Day 1 – July 21, 2013 – Council Bluffs to Harlan – 50 miles
“The Heavens Declare the Glory of God”
As promised, Gene and Sandi got us going at 5:00 am with the
goal of getting on the road by 6:00. We did that easily and joined hundreds of other
early risers on our first ride of the week.
It was truly a beautiful day.
When we woke, there was lightning in the distance but it never
threatened us. As we rode into the
sunrise, the clouds and sun combined for a glorious testimony to the creative genius
of God.
The ride itself was easier than maybe I had expected. There is something about riding (or perhaps
doing anything!) with many other people that supports you and strengthens you. The miles kind of fly by as you are moved
along by the collective energy of so many going in the same direction in common
purpose. I am positive that there is a
spiritual/emotional/behavioral application here but not for today! Today, it’s just about riding bikes. We arrived in Harlan in about 4 hours which
was much earlier than we had expected.
We talked about how we could have skyped into the 10:00 service at
church back home!
The ride itself exposed us to the economics of RAGBRAI as we
were almost constantly in view of some sign or another promising us delectable
delights of one kind or another. Among
our favorites that amused but did not tempt us too much were “hamballs on a
stick” and “chocolate covered bacon.”
Each town is lined with various vendors.
Some apparently will reappear in other towns tomorrow. Others were more local. One sign promised “church ladies who remind you
of your mom and grandma” selling pies.
It was called the Church Ladies Group.
It is interesting to think about living in one of these towns so similar
to ones where I work. What must it be
like to have your life suddenly and for one day only invaded by more than
15,000 people on bicycles!
In Harlan, we rested.
We paid $5 for shower that felt like it was worth $10. We rested some more. Then Joey, Rick, Sam and I went into town to
find a place to watch the USA/El Salvador Gold Cup Quarterfinal game. We ended up at Pizza Ranch which is a bit
unromantic for an event like RAGBRAI.
But the buffet gave us a chance to graze and enjoy the game a bit. Following the game, we went back to camp
(High School parking lot) and found ourselves down at the bottom of the hill at
Grace Baptist Church where, at least in my mind, we had our first encounter
with people seeing RAGBRAI as an opportunity to serve rather than to fund
raise. Contrary to really any other
group we saw, church related or otherwise, they were giving away polish sausages,
hamburgers, fat slices of really good watermelon and cold water. No donations accepted. We sat in their air conditioned fellowship
hall (also free) for a while and then headed back to the high school for a
concert by a couple of young women from Omaha, one of whom is from Harlan. And that’s where we are now.
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