Day one - we are out of Fort Dodge to Eldora

First day, we got to HRH’s house at 5:08 AM. She was up and ready. hrh was out like a light in the recliner after giving her Grandma clear instructions to take the Hello Kitty purse on the grand adventure.  The bike rack and securing the bike didn’t take any longer than stopping at the DD and Starbucks for necessaries.

I'm awake

Essential Supplies

After consulting several maps, and Jillian (our noble but whiny GPS device) we got on I 235 towards Fort Dodge. The day promised to be beautiful, low humidity, temps in the low 80s, and no rain. As CaDiva labeled it, sucker ride.

We cruised along just fine after initial apologies to HRH re the late start. She invoked Girl Trip rule, “There are no apologies on a Girl Trip.” After consulting the previous minutes, we found no such rule was on the list. There being a quorum, the motion to add this rule was seconded and passed by voice ballot. The body discussed the amendment CaDiva proposed earlier when she turned right on Hickman instead of right and had to turn around in the consignment store parking lot without shopping.  We tabled the proposal until later since it involved contradictory concepts. Before ratification, the body will have to reconcile the “There is no wrong turn on a Girl trip” and “There is always time for shopping on a Girl Trip" rules.

We start at zero

And, she is off

And, she's off

We passed the last rest stop 7 minutes before my diuretic kicked in. It was a long 33 minutes to the next Casey’s.  While this isn’t going to be added to a Girl Trip Rule, on RAGBRAI – you can always count on a Casey’s. They take good care of the bicyclists and invariably have caffeine, bathrooms, and ice, three essentials to a good RAGBRAI day. 

It may only be a one-holer, but it was indoors and it flushed.

Finally, we found a parking lot near enough to the route to let HRH join up with her PEOPLE. Across the street from HRH's jump off point, we spotted our first official Corn Field Potty.

Ragbrai AC

Now, CaDiva and I start our route to the meet town. We 

encountered several key elements to a RAGBRAI ride:

·         RAGBRAI AC

·         Slow vehicles

·         Pink Direction signs

·         Spot the local media opportunities

It is across IOWA you know

Turn Here

Find the Local Media Truck ... I won.

We had to invoke the No Wrong Turns on a Girl Trip rule a few times before we found our next Casey’s. CaDiva bought the aforementioned ice, and washed out my coffee cup while I asked the local county farm queen, replete with sash and tiara, for directions. 

Ask directions

Trust but verify

Farm Queen across from Casey's will know.

We are currently waiting in a shady spot for HRH. We are several blocks from a facility, unless we take up the offer from the nice young man directing traffic to use his house. But, HRH is only 11 miles out, so we will wait here.

She made it all 70 miles, more tomorrow.

The Rules of a Girl Trip

After a generation or two of active feminism, I have come to realize that I can and will use the word girl as appropriate. If boys can have old boys club, then we we can have girl trips. The rules for girl trips differ from all other means of travel.

1. Due to the complexity of these relationships, all girl trips must be staffed by only adult women.

2. Whining, Kvetching, and Moaning is not only allowed, it is required - dishing is optional, as long as at least one person is foolish enough to leave the room.

3. We don't care how fast we get there - Some of my best girl trips involved finding we were lost in a new or interesting place or driving 100 miles out of our way because rule two was invoked prior to the freeway exit.

4. Potty, tinkle, pee or rest stop --- call it what you want, you get it as often as you want without making explanation. Maybe we should have called that rule number one?

5. During girl trips, all calories are lined in Teflon and thus do not stick.

6. Never set an alarm on a girl trip. And if the other women wake up too soon for you, the traditional pillow-over-the-head indicator will be accepted for "No, go ahead, you can shower first...I'm fine."

7. All photos taken on a girl trip are subject to veto by the subject.

8. What happens on a girl trip stays on the girl trip unless one of you starts a blog.

Amendments to Rules of a Girl Trip

A1. If it has a wheel in each corner and a fifth wheel to aim it, it is a car.

A2. Shopping on a girl trip is like stopping to smell the roses, you just gotta do it.

A.3. There is no such thing as a wrong turn on a girl trip. If you can't go whale watching due to bad weather, then take the lighthouse trolley tour. If you don't get out to LL Bean because you are crashing in the hotel room, it is still all part of the plan.