Estherville prepares to host thousands of riders

Sun April 24 2005
Posted Apr 24, 2005
6,814

By BILL CAHALAN Sentinel Staff Writer ESTHERVILLE -- A swarm of 12,000 bicyclists are expected to descend upon Estherville on July 25. The bicyclists from many states and nations and an additional 3,000 "support people" will be part of the "Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa." The 33rd annual RAGBRAI, sponsored by the Des Moines Register newspaper, will include Emmet and Kossuth counties. Ringsted and Fenton will be among the towns on the route. Estherville has been selected by RAGBRAI as one of several overnight community host cities along the 495-mile route through northern Iowa. The bicycle trek from July 24-30 will begin in LeMars in northwest Iowa and will end in Guttenberg along the Mississippi River. Algona will be another RAGBRAI overnight community host city, on July 26. The overnight stops involve the bicyclists and traveling support people staying overnight in the cities. Host cities, such as Estherville and Algona, will have food booths, church dinners, large-scale camping arrangements, swimming facilities and entertainment shows for the traveling guests. Food vendors will pay a fee to the Estherville group organizing the activities to help pay for expenses. Restaurants, stores, motels and other businesses are expected to benefit financially from the mass of people visiting the communities. Already, all the Estherville motels are booked full with reservations on July 25. A large portion of the RAGBRAI participants are expected to eat breakfast in Estherville on the morning of July 26 before departing for the 62-mile ride to Algona. "RAGBRAI will be a good opportunity for our community to showcase itself to 15,000 people from many different states and nations, and for visitors to experience our hospitality," said Dusty Heland, executive director of the Estherville Area Chamber of Commerce. "It will be an opportunity for Estherville and the surrounding area to put our best foot forward and show the RAGBRAI riders why this is a great place to live, work and play," Heland said. The large gathering of people will provide a large financial boost to Estherville, Heland said. "RAGBRAI has become one of Iowa's premier annual events that attracts riders from all 50 states and many foreign countries," she said. "They have chosen us because of the people and amenities in Estherville that provided them with wonderful experiences during a previous visit. I'm certain we can do it again." In 1996, Estherville was an overnight host city for RAGBRAI. Examples of the entertainment on July 25 will include several bands playing on stage, a rock climbing wall, mechanical bull riding, games and other organized activities. The city of Estherville outdoor swimming pool and the indoor pool, exercise equipment and gyms at the Regional Wellness Center across from Iowa Lakes Community College will be available to visitors. A tabloid-size publication, with Estherville business ads that cater to RAGBRAI participants and information about Estherville accommodations for the bicyclists, will be distributed July 24 in Sheldon. That is where bicyclists will stay overnight before they ride 84 miles east to Estherville the next day. Estherville organizers have named their community's RAGBRAI host event "Blizzard of Bikes." "We have a lot of work to prepare for RAGBRAI," Heland said. Since Estherville was chosen as an overnight host city in late January, a large group has held a meeting every two weeks to prepare. The next two meetings are at noon on May 3 and 17 in room 74 at Iowa Lakes Community College. "We will probably need a total of about 1,000 volunteers working throughout the community a couple days before RAGBRAI comes in and on the day that RAGBRAI people are here," Heland said. More information is available about the event and preparations by going to the Web site www.estherville.org.