Ragbrai

Grandpa Al, Payton & Graham at the finish line Father & Son
Brad (Al's cousin), Al & Graham

Dipping their tires into the Mississippi

At the finish line

Riding in to the finish line

In Walcott, IA (last stop before the finish line)

Here they come!!!

Waiting patiently with his sign to surprise Daddy

For the past 4 months, Graham has been training for Ragbrai, which is a bike ride across the state of Iowa. He bought a new Trek bike for the occasion, along with many accessories. Graham's dad wanted to do Ragbrai for his 60th birthday and Graham was excited to do it with him. I was excited for him to do it too but didn't realize how many hours per day the training would require. I also didn't realize he would be gone for 8.5 days!! The boys and I survived (with only some minor house issues to take care of) and Graham had a great time. Here was their daily mileage...

Sunday 59.5 miles

Monday 65.4 miles

Tuesday 100+ miles

Wednesday 56.1 miles

Thursday 57.5 miles

Friday 74.9 miles

Saturday 65.6 miles

Their days were pretty much the same, wake up and ride, stop for breakfast, ride, eat lunch, ride to destination and eat dinner. The towns they rode through were filled with spectators, festivals, entertainment and food. Sounds like a big party to me :)

I had toyed with the idea of taking the boys to Iowa on the last day to surprise Graham but was trying to figure out how to do it with Brady, the heat and his naps. Thanks to my Mom who insisted she take Brady for the day, Payton and I had a great day just the two of us and it made it so much easier to make the trip. We left around 9:30 am and arrived in Walcott, IA at about 11:45am. The town was pretty much dead so we were able to park easily and stake out a shady spot. Al, Graham's dad, texted me when they got into town and by about 12:30pm they were there. Graham was excited, although apparently he had kind of had an idea we were there! Payton had made a sign and was so excited to hold it up to show Daddy and Grandpa Al. They stopped and hung out with us for a bit before riding their last 15 miles to the finish line.

Payton and I got back into the car and rode to Davenport to meet them at the finish line. We found awesome parking and were there about 20 min before they got there. We were able to get some pictures for them and then head on home. Graham had to go back to Des Moines to get his car so he unfortunately couldn't come home with us; however he did wake up the next morning at 4am so he could be home shortly after the boys woke up. Payton and I had a great time spending the day together. He even told me that he liked doing something with just me:)

We are so proud of him and Grandpa Al for accomplishing this goal! I have to admit, I am very happy its over!