Updated

Updated · Des Moines Register · Jul 25

RAGBRAI Riders Complete 7-Day Iowa Ride in Dubuque With Mississippi River Tire Dip

Updated

Updated · Des Moines Register · Jul 25

RAGBRAI Riders Complete 7-Day Iowa Ride in Dubuque With Mississippi River Tire Dip

Q: After enduring lightning and 160-mile treks, what hidden challenges awaited the 20,000 cyclists as they neared the Mississippi River?

As the riders neared the Mississippi River, the hidden challenge was not mileage but terrain and attrition: steep eastern Iowa hills, rolling climbs into Dubuque, and the logistical strain of exhausted cyclists needing help to finish. Even after surviving lightning, heat, headwinds and the optional 160-mile America 250 Double Loop, riders still faced a deceptively hard final approach. Organizers and riders said RAGBRAI’s shorter overall distance masked how demanding the route remained. By the time the event reached Dubuque, cyclists had covered about 406.9 miles with roughly 16,320 feet of total climbing. The toughest “surprise” was that Iowa did not flatten out at the end. Riders coming from Dyersville still had to handle 34.5 miles and about 1,752 feet of elevation gain on the last day, including rolling hills and the climb up Dubuque’s bluff near Loras College before descending toward the river. Riders described being told it was “all downhill from here,” only to find more hills waiting. Another challenge was fatigue catching up with the field. Earlier in the week, enough riders had to stop riding that SAG support vehicles could not handle everyone, forcing organizers to use buses and even semitrailers for bikes. That underscored the larger reality of this RAGBRAI: even with a relatively short route on paper, heat, hills and cumulative exhaustion made the closing miles to the traditional tire dip harder than they looked.

Q: What drives thousands to endure extreme heat and brutal headwinds just to dip a bicycle tire into the Mississippi River?

What drives riders is a mix of challenge, tradition and Iowa’s unusual sense of welcome. RAGBRAI is not just a long bike ride; it is a weeklong cross-state ritual that ends with the symbolic tire dip in the Mississippi River, marking that they have ridden from one side of Iowa to the other. For many, the hardship is part of the appeal. This year’s ride drew about 20,000 riders despite extreme heat, headwinds, lightning and some punishing mileage, including optional loops that pushed some cyclists to around 160 miles in a day. Riders described pride in finishing difficult legs and satisfaction in testing themselves physically. Just as important is the atmosphere along the route. In towns such as Manchester, residents, businesses and volunteers turned out with food, water, shade, encouragement and small personal gestures, like homemade cookies. Riders repeatedly said Iowa communities made them feel known and welcomed, whether they were veterans of the event or first-timers from out of state. The event also offers something broader than endurance: shared identity. Families follow traditions, younger riders join because parents once did it, and cyclists of all levels say the culture is inclusive. By the final day, the Mississippi River tire dip becomes more than a photo opportunity. It is the payoff for a week of discomfort, camaraderie, local hospitality and the rare feeling of crossing an entire state under one’s own power.

3 articles · Updated · Des Moines Register · Jul 25

Dubuque marked the finish of RAGBRAI 2026 on July 25 as riders reached AY McDonald Park and capped the cross-Iowa ride by dipping their tires in the Mississippi River.
Day 7 took riders from Dyersville to Dubuque, with many stopping at the Field of Dreams movie site before the traditional river finish.
The finale followed six earlier days that had already carried riders more than 300 miles across Iowa, including the penultimate leg from Independence to Dyersville.
RAGBRAI's closing scenes in Dubuque drew family reunions, group photos and celebrations, underscoring the event's role as both an endurance ride and a statewide gathering.