direwolf
- Active 1 day, 1 hour ago
direwolf replied to the topic Total Descent over the Course in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 4 days, 3 hours ago
Kent H brings us back to reality. The two riders least likely to suffer catastrophe on rapid descents are Nitrogrn and his grandson, because they will be THINKING, planning, communicating. Acknowledging that this comes from a guy who kissed both sides of a bridge spanning the Des Moines River, my advice is for Nitrogrn’s grandson to ride the…[Read more]
direwolf replied to the topic Total Descent over the Course in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 6 days, 2 hours ago
In our case, heat melted our rim strip, exposing the tube to spoke holes. Maybe a tubeless set-up would have avoided that malady. However, tubeless clincher tires are still prone to heat-induced blow-outs, if the pressure rises enough to separate the tire from its rim – which is the more common mechanism of heat-induced blow-outs. Once a…[Read more]
direwolf replied to the topic Riding buddies or rideshare (carpool) from Omaha in the forum Clubs, Teams & Charters 6 days, 2 hours ago
Mimi and Guodan,
I’m inspired by your mode of overland travel. You have probably seen that there is a pedestrian bridge that crosses the Missouri River, then merges with a trail in Council Bluffs. Another option would be to ride north out of Omaha on US Rte. 75. It has a decent shoulder, and is pretty well graded. The shoulder peters out some…[Read more]
direwolf replied to the topic Total Descent over the Course in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 1 week ago
Wisdom expressed above is meritorious.
Our Teesdale Expedition Tandem Trike is equipped with disc brakes up front and a rim brake in back. We plunged into the descent from Pilot Mound into the Des Moines River valley, all 450 lbs. of trike, persons, and self-contained gear, aiming to mitigate the ensuing climb. After hitting 53 mph, with us…[Read more]
direwolf replied to the topic Will they consider shutting down towns an hour or two later this year? in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 1 week, 1 day ago
With so many stretches on busy federal and state highways I expect shutdown times and enforcement to be more draconian than usual. Those of us who sometimes choose to linger until a town opens back up may be faced with the prospect of riding busy roads without traffic control. Then too, with a map and a compass, we’ll get where we need to, and…[Read more]
direwolf replied to the topic Will they consider shutting down towns an hour or two later this year? in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 1 week, 2 days ago
With more towns, e.g. Alta, refusing RAGBRAI pass-through, the more troubling question is: Will there be anything to shut down?
direwolf replied to the topic Pass through towns? in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 1 week, 2 days ago
According to the Storm Lake Times, Aurelia’s city council was largely hesitant, because RAGBRAI pass-through sounded like a lot of work, even though RAGBRAI now pays pass-through towns $5K for the trouble. After councilwoman Courtney Bruce suggested they canvass local businesses, Aurelia decided thumbs up.
I guess the businesses, churches, and…[Read more]
direwolf replied to the topic Will they consider shutting down towns an hour or two later this year? in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 2 weeks, 5 days ago
People, please, I am not thinking Well duh! I am inspired by the many ways riders ride the ride.
direwolf replied to the topic Will they consider shutting down towns an hour or two later this year? in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 2 weeks, 6 days ago
It might be the case that ISP will relent re: shutdown times. I seriously doubt it. Even if they do relent they dang sure won’t announce it ahead of time. Otherwise, what would be the point of a published shutdown time?
I’ll say it again: riding at night is one of life’s great pleasures. I once confronted a bat that was repetitively diving…[Read more]
direwolf replied to the topic Will they consider shutting down towns an hour or two later this year? in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 3 weeks, 2 days ago
I don’t think RAGBRAI will push back shutdown times. It has nothing to do with commitment by pass-through towns. They would dearly love for us all to stay, and spend, a while longer. The prime mover in shutdown times is the Iowa State Patrol. It is problematic for them to control traffic for RAGBRAI. They want to do their job, then open up…[Read more]
direwolf replied to the topic Single, (married :)) Rider looking for team to join in the forum Clubs, Teams & Charters 3 weeks, 4 days ago
Single married rider spreads her wings! It’s a beautiful thing.
direwolf replied to the topic Debating on sitting this one out… in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 3 weeks, 4 days ago
I respect charters and their subscribers. They ride the ride, appear to make the most of their experiences. I only wanted to make the point that charter subscribers tend to coalesce back to their group, for good reasons, lessening the opportunities for a solo rider to make an enduring social connection.
In my early days of riding…[Read more]
direwolf replied to the topic Debating on sitting this one out… in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 3 weeks, 6 days ago
My Sweetie and I have only missed riding RAGBRAI twice since 1990 – one for knee replacement, and one because it was called off d/t covid. One attraction for us is that, knowing the chips will be down in July, we get out and ride on cold rainy days in March and April. (We abhor riding indoors.)
One trend we have noticed is the growing…[Read more]
direwolf replied to the topic For the Record in the forum Miscellaneous 1 month, 1 week ago
Poodles in party hats, on unicycles!
direwolf replied to the topic How to better motivate "bandits" to register in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 1 month, 2 weeks ago
Jimbodog: I salute your cycling biography and your view of the future. Nobody should beat themselves, or anybody else, up for partaking of the RAGBRAI epicure.
direwolf replied to the topic Day 4 – 100,000 Riders – Really??? in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 1 month, 2 weeks ago
“The New York State Thruway is closed, man!” – Arlo Guthrie, August 15, 1969
Maybe they (we) need to shut down I-35 for this thing.
direwolf replied to the topic How to better motivate "bandits" to register in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 1 month, 2 weeks ago
Jimbodog: I hope this is the year you strap on for bagger RAGBRAI. I think you will find that it’s just EASIER. That’s how my Sweetie and I roll. Yes, we register.
direwolf replied to the topic 2023 Overnight Towns in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 1 month, 3 weeks ago
They wouldn’t send the whole shabang across the High Trestle on Wednesday, would they?
direwolf replied to the topic 2023 Overnight Guesses in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 1 month, 3 weeks ago
Tom Cullen writes in the Storm Lake Times Pilot: “RAGBRAI will reportedly celebrate its 50th anniversary with an overnight stop in The City Beautiful in late July.”
direwolf replied to the topic How to better motivate "bandits" to register in the forum RAGBRAI L – 2023 2 months, 1 week ago
Gee, I’d hate to see this thread die with only a little more than 6 months to go before the Gran Departe. So I’ll just mention that there are vendor bandits too – ones who don’t want to pay local, um, vendor fees; who don’t want to abide by RAGBRAI’s shutdown schedule. And then there are bandit towns who, similarly, choose not to abide. Marne,…[Read more]
