Field of Dreams and Bicycles
RAGBRAI LIII Day Six
Iconic Iowa
What says Iowa better than a farm and a field?
Merida’s Ride
Ron and Merida sipping lemonade on a couch set on the street in Earlville, Iowa.
Day 6 of RAGBRAI was the second shortest at only 40 miles. Ron and Merida woke up at 5:15 AM as they had every day of the event, but they moved slower than usual. The route opened at 6:00 AM, but they didn’t set their wheels on the road until 7:00 AM. Was soreness and fatigue from all the miles across Iowa highways to blame? Even with Catherine and Leonard crewing, Ron and Merida still had to set up and take down a tent every night. Even with all the work involved, they were still having a great time. It’s an odd way to vacation, but they’re strange people. Then again, the other 20,000 plus participants at RAGBRAI might argue that one doesn’t need to be strange to enjoy the event.
There was barely room to walk in Winthrop as a crowd of riders all packed in, Iowa on Day 6 of RAGBRAI.
Today was Ron’s favorite. A crop duster made several passes over the green rolling hills around the riders, thankfully, without dropping its load. The route took them closer than they had ever been to wind turbines. The scale was unbelievable! There wasn’t enough wind to turn the blades of the towering white pillars that stood like sky high sentinels over the countryside.
On the hottest day of RAGBRAI LIII, Day 2, Ron and Merida blew past an adorable little girl holding a tiny white kitten. She was yelling to passersby, “You can pet my kitten for a dollar!” She was at the top of a hill, and Ron and Merida didn’t process what she had said until they were far enough down the hill that they didn’t want to ride back up. They were kicking themselves for missing out on the experience for the rest of the trip. So when Merida saw that Lainey, Iowa’s smallest cow was offering photos, she rode off the road, leapt off her bike, and raced to the farm.
One of Iowa’s smallest cows. She is an adult!
It wasn’t just one cow, but three! The three smallest cows in Iowa. The smallest was about the size of Strider, Catherine’s English Springer puppy.
Ron standing by another one of Iowa’s smallest cows. She, too is an adult!
Ron and Merida make it into Dyersville!
Cathy’s Drive
Co-authors and mother-daughter team are still smiling and speaking to each other after six days of RAGBRAI
Today was the first and only time that Leonard and Catherine did not drive to the midpoint meeting town. The main reason for the support driver to meet their cyclists is to give them the chance to catch a ride at the halfway point rather than pedal to the overnight town. Out of the five previous days, they rode half days on days one and two. The other three, they did the entire distance. Ron and Merida were determined to cycle the entire day six.
The drive from Independence to Dyersville was a straight shot down a major highway. Boring!
Because they didn’t make a midday stop, Catherine and Leonard had plenty of time to see Dyersville. People were very friendly. There were green, shady parks and stone churches.
Although neither is a baseball fan, they decided to ride their e-bikes to see the Field of Dreams. Finally, they experienced what the RAGBRAI riders had been seeing every day. Driving country roads in a motorized vehicle is not the same as riding on a bicycle. It’s a more intimate experience. Slower. With time to really see the wildflowers.
We had vague memories of watching the film. And not much knowledge of baseball. Seeing the movie set was still a neat experience. I recommend visiting it when you’re in this region of Iowa.
Strider rode with us in his Burley Tail Wagon. At one year old, he should not run beside our bicycles for more than a mile or two. Plus, we were cycling on roads shared with cars, trucks, and farm equipment. Strider was excited to get out of his wagon after a five or six mile trip. At the Field of Dreams, he could not read the “keep out of creek” sign. He thoroughly enjoyed cooling off in the water.
Pie Report
Ron sadly had his worst piece of pie today. He doesn’t know if it was homemade, but he’s pretty sure it wasn’t. Somehow, it didn’t taste like apples. And the crust was gross and mushy. But he found a free cookie in Earlville that made up for the experience. White chocolate chip. Excellent!
Meetup Town - Manchester
Ron and Merida parked their bikes in the shade of this beautiful church in Manchester, Iowa.
Manchester was exciting from start to finish, offering bandaids, and lots of other freebies.
Small Town of the Day - Earlville, Iowa
Just outside of Earlville, Ron and Merida enjoy chai tea and coffee at a farm in the shade.
Earlville was special all the way around. There were fun welcoming signs on the route leading up to the town. they had some good drinks, and a relaxing time.
Tonight’s Camp
Camp in Dyersville
Not the best, and not the worst.
Today’s Favorite Entertainment
Another water slide was set up outside Earlville on a farm.
Watching people use this massive water slide was entertaining enough for Ron and Merida. They didn’t go down it. Instead, they watched while they sipped drinks in the shade, and listened to live music by a talented country singer.
Weather Report
It was another perfect day for riding. Partly cloudy with temperatures in the 70s.
Corn!
The Field of Dreams baseball diamond was created in a cornfield. Corn borders the field.
RAGBRAI LIII
Catherine and Leonard are crewing for Merida and Ron at the 53rd Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa! Our team name is “You may not rest now, there are monsters nearby.”
Meet Strider and Legolas in furson.
We’re bringing books and will be happy to sell and sign copies!
Sunday, July 19th - Saturday, July 25th
All day, every day! Check out the route here!
Be sure to subscribe to our Substack! It’s free!
Where to find us:
Catherine’s Website - https://catherinedilts.com/
Merida’s Website - https://merida-creates.com/
Subscribe to our individual Substack newsletters:
Catherine Dilts is the author of the Rose Creek Mystery series. Her short stories regularly appear in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine. Recently retired from a career in environmental compliance, Catherine now writes fiction full time.
Merida Bass almost wasn’t an artist. Fear of criticism resulted in her teaching remedial algebra to unwilling college students. After ten years of torture, she grew a backbone and threw herself into art, writing, and training for endurance events.
This post is public so feel free to meow it out to the rest of the world.