decorahnews.com feature story: Several Decorah residents talk about riding in the 2017 RAGBRAI

Ready to dip their tires in the Mississippi River in Lansing L-R: Jon Craig, Mark Gowdy-Jaehnig, Danyel Larsen, Adam Larsen, Daniel Beard, Bonnie Beard, Paul Jirak, Chris Doherty, Brigit Storhoff, Dave Broghamer (All photos courtesy of Bonnie Beard and Brigit Storhoff)

When Decorah was listed as a pass through city on the RAGBRAI 2017 route, riders from the area decided they couldn't miss out on the fun this close to home. Daniel Beard and Dave Broghamer had ridden with a team of four on RAGBRAI 2016.  They convinced some friends and family members to join them on RAGBRAI 2017.

Daniel and Dave were the organizers for their team, making sure everyone got registered, lining up a support vehicle and helping to organize supplies for the week-long ride. Their two teams initially called themselves "The Sattre Speeders" and the "Nordic Riders," but they merged into one team for the week, calling themselves "Team Brogy."

Nine people and one support person made up their team, including four riders from last year. This year's team included five Decorah residents--Daniel and Bonnie Beard, Dave Broghamer and daughter Brigit Storhoff and Mark Gowdy-Jaehnig.  Dave's son Jared, nephew Adam Larsen, and friends Jon Craig and Chris Doherty from California rounded out the team.

Adam's wife Danyel served as support driver for the week. Danyel is eight months pregnant, but still wanted to be a part of RAGBRAI.  According to Brigit, Danyel was an expert at finding shade and flat places as they tent camped each night.

Last year Bonnie drove the support vehicle and biked about 200 miles along the route. This year she decided she wanted the challenge of riding the entire route. Each day the group started out early, about 5:45 a.m. This early departure kept the big crowd of riders behind them, allowing them to ride ahead of all the craziness that RAGBRAI can bring as it descends upon each town.

Most riders will agree that one of the highlights of RAGBRAI is the food. Brigit said, "Beekman's made incredible ice cream.  They were always towards the end of our route each day.  There was an Amish pie and ice cream stand on the route that also was a must stop.  Dan and my dad got to know Andrew, a young Amish boy, last year on RAGBRAI and he was there working again this year.  Every town that we rode through had their church or school dinners that were fun to support. We ate breakfast every morning at the Farm Kids stand. Bryce Pierce, a former student of mine, helped prepare and serve food for them everyday during the week."

Brigit did experience a breakdown on the second day, but instead of it becoming a frustrating experience, she found people wanting to help.  Dave found a man with a truck willing to help, they drove back, rescued Brigit, bought the needed part from a bike vendor in town, fixed her bike and she was able to finish the day's ride.

Being from the area was an advantage to the Decorah bike riders as they knew what terrain was coming up. "In southern Iowa, we didn't know the area, so we didn't know if we were zigzagging or going straight through the next town. Up here we know the area and we realized RAGBRAI is not about going straight, it's about going through as many towns as you can," said Daniel.

Many riders said the last day from Waukon to Lansing was the most challenging ride as they had many hills, including one that was 2,900 feet high.  Daniel said at one point that day, he looked down and saw his speedometer clocking 41 mph. The average ride was around to 14 mph.

This was a memorable RAGBRAI for Dave as he rode with family members. Dave commented, "Each person is interesting on the trip. They each have their own story on why they are riding RAGBRAI. This makes them all unique."

Brigit rode next to Lucy, the 90 year old rider from Washington, Iowa for three days. On the day that Brigit wore her Luther jersey, she met a lot of alumni and shared Luther stories with them.

Daniel rode next to a New York City policeman one day for a while. "It was the first time he'd ever been to Iowa.  He thought it was amazing, and commented he didn't know there were so many nice people," said Daniel.

Shared experiences are what Decorah area RAGBRAI riders will remember in days to come as they reflect on this year's ride. Brigit summed up passing through Decorah, saying, "I was very proud to be from Decorah as I rode from Cresco to town. Leaving Cresco and riding Pole Line Road, the terrain really started to change from what we saw in western Iowa. I could hear bikers around me talking about it.  Many stopped to take pictures. Riding into Decorah was incredible. What a welcome! On the back of our bikes, we had license plates from RAGBRAI with our names and where we were from. After leaving town, many riders would tell us about the great time they had in Decorah. One woman even told us she wanted to move here. I don't know if it was because I was from the area and I'm biased, but I had a lot of fun riding through NE Iowa. It made me very proud to be from the area."

Ready for a day of riding after tent camping at a farm three miles north of Orange City

Tent camping at the Spencer fairgrounds

Resting in the shade after enjoying Amish pie and ice cream

All ready to roll out of Cresco by 5:45 a.m. and head for Decorah