Chris
- Active 1 day, 6 hours ago
Chris replied to the topic E-bikes in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 1 day, 6 hours ago
FWIW: I’d second the schools angle. They tend to have the largest number of plugs that will be available for the amount of time you’d need to charge an e-bike battery. Next would be a church, if you’re buying dinner with them. Quite a few have charging banks set up for phones, so you’d probably be able to find a place to charge your bike.
See…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic Century day in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 1 week, 1 day ago
Not yet. From the fingers of the amazing Anne Lawrie:
“Century Loop is on Tuesday. The exact route will be released with the Gravel Day later down the road…..”
The patch will be yours on that Tuesday night :)
See you in July.
-Chris
Chris replied to the topic Camping gear in the forum RAGBRAI XLIX – 2022 8 months ago
Ditto!
JetBoil, Handpresso, ESE pods (we wussed out on the grinder), and a lot of questions from or camping neighbors. It’s kind of fun sitting in the middle of a field sipping on coffee at some strange hour of the day. :)
See you in….err…..a week!
-Chris
Chris replied to the topic Driving into and leaving Lansing in the forum RAGBRAI XLIX – 2022 8 months ago
Hey cwmurray:
We’re NorthEastern too! :) New Jersey was home the last time we drove to Lansing.
Our route out to Lansing last time: 80 to 90 outside of Chicago, then 90 to 18W outside of Madison, WI, to 35N in Prairie DuChien, to the Route 82 bridge, which crosses the river into Lansing. Prettymuch what Google Maps suggested. 18W wasn’t bad at…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic Registered Rider Baggage Truck in the forum RAGBRAI XLIX – 2022 8 months ago
Hey Altidude:
“At the end of the day, the bags are laying in piles. It is very helpful to know what time you dropped your bag, sometimes they will label the piles by time they were loaded.
Here is the *big* heads up. They do NOT gently carry your bag down a ramp and put it in a pile when they unload. They literally slowly drive the semi along,…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic Informal Poll: What time will you start riding on Wednesday, the 103 mile day? in the forum RAGBRAI XLIX – 2022 8 months, 1 week ago
LCM….that is a neat idea!
….But, if this year’s century day is anything like the Karras Loop day in previous years, at 5am, you’ll have plenty of company breaking camp. We’re out early every day; usually on the road at about 5:30-5:45. Most days, we don’t have a lot of company.
A Hot day….we have lots of company.
The Karras Loop…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic Gluten Free/Vegetarian Food Options in the forum Miscellaneous 8 months, 1 week ago
Hey Sarah:
Welcome to the Zoo :)
Give it a day or three and some other vegetarian riders will comment; this question comes up not infrequently. If you have the time, look back though the archives of the Forum for ideas and the previous discussions.
I can comment in general: food options at the passthough tows might be a larger challenge than…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic CAMPING CARNAGE or WHY I RIDE SELF-CONTAINED in the forum RAGBRAI XLIX – 2022 8 months, 1 week ago
Hey Direwolf:
The controlled chaos is part of the fun ;)
Rarely has there been a campground that is utterly unworkable. About the only time I can remember that it all went to crap was one of the campgrounds where things got soggy due to rainstorm (I can’t remember which it was), so we all ended up kinda crowded in the dry area. Still, not a…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic Coffee shops in the forum RAGBRAI XLVIII – 2021 8 months, 1 week ago
Hey Denton:
Altidude kinda landed on it: Coffee can be hit-or-miss. Rarely is it at the campground itself; often time a coffeeshop in the town will open early for us, but depending on where you’re camping and where the route it, it may, or may not, be near where you’re going.
There is, indeed, that one good coffee shop on the side of the road,…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic Pets/dog in the forum Miscellaneous 8 months, 2 weeks ago
Welcome to the party, Lilianita!
Like the last two said, I’m afraid I have to pile-on: unless your dog is very used to this kind of activity and life-on-the-road, they’re best left in a kennel. RAGBRAI can be kind of hard on our 4-legged loves.
You will see dogs in the campground, but 99.7% of the time they are with their family who is following…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic Ride from town to town if spouse is not feeling up to riding in the forum RAGBRAI XLIX – 2022 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Gooood Day, Flippinsweet!
Welcome to the zoo :)
Three options, in no particular order:
One: Get in touch with one of the Charters. Pork Belly Ventures, Brancel Charters, Pedro’s, whomever. They will often make a deal for situations like this, and/or know teams that they’ve worked with previously.
Two: Like you just did: post on here and see…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic Just humorous – RAGBRAI = red rice?! in the forum RAGBRAI XLIX – 2022 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Oh, that’s funny!
…Red Rice on RAGBRAI. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it. :)
What did your students think of the controlled insanity that you’ll be part of?
See you in July.
-Chris
Chris replied to the topic Vendors in the forum Miscellaneous 8 months, 3 weeks ago
From the little I can glean from the Internet:
Farm Kids: “We are keeping our equipment and have not decided if we will participate in RAGBRAI this year.” Posted on Facebook in early May. No updates since then.
Chris Cakes: Can’t find any information if they are or aren’t.
Beekmans: Will be there from what it looks like on their Facebook…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic RAGBRAI 2022 Outlook? in the forum RAGBRAI XLIX – 2022 8 months, 3 weeks ago
…they used to say it capped at 10,000 riders, but we all knew that was creative accounting. I remember hearing a 30k figure back when we went though Des Moines a few years back. With RAGBRAI traditionally (or traditionally in recent years) not releasing the full-week / daily rider volumes, it’s a guess at best. With no actual tally of who is on…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic Tent Fan and Chairs in the forum Miscellaneous 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Welcome to the Zoo, Nia!
Fans: we’ve destroyed more than a few over the years. Like, 4 or 5 of them. Yes, on a really sticky night, they are a godsend. We’ve had very good luck with the Ryobi ONE+ 18V Cordless 4 in. Clamp Fan. They’re something like 60 bucks with a charger and battery at Home Depot. What we really liked about it is that it was…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic Ham's riding RAGBRAI in the forum Miscellaneous 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Hey Mark!
I brought my HT for giggles a few years back. Besides the eavesdropping on operations, it was kind of hilarious listening in on the local chatter. We *are* the local talk. Didn’t do much TX as I was too busy talking to other RAGBRAIers and the people in towns, but for the 1.5lbs, it was worth having it.
73….and see you in July
KD2HKS
Chris replied to the topic Do I need two wrist bands for a tandem bike if I wont be using the bag service? in the forum Miscellaneous 9 months, 1 week ago
Hey Thrillard!
If I’m reading your question correctly: you’re asking if both captain and stoker need wristbands?
The answer to that: yes.
The wristbands do a lot more than get you access to the bag truck. They put you “in the system” for wristband discounts on all kinds of things, access to medical service, etc…. We’ve always put our…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic Century Days in the forum RAGBRAI XLIX – 2022 11 months, 2 weeks ago
“That being said, I am 99.9% certain that the baggage crew will not load your bag the next morning for you if you do not claim it.”
I’ll tidy up the 0.1%: They baggage crew will not load your bag the next morning.
Last year, we had a couple that was camped next to us for a few nights. On Wednesday (?), we were setting up camp and chatting with…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic Tandem Advice in the forum RAGBRAI XLIX – 2022 11 months, 2 weeks ago
Good Evening, Raetshax:
Welcome to the zoo. 2-up!
Just my 0.02….
– Craigslist and eBay are brilliant for finding used tandems. For better, and for worse, they don’t hold value extremely well, as we’re kind of a small market. Consequently, you can get a lot of bike for a good value.
-Brand probably does not matter that much. All of the major…[Read more]
Chris replied to the topic Looking for a Tandem in the forum RAGBRAI XLIX – 2022 11 months, 2 weeks ago
Congrats on the T2000, Drewe!
You’ll get a ton of advice on riding 2-up if you ask on here. Us tandem teams tend not to shut up. :)
Two minor things to start that off, both not exactly RAGBRAI specific, but….
1) If it has a replaceable derailleur hanger, buy one and have it on-hand. You can replace just about any broken part with the shops…[Read more]
