In Iowa, there are roads you take your most trustworthy friends or worst enemies down, but you don’t route a race down them. I have done my best to route this race down roads that are in reasonable shape for bike traffic. If I have not taken my bike or my truck through it, it’s not on the route. (The truck is probably the higher standard. My kids have nicknamed it “MY PRECIOUS”). So be advised, if you come upon a road that is massively torn up by road construction, a bridge with huge gaps in the planks, a flooded road, or something you’d need to bushwhack to get through, please double check that you are on route. A race day contact number will be emailed to you. Do not proceed through anything that appears questionable without clarifying it with me, and never proceed into a situation that you deem unsafe, or beyond your skill level even if it is on route. You are responsible for you, and your personal safety is the highest priority.
I have seen the entire route over the last several days, either by bike or by truck. There were a surprising number of roads that closed recently, and those have all been edited out of the course. Rhea Rd. is under construction in Union County, and recent progress on that project severely impacted the 150 mile route. Checkpoint 2 has been relocated, and the entire second half of the 150 mile route has been moved south of Lorimor. Sadly, that means the old red schoolhouse, infirmary, and a very cool double track road are now no longer on the route. There is also a 0.3 mile section on US169. There is a large, wide, well maintained gravel shoulder. YOU MUST RIDE ON THE SHOULDER here, not on the pavement.
