The Iowa county that banned organized bicycle rides such as RAGBRAI last fall will be the scene of a protest ride on Saturday.
Organized by the Taco Ride Gang, the ride will start at the Crawford County Courthouse in Denison at 11 a.m. An announcement they posted at the BikeIowa website predicts up to 500 cyclists will take part on Saturday.
[Update: June 22, 2008 — KTIV reports about 100 cyclists joined the 40-mile ride. ]
The announcement reads:
“Come one, come all to Crawford County, Iowa. It's time to send a significant message to Crawford County about cycling and the Iowa cycling laws and how much we all like to bike Iowa. The more the merrier and the louder the message!”
The message suggests bringing beer and bail money. As for registration: “This is a banned ride, so how could there be a registration?”
Crawford County supervisors voted to ban organized bike rides from its borders last fall after approving a $350,000 settlement in the 2004 death of a RAGBRAI bicyclist. The lawsuit from the family alleged Crawford County was at fault for not properly maintaining its county roads.
While the supervisors approved the resolution to ban RAGBRAI, the AP quotes the Crawford County sheriff that there is no ordinance preventing anyone from bicycling across the county, even as a large group.
From doing a little research, it doesn't appear that the Taco Ride Gang is a particularly militant bunch. They're primarily known for the loosely organized Thursday bike rides that can draw 500 to 600 people.
The destination of those rides is typically a Council Bluff restaurant that offers six tacos and a pitcher of beer for $11 on Thursday nights.
The hometown newspaper, Denison Bulletin-Review, notes that many county officials will be touring flood damage on Saturday. Twelve miles of road are closed and three bridges are out.
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