Century farm gives out century loop patches on RAGBRAI 50th edition's Day 3

NEAR WOODWARD — In an appropriate parallel, a central Iowa century farm served as the patch site for the century loop on the 50th anniversary edition of the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa on Tuesday.

It turned out to be a landmark day on the landmark farm. RAGBRAI ride director Matt Phippen announced from the entertainment stage Tuesday night in the overnight town of Ames that 10,000 patches had been given out on the ride, which local organizers believe is the largest RAGBRAI record.

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Phyllis Tiernan, 66, and husband Opie, 68, are the fourth of five generations to have lived on the land. Their home was about nine miles into the optional century loop, which added 17 miles to the day's total to make the total mileage from Carroll to Ames an even 100.

Spectacular views of red barns and acres of lush green farmland, helped by recent rains, rewarded riders who took on the extra challenge.

A stiff headwind from the east and temperatures in the mid-80s made riding tough. But the loop offered a reprieve as riders veering south and west from the otherwise easterly and northerly main route got a tailwind.

Tiernan’s grandfather built what is now her home on the 780-acre tract around 1923. Today Opie Tiernan farms 1,150 acres of row crops, including 500 acres of the land his wife’s great-grandfather farmed.

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Tiernan’s father and his two siblings were raised there, he raised her and her two sisters there, and she raised her son and daughter in the same farmhouse. Her father purchased land from his siblings and farmed it until 1986.

“He had always helped his dad farm,” Tiernan said. “Then when he came home from World War II he started farming on his own.”

Some things have changed over the years. Tractors are bigger and while Tiernan’s father raised livestock, her husband only grows corn and soybeans.

“That was one of my favorite things, was working with feedlot cattle and stock cows,” Tiernan said. “My kids raised hogs in 4-H. We had cows for just a short time after we started farming.”

The age of the farm isn't the only thing that makes it a landmark, About 500 feet before the riders reached Tiernan's home was a sign that appropriately said “Hill.” The plateau over which the road travels drops off into a steep slope, the Noland Hill, as locals know it, and most riders hit at least 25 mph as they descended.

“It’s the steepest one (in the area),” Tiernan said.

She said she enjoyed the opportunity to talk about farming with riders from around the world.

“There’s so many that are in larger metropolitan areas that don’t see it,” Tiernan said. “It’s not something that they’ve been around much or ever talked to anybody.”

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Tiernan remembers previous editions of RAGBRAI passing through Woodward, and said her sister rode RAGBRAI in 1982.

“We’ve always had a little bit of an interest in RAGBRAI,” she said. “I think it’s a neat opportunity for people to see Iowa up close and personal riding on a bike.”

Philip Joens is riding his 18th RAGBRAI. He has completed the river-to-river trek six times. He covers retail, real estate and RAGBRAI for the Des Moines Register and can be reached at 515-284-8184 at pjoens@registermedia.com or on Twitter @Philip_Joens.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Century farm is century patch site on RAGBRAI century loop