The city is gearing up to welcome 50,000 cyclists to the metro area on July 26 and 27. RAGBRAI released a detailed map of the route riders will take through Des Moines.
Riders will come into town on East 14th Street and turn onto University Avenue. Then, they'll take East Ninth Street past the Iowa State Capitol. Cyclists will then travel through downtown on Walnut Street, turn onto Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway and onto Fleur Drive. They'll camp out at Water Works Park on the night of July 26, where Lynyrd Skynyrd will perform.
On July 27, cyclists will retrace their steps, going through downtown on Walnut Street and heading toward the Iowa State Fairgrounds. People should expect full and partial road closures from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on July 26 and 6 a.m. to noon on July 27. Organizers are encouraging people to have patience.