Iowa’s Ride Shortened to Weekend Event

Despite their best attempts to get a RAGBRAI alternative rolling, it's becoming increasingly clear that organizers of "Iowa's Ride" might be spinning their wheels.

Iowa's Ride was formed, according to KWWL, in 2019, after several members of the RAGBRAI staff had a fallout with the Des Moines Register.

KCRG says that after spending the better part of six months planning their inaugural event, it was canceled last summer after the pandemic hit. They rescheduled everything for a full week this July but after Sheldon bowed out as one of the host cities, uncertainty continued.

A Facebook post from Iowa's Ride says that a number of cities that were set to use their fairgrounds, campgrounds, schools, churches, and other facilities to host riders and offer events and festivities surrounding the ride, began quietly expressing that they weren't comfortable doing so this summer either.

Get our free mobile app

The latest plan they've settled on for now is to hold "Iowa's Ride" as a weekend event, July 16-18, 2021 in Eldora, Iowa. One day dedicated to riding and another day dedicated to other activities. The Iowa River will be open for recreation, and the city pool will be open for use.

Unfortunately, the few hotels available in Eldora are and have been closed since the start of the pandemic, so aside from a few parks in the area that will be open to campers, participants won't have a lot of spots to set up shop for the night.

There will be no registration fee for the modified event for those who signed up for the original Iowa's Ride.