RAGBRAI Day 5: In Full Bloomfield

Photo bike

Rest area

Encouragement

Photo bike Photocells power fore-and-aft cameras storing at 5-second intervals to 40GB drive in bag.
Photo bike Rider plans to make time-lapse movie of the whole ride.
Rest area Another out-of-town pancake and potty stop.
Encouragement Signs cheer on some local riders.

Kirkville

Kirkville Bikes coming....
Kirkville ... and going.
Kirkville An earlier way of crossing the prairie.
Kirkville Fueling up.

Kirkville

Chillicothe

Kirkville The main intersection.
Kirkville Beasts of burden.
Kirkville The bandstand.
Chillicothe The Des Moines River.

Chillicothe

Chillicothe Crossing the river into town.
Chillicothe The Des Moines River.
Chillicothe The bandstand
Chillicothe Kybo waiting line. Where are the cornfields when you really need them?

Chillicothe

Eddyville

On the ride

Chillicothe Free water from the hose.
Eddyville This town can't afford a permanent sign.
Eddyville Cargill sponsors a free water stop.
On the ride Vendors provide reading material for the riders.

Mr. Pork Chop

Mr. Pork Chop The well-known pink bus with the ears on the front.
Mr. Pork Chop Smoke from the cookers obscures the road.
Mr. Pork Chop Some of these people look like they've eaten here before.
Mr. Pork Chop A good place to rest while picking our teeth.

Blakesburg

Blakesburg A rider from the Indiana School of Business finishes his ice cream.
Blakesburg The usual congestion in the middle of town.
Blakesburg This town has some fancy houses.
Blakesburg The bandstand is idle for now.

Blakesburg

Blakesburg A disturbing warning sign.
Blakesburg There are always a few boneheads in town.
Blakesburg This is the halfway town, so the team buses are lined up here.
Blakesburg This one's from the East Coast.

Blakesburg

Blakesburg A light-haired bus.
Blakesburg Relaxing on the skydeck.
Blakesburg I'm not sure what this sign means.
Blakesburg A beer-truck boombox.

On the ride

Drakesville

On the ride Yes, it's the famous Pastafari, about 5 miles from Blakesburg.
On the ride Cooking and waiting.
Drakesville A welcome stop after the Southern Iowa Alps.
Drakesville Lots of people need to rest for the final push.

Drakesville

On the ride

Drakesville The second-last town of the day, and hence a big party stop.
Drakesville I certainly hope they're temporary.
On the ride Free-range chickens are sometimes camera-shy.
On the ride One of the very few gravel roads on this ride.

Bloomfield

Bloomfield Entry into Bloomfield.
Bloomfield Clocktower on courthouse. Sorry about the fuzziness.