Wayne Bank, Detroit Conference layman, joins Bishop Laurie Haller pedaling across Iowa.
BISHOP LAURIE HALLER
Iowa Conference
Overheard yesterday on our first day of cycling.
Rider #1: “I feel like spaghetti for lunch.”
Rider #2: “That’s what the churches always serve during RAGBRAI.”
Rider #3: “There sure are a lot of churches in Iowa.”
Rider #4: “Sounds like heartburn to me!”
We arrived in Orange City in northwestern Iowa on Saturday afternoon, ready to begin our seven-day RAGBRAI adventure by riding our bikes across the state of Iowa. The tradition is for riders to dip their rear tire in the Missouri River (western border of Iowa) before the ride and then dip their front tire in the Mississippi River (eastern border) a week later at the end. Because Orange City is not within a short distance of the Missouri, ride officials brought the river water to us.
Our team is appropriately named The Circuit Riders. Pastor Chad Jennings, his teenage children Nathan and Abby, United Methodist lay person Wayne Bank from Michigan, and I are riding together, with Wendy Jennings as our driver. Three years ago, Chad, Wayne, and I cycled a thousand miles from Brandon, South Dakota, to Port Clinton, Ohio as a fundraiser for malaria prevention in The United Methodist Church. Read more.
Last Updated on December 8, 2023