RAGBRAI Day 4: Riders will fall for Iowa Falls

RAGBRAI DAY 4 ROUTE

Forest City to Iowa Falls

MILEAGE

72.1

ELEVATION GAIN

1,530 feet

HIGHLIGHTS

The second 70-plus-mile ride in a row on a day that promises to be warmish will test riders' endurance. Fortunately, there will be plenty of water along the way.

For those who enjoyed the Day 1 and 2 rides in the Iowa Great Lakes region, the first pass-through town on the Wednesday, July 23, ride will visit another large glacial remnant lake. Ventura lies at the west end of Clear Lake, famous for the city of the same name at the lake's other end where Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper in 1959 gave their last performance at the Surf Ballroom before climbing aboard a small plane that crashed shortly after takeoff, killing all aboard. Ventura, which bills itself as a Sportsman's Paradise, hopes to evoke happier times with an array of breakfast vendors and local landmark The Viking Ice Cream, if you want to start your day on a sweet note.

Meservey is next on the Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa, with more breakfast offerings, followed by Alexander and then the meeting town of Latimer, which invites riders to stay and play, with a basketball shooting contest and a splash pad, as well as a chance to get your photo taken in its vintage 1938 firetruck.

The third town in just inside 18 miles will be Coulter, which has a feast in store for riders. Several vendors will be offering baked goods, including La Luz Centro Cultural, the local Arise & Shine bakery, Perfect P's Bakery and The Bread Lady. Other enticements include pupusas; pancakes loaded with strawberries and bananas; Hungarian-style langos, a deep-fried flatbread; and an Iowa favorite, loosemeat sandwiches.

Don't pass up the chance to stop — it's almost 21 miles from Coulter to the overnight town, Iowa Falls. That last big pull will be worth it: Few Iowa towns are more charming. The cliff-lined Iowa River flows through the center of town, billed as "The Scenic City," and riders are welcome to take a refreshing dip. A swinging pedestrian bridge provides a way to get across without getting your feet wet. The Scenic City Empress offers riverboard rides, and in Estes Park, there's Iowa's oldest popcorn stand, with its vintage neon sign. Iowa Falls also boasts a microbrewery, Timbukbru — not a common accoutrement for a town of 5,000. RAGBRAI visited here just four years ago, and it's no wonder why it's back so soon.

We'd be remiss if we didn't note that it's I Ride 4 day — a chance to support your favorite cause and donate to others'.

ENTERTAINMENT

Boogie Wonderland Band, the headliner, parties down at 8 p.m. The Americana-inflected Adam Gruel & the Space Burritos opens at 5:30 p.m.

FORECAST

The heat is on, with a forecast high around 90 and a strong headwind. Be careful not to overdo it. The omnipresent chance of thunderstorms continues Wednesday night.

LOOKING AHEAD

College Jersey Day will take riders from Iowa Falls to Cedar Falls, home of the University of Northern Iowa.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: RAGBRAI takes riders to The Scenic City, Iowa Falls in Day 4