The triple digit heat that plagued the 10,000 bicycle riders in the 40th Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI) was erased on Wednesday by overnight thunderstorms.
Although touted as one of the easier RAGBRAI’s in terms of terrain, the weather appears to present the biggest challenge on this year’s 471-mile bike tour.
Iowa is in the midst of a severe drought that threatens the state’s corn crop. The storms that swept into Wednesday’s host community of Marshalltown and elsewhere in central Iowa caught everyone off guard.
The thunderstorms were accompanied by winds gusting to 70 mph and uprooted bicyclists’ tents. Many sought shelter indoors, according to the Des Moines Register.
Meanwhile, a couple of RAGBRAI cyclists remained hospitalized after being struck by cars Tuesday morning in Sac County.
The Quad City Times reports that two bicyclists were hit by a car about 4 miles south of Sac City. One, Dennis Murphy, 38, of Urbandale was hospitalized while the other suffered only scrapes.
About an hour later at 6:30 a.m., Michael Sean McGowan, 44, of Miami, Fla., was hospitalized he was hit.
We wish for a speedy recovery for everyone.
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