Post by Mark Wyatt on Feb 6, 2005 21:08:42 GMT -5
Last year: BRR. This year: NICE!
The springlike warmth for the Bike Ride to Rippey is a far cry from the 20-degree chill of 2004's trip.
By BRIANNA BLAKE
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
February 6, 2005
"BRR" it was not. That is, this year's annual Bike Ride to Rippey - the ride of passage into spring and typically known for its frigid temperatures - met cyclists this year with sunshine and warmth.
As riders pedaled away from downtown Perry at 10 a.m., the Raccoon Valley Bank sign above them read 44 degrees. By midday, temperatures had reached the upper 50s.
Organizers estimated the ride brought in some 4,000 riders, about 600 who were preregistered.
"This is a record turnout," said Sara Truesdell, executive director of the Perry Chamber of Commerce, which hosts the event.
Without the need for multiple layers this year, riders came clad in everything from camouflage, tuxedos and rainbow tights to pink boas and cow-head helmets.
"This isn't the warmest ever, but it's pretty close," said Tony Forneris of Team Me-Off. Forneris and the Me-Offs, along with their lime green and orange school bus, have been regulars at BRR for 20 years.
The sunshine also brought out riders like Jane Walker of Des Moines, who doesn't normally join her husband, Johnny, on the ride because of the cold. "I'm a fair-weather BRR rider," she said. This year the couple was decked out in Hawaiian shirts and flower leis.
Last year's 20-degree weather left some riders with icicles hanging from their faces. "Last year was a BRR ride - this year is wonderful," said Doug Riesberg of Carroll. He and his fellow team members came donned in colorful jester hats with jingle bells attached.
Teammate Frank Greteman said the group enjoys reuniting every year as a way to gear up for the RAGBRAI event in the summer.
"We usually stop for hot chocolate, then ride into town and sit out in the middle of the street and talk to people, even if it's 30 below," Greteman said. "The camaraderie on this ride is really great."
Cyclists came from other states, too, including Georgia, Oklahoma and Wyoming. The BRR ride spans 23 miles round-trip between Perry and Rippey.
Among the youngest riders was 4-year-old Elizabeth Belling, who rode on a tandem bicycle with her father, Keith Belling.
The ride even attracted nonriders, like thingy and Jan Lowe of Perry, who walked over to the St. Patrick's gymnasium early Saturday morning to eat breakfast and meet with the riders. "We always come down to see their crazy outfits," thingy Lowe said.
Later, riders rolling into Rippey were greeted by hand-waving and homemade signs of congratu- lations.
A crisp headwind slowed some riders as they completed the last leg of the route into Rippey.
"It was really good until we turned west," said rider Abbie Allen after reaching Rippey, where many riders stopped for a bowl of chili or baked potatoes before turning back to Perry.
But the BRR riders weren't the only ones to free themselves of cabin fever Saturday. Joggers, walkers and golfers - more than 100 of which hit the links at the River Valley Golf Course in Adel - fanned out in the Des Moines metro area, thirsty for the warm rays.
Saturday's temperatures reached 60 degrees in Des Moines, according to National Weather Service officials. The warmest place in Iowa was the Shenandoah area, where temperatures made it to the mid-60s.
Today promises to be a much different picture, with rain, temperatures in the low 40s and 1 or 2 inches of snow possible overnight. By Monday, the high temperature is forecast to be 30 degrees.
The springlike warmth for the Bike Ride to Rippey is a far cry from the 20-degree chill of 2004's trip.
By BRIANNA BLAKE
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
February 6, 2005
"BRR" it was not. That is, this year's annual Bike Ride to Rippey - the ride of passage into spring and typically known for its frigid temperatures - met cyclists this year with sunshine and warmth.
As riders pedaled away from downtown Perry at 10 a.m., the Raccoon Valley Bank sign above them read 44 degrees. By midday, temperatures had reached the upper 50s.
Organizers estimated the ride brought in some 4,000 riders, about 600 who were preregistered.
"This is a record turnout," said Sara Truesdell, executive director of the Perry Chamber of Commerce, which hosts the event.
Without the need for multiple layers this year, riders came clad in everything from camouflage, tuxedos and rainbow tights to pink boas and cow-head helmets.
"This isn't the warmest ever, but it's pretty close," said Tony Forneris of Team Me-Off. Forneris and the Me-Offs, along with their lime green and orange school bus, have been regulars at BRR for 20 years.
The sunshine also brought out riders like Jane Walker of Des Moines, who doesn't normally join her husband, Johnny, on the ride because of the cold. "I'm a fair-weather BRR rider," she said. This year the couple was decked out in Hawaiian shirts and flower leis.
Last year's 20-degree weather left some riders with icicles hanging from their faces. "Last year was a BRR ride - this year is wonderful," said Doug Riesberg of Carroll. He and his fellow team members came donned in colorful jester hats with jingle bells attached.
Teammate Frank Greteman said the group enjoys reuniting every year as a way to gear up for the RAGBRAI event in the summer.
"We usually stop for hot chocolate, then ride into town and sit out in the middle of the street and talk to people, even if it's 30 below," Greteman said. "The camaraderie on this ride is really great."
Cyclists came from other states, too, including Georgia, Oklahoma and Wyoming. The BRR ride spans 23 miles round-trip between Perry and Rippey.
Among the youngest riders was 4-year-old Elizabeth Belling, who rode on a tandem bicycle with her father, Keith Belling.
The ride even attracted nonriders, like thingy and Jan Lowe of Perry, who walked over to the St. Patrick's gymnasium early Saturday morning to eat breakfast and meet with the riders. "We always come down to see their crazy outfits," thingy Lowe said.
Later, riders rolling into Rippey were greeted by hand-waving and homemade signs of congratu- lations.
A crisp headwind slowed some riders as they completed the last leg of the route into Rippey.
"It was really good until we turned west," said rider Abbie Allen after reaching Rippey, where many riders stopped for a bowl of chili or baked potatoes before turning back to Perry.
But the BRR riders weren't the only ones to free themselves of cabin fever Saturday. Joggers, walkers and golfers - more than 100 of which hit the links at the River Valley Golf Course in Adel - fanned out in the Des Moines metro area, thirsty for the warm rays.
Saturday's temperatures reached 60 degrees in Des Moines, according to National Weather Service officials. The warmest place in Iowa was the Shenandoah area, where temperatures made it to the mid-60s.
Today promises to be a much different picture, with rain, temperatures in the low 40s and 1 or 2 inches of snow possible overnight. By Monday, the high temperature is forecast to be 30 degrees.
