photo, a photo by UNI Dr. Z on Flickr.

A HUGE bug flying with us on our 2012 RAGBRAI ride.

photo, a photo by UNI Dr. Z on Flickr.

Weather for RAGBRAI

IT'S GOING TO BE HOT!!!!!!!

I was wondering what the weather was going to be like on RAGBRAI so I went to Wunderland.com and got the latest news.  Below is a compilation of the weather forcasts for each of the cities for the day we will be sleeping there. 

Remember to hydrate and don't be silly.  Sagging is completely acceptable in the heat.

Weather Report from Wunderland.com

(as of 9:00 AM Friday, 7/20)

Sunday – Cherokee – 97F (Heat Index – 118F)

Partly cloudy. High of 97F. Winds from the South at 5 to 10 mph

Monday – Lake View – 97F (Heat Index – 118F)

Overcast in the morning, then partly cloudy with a chance of a thunderstorm and rain. High of 97F with a heat index of 118F. Winds from the SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40% with rainfall amounts near 0.2 in. possible.

Tuesday – Webster City – 99F (Heat Index – 120F)

Overcast in the morning, then partly cloudy. High of 99F with a heat index of 120F. Winds from the South at 5 to 10 mph.

Wednesday – Marshalltown - 93F (Heat Index – 109F)

Partly cloudy with a chance of a thunderstorm. High of 93F with a heat index of 109F. Winds from the SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.

Thursday – Cedar Rapids – 93F (Heat Index – 113F)

Partly cloudy with a chance of a thunderstorm. High of 93F with a heat index of 113F. Winds from the SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70% with rainfall amounts near 0.5 in. possible.

Friday – Anamosa – 90F

Partly cloudy with a chance of a thunderstorm. High of 90F. Winds from the SSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%.

Clinton – Saturday – 99F

Mostly cloudy with a chance of a thunderstorm. High of 99F. Winds less than 5 mph. Chance of rain 40%.

Stay Cool!!!!!!

photo, a photo by UNI Dr. Z on Flickr.

Leigh Zeitz enjoying a "small" ice cream cone at the Union Stop in La Porte City. This sweet treat was earned on July 21 when Team Flamingo rode the Too Late to Train ride.  This 35-mile ride preceded the annual Too Late to Train party at Jan Gallagher's house.  (yes, I know that I should have posted a photo of the team on the ride, but I forgot to take one.)

Team of Flamingo. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Here are some updates for this coming weekend's rides:

Saturday, July 7:  Friends of the Depot Ride.

Meet at Cup O' Joe on Cedar Falls package at 9:00 am.  Bike the trails system to Gilbertville to join the “Friends of the Depot” celebrating the 100^th year birthday of the Gilbertville Depot, then on to La Porte for lunch and return ride back to Cedar Falls.  The Friends of the Depot are trying to save the Gilbertville Depot from being torn down and keep it as a landmark on the Cedar Valley Nature Trail.  

Heat Alternative:  Flamingos wishing to ride earlier and avoid some of the heat, can meet at Bill and Moria Brown's home at 8:00 am for ride to Gilbertville and back.  They will probably do lunch in Evansdale instead of riding on to LaPorte.

Sunday, July 8: Trinity Ride:  Same ride but with start time moved up to 8:00 am for heat relief.

Meet at Cup O' Joe on Cedar Falls parkade at 8:00 am.  Bike on trail to Waterloo to Hudson and back to Cedar Falls.  Lunch at Mulligan’s at Noon.  Bike the trails again at 1:00 pm. Morning ride and afternoon ride both approximately 30 miles each.

See you this weekend.

Mike Big Bird Knapp

Notes for Our Team Kickoff Day on July 21

Hail Flamingos!

Just wanted to talk a little more about Saturday, July 21st, departure day for RAGBRAI.

1)  Be at Carolyn's at 8:00 am so that we can get bikes and baggage loaded and get on the road by 9:00 am to take advantage of the cooler temps in the morning.

2) Limit yourself to one bag, sleeping bag, tent, cot/air mattress, pillow, etc. to conserve space.

3) Use soft luggage -- duffel bag, gym bag, etc. rather then hard shell suitcase.

4) Bring snack food/beverage along for the ride.  We can stop and shop in Sioux City for supplies you want for the week (beer, pop, etc.) once we're there rather then cramming everything in for the ride out.  We will try to have a cooler of some type in each vehicle.

5) Remember, we are staying in Sioux City, not Sioux Center on Saturday night.   We will have about an hour's drive to start point on Sunday morning, so it would be helpful if we didn't have to off load bikes Saturday night.  Perhaps  you could pack Sunday riding clothes separate from your main kit so that we can leave as many things loaded on the vehicle as possible for a quick start in the morning.

6) If you want to bring a camp chair along, bring it that morning to Carolyn's.  If there's room to carry it on the vehicle we will, but no promises until we get everyone's gear assembled for loading.

7)  Put your luggage tag on your main duffel bag, so we have a way of tracking who's bag is whose when we load up each morning.  Don't want to leave you gear behind like Emily's was two years ago.

8)  Everyone will be assigned to a specific support vehicle for the ride.  Assignments were made with size of vehicle, types of riders, genders, and housing combinations, so hopefully everyone is happy with their van mates.  If not, bring a book to read.

9) Your support vehicle driver is just that.  A driver.  He or she is not expected to unload your gear and carry it into the house that night, or out to the vehicle the next morning.  You are responsible for that.  Treat your driver nicely, it is hard to get support drivers and vehicles.

10).  We will have the FlamingoLoo along when/if we camp and the KYBO's are too far away for late night potty runs.

11) Each vehicle will have a hand sanitizer and a first aid kit on board for emergency needs, bandages, etc.  Tylinol, Ibupufren, etc. are not provided.

12) Each vehicle should have a floor air pump and tire gauge on board.

Big Bird (Mike Knapp)