RAGBRAI daily preview, Day 2: Storm Lake to Carroll
For another day, riders will enjoy vistas of rural Iowa from horizon to horizon. But with a stiff headwind forecast, many will likely be head-down and pushing hard.
Here's what's ahead.
Monday's route
Storm Lake to Carroll.
What to know
The original 1973 route of the Great Six-Day Bicycle Ride proceeded on Day 2 almost due east from Storm Lake to Fort Dodge. But with seven days to cover instead of six, the 50th anniversary ride heads sharply south-southeast across some of the most scenic rolling hills in northwest Iowa to the pleasant and prosperous overnight town of Carroll. Along the way it'll pause near the southernmost glacial remnant lake in the United States, Black Hawk Lake in the charming meeting town of Lake View. Riders also will get up close with some examples of one of Iowa's state symbols, the skyscraping towers of its many wind farms.
Carroll has a prominent place in Iowa athletic annals. It’s often the site of state high school baseball tournaments. It’s also home, not far from the RAGBRAI campground, of a basketball court in Veterans Memorial Park that sports the distinctive purple and gold of the Los Angeles Lakers. What’s the story? In January 1960, the Lakers, then a Minneapolis team, were flying home from an away game when their airplane lost its generator, leaving it without lights, radio and navigation. Far off course and running out of fuel, the pilots ditched in a snow-covered cornfield in Carroll. All aboard survived, and the town’s residents, who had heard the clearly troubled plane circling, turned out to feed and shelter the grateful players. In a 2010 50th anniversary tribute, the now-LA team paid $25,000 to build the court.
Weather: The forecast calls for temperatures in the low 90s and a strong headwind, gusting to more than 20 mph.
Entertainment: A longtime RAGBRAI favorite, the Pork Tornadoes, who bill themselves as Iowa's Favorite Party Band, will be the headliner Monday night in Carroll. They're loud. They're engaging. And sometimes they have a smoke machine.
Looking forward to: The RAGBRAI festival zone in downtown Carroll, replete with Carroll Brewing in a historic, renovated warehouse and the tasting room of the local Santa Maria Winery. Iowa plum wine ain't half bad. You might also want to try a shot of Carroll County's most famous product, Templeton Rye.
Not so great: The headwind. And the campground could be a little closer to downtown. At least there will be a bike valet at the festival zone.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Day 2 ride shorter, but headwind could be fierce
