PSA: It's Almost Ragbrai: Beaver-Life

Yay! It's almost Ragbrai. Just 17 days away, so we interrupt your regular programming of "old-stuff" for some more RAGBRAI PSA-ing. 

Many of the beavers are new to ragbrai this year. Emily S, Tad, The Dale and The Deb are all virgins. That's nearly half the team this year. 

Riding with the Beavers is a fun and rewarding experience, especially when you are armed with knowledge of "how we roll." 

Oh memories--I remember my first ragby, just five years ago, when Steven and the Mayor taught me everything I know. Now, I am delighted to pass this rough-schedule and tips on to you.

Good Morning Merry Sunshine--beavers usually wake up pretty early in the morning, anywhere from 4:30ish to 5:30ish all with the hopes to "beat the heat" and the 6:30-7am traffic. 

Breaking camp efficiently is incredibly important. Anyone who takes longer than the Mayor (who is the most grizzled member of the team) will be considered to be "fiddle-fucking." 

You'll need to get dressed, break camp, caffeinate or feed yourself, pump tires, apply sunscreen etc. No need to shower. We do that the night before. 

Beaver Tip: If you are fast, or you don't care about rolling out with the group, go ahead and sleep in! That's fine. We will see on on the road. Some of us like to roll out together, but don't feel any pressure to do so. That being said, sleeping in on ragbrai can be a challenging experience. Once the zippers start zipping and the kybos start slamming and that hot July sun creeps over the horizon, sleeping gets increasingly challenging. 

Before we leave, Steven will hand out the day's Beaver Tale. Keep it safe. This publication holds all sorts of important information: where we are staying that night, along with maps, route maps, information on bar stops, etc. Don't feel the need to read it first thing. Savor it throughout the day, but be careful about getting it wet on a slip-n-slide. 

Please leave your baggage near the RV or load it on to the RV per The Deb's instructions. 

Riding on the RAGBY--The Steven and Mayor system of riding is the town-stop method. You ride along and when you are approaching a town, you stop before the shit show. You pull over to the right side of the road, and if you think you are the first beaver, put up the Universal Stay Together Signal and wait for the other beavers. If you think you are not the first beaver, look for the USTS. We will regroup and then walk through town, deposit our bikes in a shared location (not the shade!), and then find food, beer, etc. 

There are a few exceptions to this town-stoppage. 

1. The free banana stop--the Iowa Conservation Corps has a free banana, free water, and free postcard stop. We like to stop here, for obvious reasons. They usually find a nice shady spot too. 
2. Free Beer--there are  not may beaver rules, but if there is free beer, you have to stop. No matter what. Look for the other beavers, but be sure to stop. Not stopping for free beer disrupts the universe. 
3. The Backpocket Brewery/Mr. Pork Chop stop--this was a new phenomenon from 2013, but it was fabulous. This is not a required stop, but it is highly recommended. 

Preferred stops might also include: slip-n-slides, rhubarb pie, and petting zoos. 

When we have great drivers, they will meet us in the "meet town," usually about half way. If they do this, they will text us the address they have located. There we can feast on our own goodies, sit in chairs, drink good beer, and relax. Not sure how this will go down this year.

End of the Day--Once you have found the overnight spot (the address and maps are on your Beaver Tale), things usually go like such: 

• Arrive in camp. Dump bike anywhere. Tired of that stupid thing anyway.
• Find beer and chair. Sit in bike shorts, drink beer and access situation.
• Set up camping gear.
• Shower.
• While waiting for others to shower, set up camp, etc. drink a beer! Hey, it's ragbrai!
• Find dinner--sometimes this involves wandering downtown, other times, it is available at the home stays. It just depends. We often do this as a group.
• Hang out, go to bed. I mean, did you see how early we get up? 
• Occasionally we get the (bad) idea to go see the bands downtown. This usually results in some pain and suffering in the morning, but that fact is usually forgotten temporarily. We don't go out every night, though. 

I know I am leaving a lot of beaver information out, so other beavers, please chime in with tips, advice, etc. in the comments.