RAGBRAI Dip Site

The traditional way to mark the end of the ride across Iowa is to dip your bike tire into the Mississippi River at the ending town.  Today I joined the crowd of bicyclists pushing their bikes towards the dip site in Clinton, Iowa, just so Lee could take a picture showing I was actually there.  All the hard work of the week pedaling from Sioux Center on the Missouri River to Clinton on the Mississippi River was finally done so it didn't seem that important whether I actually got the bike tire in the water or not.

As always, I had a wonderful time on the ride.  This marks the tenth year I've done RAGBRAI and I think it was the best year ever.  I may have complained about the heat and headwinds and hills but that's all part of the experience.  When you've made it to the end town you tend to forget how discouraged you felt during those long stretches of pedaling when it felt like you were never going to make it to the end of the day.

We are now back in Iowa City, staying at Mike's house for the weekend.  We have to take the car to a mechanic Monday for some minor repairs.  By Tuesday or Wednesday we plan to be on our way to Ohio to begin another round of visiting friends and family and exploring new and old places.