A satirical but mostly true look at RAGBRAI�, the Des Moines Register's annual great bike ride across Iowa.

Launched as a lark in 1973, RAGBRAI has developed into the world's largest, longest and oldest bicycle touring event. Thousands of cyclists from all fifty states and dozens of countries ride across Iowa for a weeklong festival. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of hospitable Iowans welcome, feed and shelter this rolling carnival, showcasing their communities. Greg Borzo has gathered hundreds of stories that reveal the essence of this unique event. He has also gathered a lavish collection of photographs and cartoons--vintage and contemporary, most never published before--that illustrate RAGBRAI's kaleidoscopic character.

RAGBRAI: Everyone Pronounces It Wrong is a celebration, a memoir, an entertainment. The book deals with the first 25 years of the famous bike ride. It describes the genesis of an event that has drawn hundreds of thousands of people to Iowa from all over the world and attempts to explain the ride's continued charm and appeal. RAGBRAI is different from all other bicycle tours. The others, and there are dozens of cross-state rides held in the United States, attract mostly serious, dedicated cyclists who clench their teeth and ride hard all day. RAGBRAI has its share of these cyclists, but it's more inclusive. It is a huge, week long celebration with dancing in the streets and evening entertainments. It is a love affair between bicycle riders and the people of Iowa. The book captures the essence of all that.

Tour de Faith shares powerful lessons about community, discipline, challenges, mortality, and more as pastor Robert F. Molsberry reflects on his experiences in the annual Des Moines Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI). Each year, the race attracts tens of thousands of riders, including political candidates, governors, Hollywood celebrities, and renowned cycling champions Lance Armstrong and Greg LeMond. In Tour de Faith Molsberry offers a progressive Christian perspective on life in the fast and slow lanes of the twenty-first century.

This book is a collection of facts, stories and legends associated with towns in Iowa that have been on the route of the annual bike ride across Iowa. Readers will enjoying leaning how towns got their names and the notable people who were born in Iowa. The book contains stories of how railroads and coal mining helped develop communities across the state; as well as the relationship of settlers with the American Indians and the Mormons as they traveled on their way to Utah.

A group of semi-retired executives become bored with their country club life and decide to partcipate in an annual nationally known 450 mile bike ride across Iowa (RAGBRAI). In the process they uncover a serial killer who selects victims from the middle-age wealthy woman on this ride. They utilize their varied skills and legal and illegal methods attempt to identify and confront the killer. They also learn to confront the deep emotions of the aging process with humor not fear.

"Eloquent and detailed...It's hard to have hope, but the organized observations and plans of Hoffman and people like her give me some. Read her book -- and listen." -- Jane Smiley, The Washington Post In her late 40s, Beth Hoffman decided to upend her comfortable life as a professor and journalist to move to her husband's family ranch in Iowa--all for the dream of becoming a farmer. There was just one problem: money. Half of America's two million farms made less than $300 in 2019, and many struggle just to stay afloat. Bet the Farm chronicles this struggle through Beth's eyes. She must contend with her father-in-law, who is reluctant to hand over control of the land. Growing oats is good for the environment but ends up being very bad for the wallet. And finding somewhere, in the midst of COVID-19, to slaughter grass finished beef is a nightmare. If Beth can't make it, how can farmers who confront racism, lack access to land, or don't have other jobs to fall back on hack it? Bet the Farm is a first-hand account of the perils of farming today and a personal exploration of more just and sustainable ways of producing food.