty town of course, so what a place to be for a day/night.
Since it is shorter, I will be planning to do the Karras Loop.
Since it is shorter/flatter, it will be busier with more day riders and first timers which also makes for more fun.
Since it is shorter/flatter, you can have more conversations with other riders, which was great back in 2014, and was lacking last year.
Whatever the route, RAGBRAI is my Mecca for many years to come, so I am always happy to get to Iowa in July!
Ride On!

I could not be happier with this years ending. My wife and I have been going to Allamakee and Winneshiek counties for 20+ years to camp and trout fish. The area is absolutely gorgeous. Now I finally get to cross off Allamakee as my last of 99 counties to ride RAGBRAI.

Some hill climbing fun that last day! Can’t wait!

Will start a separate “Wheeldipper” thread…

Since they said 45 miles on the last day, and Waukon to Lansing is only 15 miles as the crow flies, I really hope we go south out of Waukon and get to the river and ride along the river going north. That would have us riding through Harper’s Ferry and the Yellow River State Forest. I think that would make for a very scenic route. The short and flat route is OK with me too, maybe this will help make up the minds of people that are on the fence about riding for their first time, some of my friends included.

As much as I like beer and spending lots of money on beer fests in SFO and Munich, I’d really like to see more focus on riding, especially through (whatever) scenic areas there are in Iowa vs a focus on beer drinking. (covered bridges, state parks, etc.) This ride looks incredibly flat, short, and few cool features:
DAY start_city TO stop_city miles elevation gain
————————————————————
SUN Orange City TO Spencer 56 miles 512 ft elevation
MON Spencer TO Algona 50 miles 367 ft elevation
TUE Algona TO Clear Lake 46 miles 259 ft elevation
WED Clear Lake TO Charles City 41 miles 249 ft elevation
THU Charles City TO Cresco 50 miles 774 ft elevation
FRI Cresco TO Waukon 40 miles 958 ft elevation
SAT Waukon TO Lansing 17 miles 253 ft elevation
————————————————————
Totals 300 miles 3372 ft elevation

I hope the actual route has more hills and miles.

BUT HEY, ITS RAGBRAI!!! AND IT’LL BE FUN NO MATTER WHAT!!!!!

I sure hope Orange City has changed its attutude towards Ragbraiers. I heard that OC was once a pass-by town and its entrances were blocked with tape. They handed out oranges that were promptly thrown back at them.

I agree with Stephanie that this route is too short. We need more of a challenge. I was hoping to do Potters Hill this year, but I must keep waiting. The last day should be interesting at least.

Anyone planning on dipping at the river? I don’t see any obvious places in Hawarden. Anyone chartering with Brancel dipping after we get to Orange City?

Finally, I understand that Lansing has riverboats, but were there clues to the rest of the route?

from what i herd , potters hill aint crap. but i was looking forward to it big time. i am a little disapointed. well at least i can drink lots of beer. ha ha!!!!!!!!

from what i herd , potters hill aint crap. but i was looking forward to it big time. i am a little disapointed. well at least i can drink lots of beer. ha ha!!!!!!!!

I enjoy a couple cold ones at the Iowa Craft Beer tents along the route and not so much in the overnight towns so I’m not focused on the drinking, but I don’t have a problem with it being short this year. I’ve been trying to talk my brother into riding the last couple years and maybe with this year’s route I can finally reel him in. And as everyone knows, once you do one, you want to do them all. I do agree with seeing more scenic/historically relevant places along the route though. Seems only natural to enjoy those spots and give them exposure since the ride is a celebration of Iowa and it’s people. Are they even doing much with the hints in the logo anymore? Seems like last year didn’t really have hints either. The biggest hint I saw was the writing on the front of the riverboat.