Rally Time!
Can you believe it is the 50th year for RAGBRAI ?!? BIKEIOWA is super-extra-duper-excited to be a part of the largest bike-touring event in the world! Every year this event is an AMAZING under-taking and even more so with the expected crowds and extra logistics of the 50th.
BIKEIOWA will be promoting Iowa Cycling the whole week (look for the BLACK BIKEIOWA Tents) and see our locations below.
We don't get the ride any next week, but we were part of the Route Inspection Ride in early June, and rode the whole route and have seen all the towns. Stop by if you have any questions.
This feature is tailored to where BIKEIOWA will be and what we'll be up to all week. If you want specific RAGBRAI details, there is no better place than RAGBRAI.com.
Come see BIKEIOWA at the RAGBRAI Expo!
You'll find BIKEIOWA.com at the
RAGBRAI Expo, on somewhere along the route with
Iowa Beer Bus. We are setting up for the first time in the ending town, Davenport, this year too!
The Tyson Event Center in Sioux City is the place to be for the RAGBRAI EXPO. It will be centrally located near the ben in the Missouri River at
401 Gordon Dr, Sioux City, IA 51101. The Expo is FREE and open to the public. The Expo will showcase official bike shops, 60+ vendors from bicycle/component manufacturers, travel and tour operators, and retailers associated with the cycling industry.
BIKEIOWA will be there to promote Iowa cycling, talk anything cycling related, and to sell new BIKEIOWA gear.
Expo Hours: 12 noon to 9pm on Saturday, July 22nd in Sioux City
Booth Number: 6 near the RAGBRAI "Merchandise Experience" area and Primal Wear. Our twin black BIKEIOWA tents are hard to miss.
Where to find BIKEIOWA on route
We'll be out all week as we've partnered with the Iowa Beer Bus again for three of the days. We've chosen some great spots for you to enjoy your day with food, beer and entertainment.
Look for our twin Black tents. It's going to be an epic week!
The Iowa Beer Bus brings you the finest offerings from many of Iowa's amazing craft brewers and also domestic go-tos.
One Stop Shop! At our stops we'll have food, drink, gear, entertainment and some shade! So any time you see the yellow Iowa Beer Bus, stop and say hello!
Click Links for exact location, daily details, hours, food and entertainment
DAILY CONTEST
WIN a coveted GOLDEN SUMMER TOUR 2023 T-shirt!!
We have 8 GOLDEN SUMMER TOUR 2023 T-shirts. We'll draw ONE WINNER each day.
Q: How cool would it be to be one of eight out of 30,000+ cyclists with this special commemorative t-shirt ?!?
A: Off-The-Charts KOOL !
How to Win? - It's Simple
- Look for a pink basket at our booth. Fill out a raffle ticket with your name and phone number.
- At the end of each day, we'll randomly choose ONE Winner.
- We'll text the Winner and they can pick up their GOLDEN SUMMER TOUR 2023 T-shirt the next time they stop at our booth.
Sorry - no shipping except for the Davenport winner on the last day.
2023 BIKEIOWA Gear line-up
What gear will we have with us all week? We've posted some designs for pre-orders, but lots of items will be seen for the first time here!
NOTE: if you are clicking links and the
online store doesn't work, we closed the store on Tues, July 18th through the first week in August.
If you know BIKEIOWA, we focus on fun designs with some sort of unique twist. We enjoy the design process and come up with new designs each year. You can be assured there won't be 1,000 other cyclists wearing the same jersey as you as we believe in small batches. A BIG shout-out to our long-term partners -
Primal Wear Inc. for the jerseys, crews and cycling caps,
T-Shirt Graphix for our T-shirts for the last 22 years and
Bike Rags for the Bandanas, Patches and Trucker Caps! The designs for this year ROCK !!
We don't keep large inventories in stock and we bring 100% of our inventory with us, so when something sells out, it is truly sold out. We suggest that if you want anything, stop by early in the week to ensure your size and availability.
CYCLING WEAR
- Krazy Kampers
This colorful abstract design represents a sea of tents in a field, each a different color, each the same, yet each different. We used the tagline "Let's Get Lost".
Offered in: Jersey, Women's Jersey (VERY limited quantities), Crew shirt, Gemini Tank, and Cycling Cap
- Golden Adventure Kit
This design was inspired by the 50th Golden Anniversary of the Big Ride across Iowa! Find the adventure in Iowa!
Offered in: Jersey, Crew shirt, Gemini Tank, Cargo Bibs (VERY limited quantities) and Cycling Cap
- Iowa - Flat as a Waffle
Living the Waffle Life with this fun design. !Think Iowa is flat? think again. You 'think' Iowa is flat as a pancake, but, the terrain is more like a waffle! Waffles are just pancakes with abs. Sorry, no t-shirt this year.
Offered in: Jersey, Crew shirt, Gemini Tank and a Coozie
- BAJA IOWA
One of our favorite spicy festive designs. We brought back the 'sold-out" crew shirts and re-designs the caps with a different bill design
Offered in: Crew and Cap (Sale rack has Jerseys, Gemini & Liona Tanks)
CASUAL WEAR
- BIKEIOWA SUMMER TOUR 2023
We took the VIBE of a multi-day music festival and the STOKE of the oldest and longest bicycle tour in the world and combined them to showcase Iowa's world-class communities that we'll pass through in late July. ROCK ON!
BONUS: Get a free limited edition guitar pick with a T-shirt
Offered in: Men's T-shirt, Women's T-shirt (VERY limited quantities)
- Big Gear - Big Year
What more to say? We re-vamped the BIKEIOWA logo for this special Big Golden year!
Offered in: Men's T-shirt, Women's T-shirt (VERY limited quantities), Women;s Flowy tank and high neck tanks
- Fan Favs
Since we get to ride around Jack Trice and Kinnick stadiums in late July, we might as well fly the colors with a cycling twist!
Offered in: T-shirt in both colors
- Rad Van
Moto-inspired local artist Chris H. created this cool retro-van design. We put it on a heather silver t-shirt for a pen-on-paper look. (VERY limited quantities) If you don't get one, we may do a re-print of this in Aug!)
Offered in: T-shirt (too new to be online!)
GEAR
- Guitar Pick - We created a limited edition 2023 BIKEIOWA Summer Tour guitar pick to match our one-of-a-kind T-shirt. You can still buy a guitar pick without the shirt. Own a piece of history in your pocket.(too new to be online!)
- Pogie Lites - It's the wrong season, for 'em, but we'll bring a small supply. These have been sold in all 50 states and over 20 countries.
- Socks - a new clean, smooth tri-stripe design with a 6" cuff from Defeet
- Headbands - You asked for it, we got 'em! A simple stretch-fit moisture management fabric with many variations of the BIKEIOWA logo(too new to be online!)
- Cycling Caps - 7 different designs this year!
- Trucker Caps - We went overboard this year. We love unique trucker caps so we made a bunch in 5-15 batches with 5 patch variations.(too new to be online!)
- Bucket Caps - 1st year for these and we love 'em! Includes new BIKEIOWA Big Gear Patch. (limited quantities)(too new to be online!)
- Boonie Caps - This is the cap we'd take kayaking. Includes new BIKEIOWA Big Gear Patch. (VERY limited quantities)(too new to be online!)
- Kid's Gear - We'll have a decent selection of Toddlers, Youth and Infant Onsies again this year! We'll have the new BUNNY HOP design in Green Apple(too new to be online!) and some of the bikernaut spaceman design. Good kid's gear is hard to find!
- Waffle Coozie - we carried the "Flat as a Waffle" design into a coozie for your carrying pleasure.(limited quantities)
- Big Gear Abstract Coozie - Add some color to your coozie! (limited quantities)
- PVC Patch - Very durable and feels like rubber. This is the thickest, heftiest patch option we have. It’s waterproof, flexible, and suitable for many designs! Sew or stick to almost anything! A cross between a sticker and a patch - comes with super-strong 3M™ adhesive backing.
- GOLDEN transparent stickers - The BIKEIOWA logo in GOLD with a transparent background so your color stands out(too new to be online!)
- BLACK transparent stickers - The BIKEIOWA logo in GOLD with a transparent background so your color stands out(too new to be online!)
SALE
- $15 - T-shirts - A very limited quantity of styles and designs.
- $55 - Jerseys, Crews and Tanks - We'll have the largest sales area to date. Men's and Women's styles in multiple designs. ALL gear except for our 2023 line-up will be available at these prices!
Look for our new circular SALE Rack where you can see everything easily!
SHIPPING
Want something, but don't want to carry your new gear? We offer shipping too. Pay for your items and shipping. Write your info on the packet, seal it, and we'll ship once we get back into town.
We also have plastic sacks too if you want to stuff your new gear somewhere and keep it clean,
ROUTE UPDATES
RAGBRAI will be using a text app this year called Simple Text to keep you informed of major weather, route, and activities throughout the week. You won’t want to miss out!
Text “RIDE2023” to 515-304-4404 to receive updates on the route and things to know.
RIDE. STAY. PLAY.
Not from Iowa? We know you'll want to come back!
We'll have a portion of our booth area dedicated to Iowa Tourism with maps of various cities, pamphlets and stickers from some of our partners. Stop by and see what we have!
RAGBRAI GIVES
RAGBRAI cyclists are some of the most community-driven and passionate people. Now, with the power of GoFundMe paired with the kindness of this community, it is easy to use your ride as a way to raise money for a cause you care about.
- RAGBRAI Community Fund
RAGBRAI is only possible because of the towns across Iowa that open their doors and businesses and send volunteers to serve the ride. This fund was created to say thank you to the cities and towns across Iowa that make RAGBRAI possible.
Make a Donation - Individual Fundraising
Are you riding for a cause? Through our partnership with GoFundMe you can start an individual fundraising page for the non-profit of your choice and start raising money!
Start your Own Fundraiser Economic Impact
RAGBRAI provides a shot in the arm to communities across the state the host or serve as a destination for the annual ride. In 2022, RAGBRAI generated a reported $25MM in economic impact for the communities that hosted.
Make a Donation
BIKEIOWA FAQ
Q: Can I buy an item online AFTER RAGBRAI?
A: Maybe - we take 100% of our inventory on the road with us for the week. *IF* we have any leftover gear, we'll re-inventory and post online the first week in August.
Q: Are all items online?
A: No, we take several items on the road that never make it to the online store. Mostly because of limited quantities, or not enough time to post before we roll.
Q: I want an items, but don't want to carry it. Is there another way?
A: Yes! We offering USPS shipping. We'll have envelopes/boxes at our booth. You pay, You seal, We mail when we get back.
Q: Will BIKEIOWA be in multiple locations each day?
A: No, we'll be in one location each day. Most days we work 8-14 hours by the time we unload, set-up, tear-down and drive to the next day's location.
Q: Will you get time to ride any next week?
A: Nope! We'll take bikes to run short errands for supplies and food, but our goal is to help YOU have a fun and successful week on YOUR bike!
Q: How many of each item will you have?
A: We believe in small-batch design and each design has LESS THAN 200 units. Most are 100 or less and some are 50 or less. T-shirt and gear sales is only a small part of what we do and we enjoy the design process as our creative outlet. So stop by early in the week for the best selection.
Q: If you sell out of an item, will you make more??
A: Doubtful. We usually move onto the next design.
DAILY MAPS BY DRUNK BRIAN
Maps coming soon!!!
THANKS to Drunk Brian at
DrunkBrian.com for creating the map and the site that brings all the maps, bar guides, gpx files etc. together! Buy him a beer if you see him. He is captain of Team Wrong and he spends a TON of time consolidating all the details Use it - you'll love it!
BIKEIOWA sponsors attending the RAGBRAI Expo. Please support those who support us!
- Bike World #43
One of the official RAGBRAI bicycle shops!
Web site: bikeworldiowa.com
- Bike Rags Apparel #9 & Gravel Oasis Sponsor!!
Iowa’s provider of custom cycling apparel.
Web site: bikeragsapparel.com
- Bike Tech #40
One of the official RAGBRAI bicycle shops!
Web site: BikeTechCF.com
- Cedar Valley Trails Partnership #31
The Cedar Valley area is one of the best cycling tourism attractions in Iowa with 100+ miles of trail
Web site: http://www.cedarfallstourism.org/
- Erik's Bike Shop #45
One of the official RAGBRAI bicycle shops!
Web site: EriksBikeShop.com
- Primal Wear #2
High quality custom cycling apparel for clubs, teams and events.
Web site: primalwear.com
10 PRO TIPS
- You don't win a prize for getting into the overnight town early. Have FUN throughout the day!
- Experiencing long lines? Divide and conquer - One person get the food, one the drinks and wa-la!
- Be Patient - This will be the largest RAGBRAI ever. You may have to walk. You may have to stop and wait in the sun. It's all part of the experience. Enjoy every minute.
- Ride Right - One person's bad move can affect hundreds of cyclists. Look all around before entering/exiting the road. Look both ways as riders may becoming from the other way. Don't follow too close, Don't pass too close. Don't stop abruptly. Don't be that person ;)
- Eat and Drink like Royalty - Try everything, stop and eat/drink. You are burning calories and it's your vacation.
- Make friends - It' great fun to chat with others around the globe here in Iowa. Some lifetime friends and even future spouses are made this week!
- Know what a KYBO is - We call portable toilets KYBOS in Iowa
- Key Gear - a bandanna, chapstick, sunscreen, wet-ones, and eye drops are always in our pack.
- CASH is KING - Many times the systems can get overwhelmed and not work. Carry plenty of cash.
- Have back-up plans - What if you have no cell phone service? you lost your friends? you lose your phone? lost wallet? lost glasses? broken bike? Make a plan where to meet, write down phone numbers, etc. a little pre-planning can quickly salvage a bad experience