Traveling with Pets at RAGBRAI - Part One

Our one-year-old English Springer Spaniel and seven-month-old Tuxedo kitten were seasoned travelers by now. How would they handle participation in a week-long bicycling event attracting thousands of humans?

The Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa is a 53-year-old event. People come from all over the United States, all over the globe, for this recreational cycling event. It’s not a race. It’s not a competition. People ride bicycles across Iowa for fun!

My husband, Leonard, and I brought bikes, but we were not riding the event. We were crewing.

Three years ago, our daughter Merida Bass and her husband Ron participated in RAGBRAI L, the enormously popular fifty-year celebration. They teamed with two of Ron’s coworkers. What are the logistics of riding your bike across Iowa? Do you carry everything you need on your bike? How do you get back to the starting point? Their team was DIY all the way, using the RAGBRAI trucks to tote their tents, sleeping bags, clothes, and other gear between towns. It took Ron and Merida three years to decide to ride in it again.

At least in part because we volunteered to be their Support Vehicle.

Our role was to transport their gear from overnight town to overnight town. We would meet them at Meeting Towns at the midpoint of their daily rides in case they needed gear stowed in our RV. Support Vehicles drove an entirely separate route to avoid running over cyclists. So basically, we would vacation our way across rural Iowa. Sounds fun!

We humans had learned a lot about traveling with animal companions. We’d never taken them to a huge event. How would we manage pet care? Would we have to end our trip early for their sakes?

Almost immediately, we realized the humid heat presented unique challenges. So far, we had traveled in the mountain west, in drier, cooler climates. The cat was content to hang out the majority of the time in the RV, demanding outdoor time when we were camped for the evening. The dog, a high-energy spaniel, required exercise. And water, please. Creek or pond or swamp. He’s a water dog.

The day before the event began, we arrived in Onawa, Iowa. The temperature was daunting. Ron and Merida parked their RV at a church providing long-term parking. As Support Vehicle participants, we’d already loaded their gear in our RV. We struggled to find Registration and our campsite for the night.

The hundreds of volunteers were managing thousands of participants. Often, the biggest challenge was finding the starting point and the green arrows pointing us in the right direction. May I point out that green signs against the backdrop of green Iowa were difficult to see?

First, we attended an instructional meeting. We received maps, rules, and encouragement. There was an app with live maps of the routes.

We rode bikes to the festival area. Lots of bike vendors selling parts, shirts, hats. “Carnival food” as Merida calls it. - from my journal July 18, 2026

This was doable. But was it fair to the animals? Sure, they’d be riding in air-conditioned comfort. But Strider wouldn’t be content to be cooped up all the time.

That evening, I stayed at the RV with the animals, while Leonard, Ron, and Merida went to the opening ceremonies and to hunt down church tacos. That’s the thing about traveling with pets. When they’re tired, hot, or just plain done, someone needs to stay with them at camp. Frankly, I needed alone time, too!

I couldn’t get the event GPS program working. (Operator error, I would realize in another couple of days.) Thank goodness for the paper maps. Leonard became possessive of the large map provided by the event showing all the routes.

The first meet-up town was a long way off the main route.

Dunlap was our first experience with homemade pie and small-town hospitality. I tried carrying Legolas in his backpack and letting him out at the Catholic Church pie tent. He complained angrily. I had to take him back to the RV.

Strider handled the heat better. Leonard found grass and shade. Do you know how hot the pavement or asphalt is on paws? Test it by pressing a hand on the ground!

Bikes, cyclists, and support crews filled the small town. After their break, Ron & Merida headed out, and we drove the RV to the overnight town, Harlan. - from my journal, July 19, 2026

After meeting our riders, we learned they planned to ride all 59.3 miles that first day despite the intense heat. After enjoying steak sandwiches and cooling off in the fire station, our riders resumed their journey. We drove the RV to the overnight town of Harlan.

In Harlan, Support Vehicles squeezed into a crowded school parking lot. Our riders found the camping area and pitched their tent on the grass. Strider couldn’t run loose here. Legolas stayed inside the RV.

That evening, we wanted to see Harlan. Humans could ride a shuttle bus, but puppies weren’t allowed. So we hitched up the puppy cart and pedaled our e-bikes to downtown. Leonard and I have gone the e-bike route to enable us to keep riding bicycles. Our RAGBRAI riders had traditional bicycles.

Heat was the primary obstacle again on the second day of RAGBRAI. Ron and Merida witnessed multiple people fall out from heat exhaustion yesterday. Today was supposed to be even hotter.

The sun was ominous, rising on our parking lot camp. The heat would reach the high 90s, but feel like 106 degrees F. I didn’t take Legolas outside all day.

Exira was the meeting town, the halfway point for riders at 30.6 miles. Their town center was nice! A park had huge shade trees. Strider was interested in the yak and her baby. A note for pet parents: livestock is twitchy about dogs. Especially livestock with babies. We had to observe from a safe distance.

There was more pie to be had. My only regret at the end of RAGBRAI was that I didn’t eat more pie, but having an issue with gluten, I could only go off-diet a few times without risking consequences. Meat was readily available. And corn, which I also avoid. However, I may have consumed a gallon of ice cream during the trip.

Ron & Merida are still a long way out, seeing a Danish village & troll. So we shuttled back to the RV & took a nap. Strider was the center of attention. All the people, noise, & heat did him in. - from my journal, July 20, 2026

Our riders decided they didn’t need to finish the 25.9 more miles to pedal to the overnight town at Guthrie Center. Riding bikes in hundred-degree heat, risking heat exhaustion? After accomplishing over thirty? Not necessary! They hitched a ride in the RV.

The fairgrounds camping at Guthrie Center was wonderful. Flat, grassy, spacious. We gladly paid extra for showers, electricity, and a dump station. This was one of our favorite campgrounds. We have solar panels and a generator. The heat had us running the air-conditioning constantly. At the Guthrie Center fairgrounds, we made use of the luxury of an electrical hookup to recharge our depleted batteries. Ron and Merida pitched their tent right beside the RV.

Strider overheated when we walked to downtown Guthrie Center. We felt terrible, and took him back to the RV after getting food. Without reliable cool air and lots of fresh water, our animal companions would not have survived the trip. We brought gallons of drinking water, and ended up purchasing even more.

At the grassy campground, we let both animals outdoors (on leashes). An electrical storm lit up the sky and brought cooling rain.

We had survived two days of RAGBRAI, not to mention the two-day journey to Iowa from Colorado. Our animal companions let us know their limitations. We were prepared to bail on our kids if the trip became too rough. There were five more days to go. Would we make it?

To read about our RAGBRAI adventure from Merida’s viewpoint as a rider, read our daily “journal” and pie report beginning with: