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Those Were the Days... 

A brief recap of IVBC history from Charlie Smith

History, You Bet We Got History!  Below is an article from the Oct. 17th, 1974 issue of the Marshalltown Times-Republican.
A bicycle club for Central Iowans, to be known as the Iowa Valley Bicycle Club, was organized in Marshalltown at the YMCA-YWCA Tuesday evening (Oct. 15, 1974).  Twenty-five bicycle enthusiasts attended.Officers were chosen, a constitution approved, and a code of ethics drawn up. Dan Ring was chosen president.  Other officers included Ken Langley, vice-president, Corene Bakken, secretary,  Bucky Brockett, treasurer, and Jay Nachod, road captain. The group plans to have regular meetings, most of which would be in conjunction with bike outings.  There will be a membership for both senior and  junior members, the cost to be determined.  Ring said senior members, 14 and over, would sponsor junior members. 
         

Ring listed the following as aims of the club: (1) to promote interest in bicycling, (2) to encourage and facilitate bicycle outings, (3) to defend and protect the rights of the bicyclists, (4) to emphasize the need for safer riding conditions, (5) to promote bicycle registration in the interest of safety, and (6) to promote bicycling as a pleasurable, healthy, and economic means of transportation.

About 1975-- I want to tell you about the Register Baggage Trucks in the "old days".  This is our club's pre-Ryder truck days, when all club members used the Register’s semi-truck to all the your bags to the next overnight stop.  
         The Register used two 48-foot semi trailers to carry the bags to the next overnight town.  Each morning, we had to carry our bags to the semi trailers, (perhaps a block or more).  The trailers were marked number 1 or 2.  We would select one or two, get in line to put your bags on the semi, walk up the “up ramp” and into the trailer, where two rather strong individuals (employed by the Register) would help you throw your bags towards the top of the pile.  Then, exit the trailer via the “down ramp”. At this point, one must be aware of two key points.  One, did you place your bags on semi 1 or semi 2, and how far into the semi trailer did you place your bags.  Don’t worry about what your bags looked like; they were green army duffel bags, just like all the other bags on the truck.  You are now ready to ride.
         Upon arriving in the next overnight town, you must locate the Register’s semi trucks, and begin the search.  You would see two rows of green army duffel bags stretching about one block long.  Now, let’s see--my bags are on which trailer?  And, did I put them at the front, middle or back of the trailer?  If I can answer those questions, I could save myself a lot of work.  We (after the first year) sew bright cloth on the bags to help locate our bags.  Finding the bags could be a 5-minute task or a 30-minute task.  The bags were thrown off the semi trailer as it moved slowly forward, and one could find their bags in bad shape.  Knowing how to pack the bags to prevent damage could prove to be another important skill.  After finding your bags, the next task was to find the club camp site and set up your tent--hopefully, not too far from the semi-trailer.  Sometimes, the ride was the easy part of the day; getting the bags to the semi trailer in the AM, finding your bags, and locating the club camp site was the tough part of the day. 

“Those were the days, my friend, we thought they would never end. “ Well, my friends, they did end, but I thought it would be fun to look back at the early days of the Iowa Valley Bicycle Club. Since Dana Bresler and the RAGBRAI Committee are beginning the preparations for RAGBRAI 35, looking back at the early days of IVBC preparation for RAGBRAI proves to be quite interesting.
         In 1975, the year of RAGBRAI III, (August 3-9), IVBC was busy transporting riders to the start and returning them home.  The ride started in Hawarden and ended in Ft. Madison.  IVBC offered one bus to Hawarden for a cost of $13 and one bus for the return trip from Ft. Madison for $9.  That’s right, round trip for $22.  The baggage was carried to the overnight towns by semi-trucks provided by the Des Moines Register.  The club was still using the Register’s semi-trucks as late as 1986, --- I can attest to that fact, but that’s another story.
         The seat, seat post, front wheel, and pedals were to be removed to allow the bikes to be packed in the baggage compartment of the bus.  All parts removed were to have an owner identification label.  (The one time I used the bus in like manner; we had to remove seats in the bus to allow space for the baggage.  That was a site I never want to see again!) The bus left the Marshalltown High School parking lot at 11:30 AM and the returning bus from Ft. Madison was scheduled to leave at 3:00 PM.  Passengers were encouraged to eat lunch before boarding the bus.