Arriving
at the Transportation Staging Point
You must arrive at our transportation
staging point at the end of RAGBRAI by
3:30 pm
We feel this arrival time best balances arriving
back in Chicago at a reasonable time with
the needs of our slower riders since we will be
departing on what is still a riding day. All riders
will still
be able to linger in the interesting towns along
the route that day and enjoy the last day of their
RAGBRAI experience. You will not need to get up
at the crack of dawn or make a mad rush to arrive
at
our staging point on time, making an otherwise
enjoyable ride into a stressful one. If you are a
faster rider
you may want to slow down your pace on the road
that day but if you do arrive in the ending town
well
before this arrival time there will still be plenty
for you to see and do there.
It is extremely
important for you to plan your day so that you
complete the ride and activities in the ending
town and
arrive at our transportation staging point by the arrival time. We certainly
do not want to you miss our transportation service back to Chicago! Your arrival
time in the ending town will depend on such considerations as your departure
time from the previous overnight town, your riding pace on the road (particularly
if the route that day is a long distance and/or has a lot of climbing), and the
amount of time you spend at stops and the pass through towns on the route that
day.
You should also plan on leaving some extra time
just in case any unforeseeable situations come up
such as mechanical trouble, inclement weather conditions
such as rain, heat, or headwinds, or
just extra stops because you are tired and riding
slow after a long week. You should also leave enough
time to do such things in the ending
town as dipping your tires
at the
finish
in the Mississippi River to signify you made it,
dropping your bike off at the bike shipping location
(if applicable), picking up your baggage, taking
a shower, eating and drinking, checking out the ending
town, and bringing your bike and baggage to our transportation
staging point.
Please note that showers will not be available in
Chicago. If you want to shower after your ride you
will need to do so in the ending town before we depart.
- Click
Here for all drop off locations
in the RAGBRAI previous and ending stopping
towns overlaid on satellite imagery. (coming
after May 1st)
- Click
Here to download the in town cue
sheets and maps for the RAGBRAI previous and
ending stopping towns. (coming after May
1st)
Baggage
Pickup in the Previous RAGBRAI Stopping Town
We will have separate baggage pick up locations in the previous stopping
town on Saturday morning at both the RAGBRAI baggage truck and also at the Pork
Belly Ventures camping location. Based on previous experience it will be much,
much
easier for the majority of our participants to deliver your baggage to us at
one of these locations than transporting it yourself after you arrive in the
ending town. Doing so will also significantly help us depart the ending town
in a reasonable amount of time bacause you won't need to go back to pick up your
baggage
after you arrive!
We will be accepting baggage at all locations from
5:00 am when the RAGBRAI baggage truck opens until
8:00 am when it departs. We will also unload your
baggage in the RAGBRAI ending town so you can still
access your personal items there (shower stuff, car
keys, book for the ride home, etc.)
If you are not using the RAGBRAI baggage truck or
Pork Belly Ventures to transport your baggage during
the week of RAGBRAI it is very important to check
where your staging locations will be both in the
RAGBRAI ending town as well as the previous stopping
town to determine the easiest way for you to transfer
your baggage to us. You can still deliver your baggage
to us at one of these locations in the previous RAGBRAI
stopping town on Saturday morning transporting even
if you are transporting your baggage during the week
of RAGBRAI another way.
- Click
Here for more information about
the RAGBRAI previous stopping town. (coming
soon!)
RAGBRAI
Main Baggage Drop Off
 |
Coming after May 1st!
|
Pork
Belly Ventures
 |
Coming after May 1st!
|
RAGBRAI
Ending Town Locations
The RAGBRAI ending town will inform
us of these specific locations around May 1st
and we will develop the specific routes and
provide
more information about them after this time.
- Click
Here for more information
about the RAGBRAI ending town. (coming soon!)
Bicycle
Illinois Transportation Staging Point
 |
Coming after May 1st!
We expect our coach bus to arrive at the transportation
staging point at TBD (coming after
May 1st!) |
RAGBRAI
Ending Location and Dip Site
 |
Coming after May 1st!
|
Showers
 |
Coming after May 1st!
|
RAGBRAI Main Baggage Drop Off
 |
Coming after May 1st!
|
Please note that all locations are approximate.
Riding
to Our Transportation Staging Point
At the end of RAGBRAI, you will need to ride directly
to our transportation
staging point yourself from the ending location and dip site.
We
will
provide
a route for you to follow.
- Click Here for all supported
facilities, services, and in town routes for the
RAGBRAI ending town overlaid on satellite imagery. (coming after May 1st!)
- Click Here to download the in
town cue sheets and maps for the RAGBRAI previous
and
ending stopping towns. (coming after May 1st!)
- Click Here to download the
GPS route dataset files for the RAGBRAI ending
town. (coming after May 1st!)
- Click
Here for more information about
in town transportation.
- Click
Here for more information about
our routes.
- Click
Here for more information about
the roads and bike paths we follow.
- Click
Here for more information about
navigating our routes.
- Click
Here for more information about
our cue sheets and maps.
Cue Sheet and Map
We will distribute a printed cue sheet and map of our routes in the RAGBRAI
ending town to all participants before the start of RAGBRAI as
part of the registration materials.
We will also post a link on the bicycleillinois.com
home page and our RAGBRAI transportation service
home page for you to download the .pdf file of the
cue sheet and map onto your smartphone in case your
paper copy gets lost or destroyed during the week
of RAGBRAI.
Unfortunately we will not be able to distribute
them after the end of RAGBRAI, so if you do not
register for our transportation service from Chicago
to the
start of RAGBRAI you will need to download and
print them yourself and carry them with you during
the
week.
GPS
Route Dataset Files
GPS route dataset files will be available for you to download to your own individual
personal GPS device for navigation if you will be riding with one.
- Click
Here for more information about
riding with your own personal GPS device.
We will not be providing a GPS unit to any of our
participants for navigation at the end of RAGBRAI.
Detours
and Reroutes
In the extremely unlikely event that either
our transportation staging point location or
the route to it changes after all printed materials
and the GPS route dataset files have been distributed
(such as in response to unexpected blocked roads,
new road construction, etc.) we will indicate
our route to our transportation staging point
by using painted road markings directly on the
road designated with both "BI" and "DT" to
signify Bicycle Iillinois
and the DeTour.
We will also inform all of our participants on
their cell phone using both text message and
voice mail of the situation. Unfortunately we
will
not be able to provide anyone with a new individual
printed cue sheet or map of GPS route dataset
files of our new routes.
- Click
Here for more information about
our signage.
- Click
Here for more information about
our road markings.
- Click
Here for more information about
reroutes.
- Click
Here for more information about
road construction.
- Click
Here for more information about
us contacting you during the event.
Other Signage
We will not mount any Bicycle Illinois specific
signs onto sign posts or telephone poles because
they will be too easy to miss and will not stand
out enough among the hundreds of other club signs
posted there. In addition we will not be able to
come back later to take the signs down.
Transporting
Your Baggage to Our Transportation Staging Point
If you do not deliver
your baggage to us in the previous RAGBRAI stopping
town you will need to transport it to our transportation
staging point in the RAGBRAI ending town yourself.
- Click
Here for more information about
baggage pickup in the previous RAGBRAI stopping
town
In
order to prevent unnecessary traffic in the RAGBRAI
ending town, RAGBRAI only allows us to travel
to our transportation staging point and we cannot
pick up any participants or their bicycles or
baggage at any other location. If you used Pork
Belly Ventures charter service during the week
of RAGBRAI, they
will not deliver your baggage
to our transportation staging point in the ending
town either.
Ideally, our transportation staging point
will be close enough to your baggage in the
RAGBRAI ending
town so that you can easily carry it to our transportation
staging point yourself from there yourself.
If your baggage is not within a reasonable walking
distance to our transportation staging point, our
transportation staging point will be a stop on the
official RAGBRAI Rider & Support Shuttle Service
which will run all day. To use the shuttle service
to transport your baggage to our transportation staging
location you should bike to our transportation staging
point (without your baggage) using our route from
the RAGBRAI ending location and dip site and drop
off your bicycle with us. You should then take the
shuttle service back to where your baggage is located
(without your bicycle), pick up your baggage, and
then take the RAGBRAI shuttle bus back to our transportation
staging point with your baggage. Shuttle busses can
take up to an hour and a half each way, so make sure
and budget at least three hours to get your baggage
after you arrive at our transportation staging point.
Bicycle
Staging and Loading
We will have two separate bicycle moving
trucks travel from the RAGBRAI ending
town to Chicago. The first
truck will depart the RAGBRAI ending town
at the same time as the coach busses and drop
off at all staging points in Chicago on
Saturday evening. We
will give priority to loading all the bikes
that need to return to Chicago on Saturday evening
onto
this moving truck to make sure it and the
busses coach busses depart the RAGBRAI ending
town and arrive in Chicago in a
timely manner.
- Click
Here for more information about
our transportation staging locations in Chicago
After
the coach busses and the first moving truck depart
we continue to load the remaining bikes (as well
as our equipment and supplies) to be picked up at
our
post-event bicycle and baggage pick up on Saturday
and Sunday. This second truck
will drive through
the night
and arrive back in Chicago early Sunday morning.
We will then unload all of the bikes
at the main transportation staging
point there where they will
be waiting until you arrive to pick them up on Sunday
or Monday. Allowing us to transport your bicycle
later and picking it up from us on Sunday or Monday
will
help
assure
a much, much quicker departure time for
everyone from the RAGBRAI ending town. Accordingly,
we will be offering a significant registration discount
to participants who pick up their bikes from us on
Sunday or Monday instead of Saturday
evening.
Please note that all baggage (whether or not it
will be left for our
post-event bicycle and baggage pick up) must still
be transported to Chicago in the compartments underneath
the coach
busses since there is only enough room
on our
moving truck to transport bicycles and not any
additional baggage.
- Click
Here for more information about
our post-event bicycle and baggage pick up
We will stage and load bikes and baggage in the
RAGBRAI ending town together as one group so that
we can quickly and easily unload them in Chicago
together in the following order of drop off locations:
- Saturday evening delivery
- Parking Garage
- Main Transportation Staging Point
- Chicago Hotel
- Post-event bicycle and baggage pick up
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