RAGBRAI rules force Raygun to redesign shirt
- 23 April, 2013
Des Moines’ RAGBRAI T-shirts were set to go on sale this week, but those planning RAGBRAI’s overnight stay in the capital city had to go back to the drawing board after learning they could not use the term RAGBRAI on commercial items such as T-shirts.
An image of the Des Moines store Raygun’s original shirt design for the city’s RAGBRAI stop.
The Des Moines Register reported on the chosen theme and logo last week. However, Chris Diebel, operations chairman for the planning committee, said his group learned over the weekend they would have to re-think their theme, “RAGBRAI Des Moines: Greatest bike ride in the world. Greatest city in the world.”
That’s because the word RAGBRAI and a handful of other marks and names are trademarked and can only be used by “official RAGBRAI bicycle shops and select Friends of RAGBRAI” with advance permission from the Des Moines Register, according to the RAGBRAI XLI – Overnight Town Handbook that is given to organizers in each town at the beginning of the planning process.
Cyclists will stay in Des Moines on July 23. RAGBRAI draws 10,000 riders annually for the annual weeklong ride at the end of July.
Overnight towns are allowed to use the word promotionally but not commercially, RAGBRAI Director T.J. Juskiewicz said. “Just like you can’t use the TigerHawk logo of the University of Iowa or Cy from Iowa State, the same applies to the word and logo of RAGBRAI.”
The same rule applies for RAGBRAI XLI, RIDE RIGHT, and the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa, according to the handbook.
The RAYGUN T-shirt store, which designed the logo, channeled the popular movie Fight Club to poke fun at the oversight on its Facebook page. “The first rule about bike rides across Iowa is that you don’t mention bike rides across Iowa by name,” they wrote.
Diebel said it was an innocent mistake. Diebel and RAYGUN owner Mike Draper said they’re working to modify the logo now.
“The skyline with the bike spokes is nice,” Draper said. “I think people will buy that, but we have to reconfigure the tagline.”
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Dag-gone copyright rules.
I bet the boys at Raygun would squeal if the shoe were on the other foot.
Thank god I live in a town where cyclists are held to the same laws and standards as motor vehicles and remember their place.
I’d buy one of the copyright infringement t-shirts to go along with my Mayor/ISU shirt that Iowa State had issues with too. Then I’d go to Court Ave Brewery and drink an Honest Lawyer Ale as we know attorneys aren’t honest they are self serving and get a piece of the actions both ways. Our litigious society needs to take a step back and re-write our laws without lobby money and with the good of the public in the forefront…
Really? Anually for the annual? “RAGBRAI draws 10,000 riders annually for the annual weeklong ride”
And yes, I now see my misspelling. But, I’m not publishing to a website. If I were, I would have had it proofed for grammar and spelling.
So, how does Raygun get to be a “select Friend(s) of RAGBRAI?”
Maybe Raygun will make a RAGCRY shirt instead. Sad that the RAGBRAI people are afraid that Raygun will sell more shirts than they will… (Oh Crap, I said RAG*RAI)
Maybe:
RAYGUN
Des Moines, Iowa
Greatest T-shirt company in the World
{we like bikes, too}
too bad, that was one nice looking shirt
Just misspell it RABGRAI
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