Two men stop outside Cumming Tap during their ride.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cMost people ride for pleasure and exercise, but many are venturing into commuting to work shopping as well,\u201d said Georgie Libbie, president of the Des Moines Cycle Club. \u201cAnd, of course, being famous for RAGBRAI, Iowans all over the state are very aware of cycling, as well as the revenue it brings in.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

The Register\u2019s Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI) is a weeklong biking event with stops in various towns along the way. People come from all over the country to participate. <\/span><\/p>\n

Everyday, one of the towns on the route is designated as a meet-up point for all the bikers. It allows them a chance to see people and places they might not otherwise.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe year we rode, we got the opportunity to meet people all across the state. We talked to people in all the small towns we passed through, interacted with the scout troops, and heard stories about what made each town unique,\u201d said biker Travis Thornbrough. \u201cFor me, some of the best memories that I have with cycling are the people that I met along the way and the stories I\u2019ve heard.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

The community atmosphere does not take away from the physical and mental challenge the course represents.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an event that understands its grueling, physical nature, during one of the harshest portions of the year in Iowa, but it is still one big rolling party,\u201d Thornbrough said. \u201cIt serves as a celebration of the State of Iowa, and on any given day during the ride you can experience every aspect of the state\u2019s identity.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

However, RAGBRAI is just one of many bike events that can be found in the state of Iowa. Boulton\u2019s organization works to build businesses around the bike trails.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe see our organization shifting to help string together properties to trail corridors and continuing to assist in their development.\u201d Boulton said.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Cumming Tap, for example, hosts a bike ride every Tuesday from 4-11 p.m. These rides are much more casual than a race like RAGBRAI. People enter and exit along the 8-mile trail as they please, and the Cumming Tap acts as a pit stop along the way.<\/span><\/p>\n

Like other businesses who have started catering to the dedicated group, the bar is set up to bring in bike traffic. From the free air pump out back, numerous bike racks and large outdoor areas to the food provided by Tacopocalypse, the event shows how deeply bike culture is rooted bike culture in Iowa. <\/span><\/p>\n

To capitalize on the growing number of bikers, the city of Des Moines is focused on integrating bikers into the city. The city\u2019s extensive trail network, grid street pattern and mild weather (compared to other Midwest cities) make it a good place to bike.<\/span><\/p>\n

But Des Moines receives its fair share of inclement weather, and biking in the city doesn\u2019t stop just because the weather becomes difficult. To illustrate this point, the Des Moines Metropolitan Planning Organization keeps track of the number of people who use the bike racks on the front of our public buses. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cLast year there were over 53,000 uses of this multimodal partnership,\u201d Boulton said. \u201cIn the first three months of this year alone, that number totaled over 9,000.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

While the reasons to bike vary for many, it is clear the state has made it a priority to connect both rural and urban areas to bike trails.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe state of Iowa is a leader in the installation of bike trails in both cities and connecting rural communities,\u201d said Thornbrough, \u201cOne of the best parts of being a cyclist in the state is having the resources and interest from people at all levels that make the sport fun.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hundreds of miles in trails and businesses built around traffic highlight the lifestyle of biking in Iowa<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8482,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n