$$ RAGBRAI Qualifications

    1.) You will be responsible for pre-paying shared team expenses.  These include expenses for two vehicles, our support bus and an SUV & trailer for hauling gear.  Vehicle expenses amount to fuel, and money paid to drivers.  Since Ian is such a nice guy he doesn’t factor in wear and tear or costs for replacing the bus engine, transmission, computer, etc. etc!  There are also misc. items purchased throughout the week such as cleaning supplies, ice and so on.  Generally this works out to $350 per person and includes at least two t-shirts commemorating that years ride. 

    2.) Shit in Iowa is cheap. it’s that simple. Unfortunately this leads to people thinking they can live this week for pennies. Never, ever, under any circumstances works out that way. You will get drunk and you will spend money in ways you haven’t even thought of. For this reason you will not be allowed on the bus unless you pull and out and present to team captains either $500 in cash or an ATM receipt that shows $500 in available funds.

    Still sound good? Well read on!

    Benefits of joining TEAM Spoke Easy are 95% related to our annual R.A.G.B.R.A.I. ride; however, local rides are also in the mix. We will do at least a few rides from Chicago to: Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Those rides aside if you’re joining this team you’re doing so for the R.A.G.B.R.A.I. experience. If your a partier then we certainly have one of the best support buses on the route.

    So your idea of a good time is waking up early, drinking lots of water and cycling as hard as you can, as fast as you can, as long as you can, then celebrating your accomplishments later that night at the church picnic? Hmmmm... this is where you should stop reading and punch up http://www.christiancycling.com. Seriously to each their own but if you’re looking at Spoke Easy for cycling companionship the following better apply:

1. Drinking more than your liver was ever intended to handle and all the while biking your ass off and sweating out the booze you consumed over the next 10 miles.
   

1. Stripping buck naked and jumping down a beer slide.
   

   

1. Getting in a drunken fight with your best friend or significant other then forgetting it ever happened the next day.
   

    That’s the kind of group the TEAM Spoke Easy people are and that’s the only members we’ll accept.  This is not nearly as much for our benefit as it is yours, you see if you’re not a wild party type with an attitude of try anything once you’ll have a horrible time getting along with our members. If you are instead what we’ve described above then we might work out for you! E-Mail any spoke easy member you know for info on joining our team. If you’ve happened upon this site w/o actually knowing one of us you’re welcome to contact and inquire about hitching a ride for RAGBRAI.  Generally we do the friend’s of friends rule to avoid the inevitable problems that arise from people spending a week with us for the first time, but if your beyond confident you’ll fit in then feel free to hit us up.  During this last (2009) year we acquired a hand full of new, unknown riders who mingled well with us and us them (we think anyway), so we’re getting a bit more open to the idea of like-minded strangers joining us for the week.  You WILL need to be prepared to meet us out and about at least once or twice prior to the ride so we can get to know each other before spending a week in dirt together.  By out we’re talking a neighborhood bar in Bucktown, which most resembles the bars you’ll encounter on RAGBRAI minus the locals in overalls and bibs.

Remember you can’t do these event’s on a zero dollar budget. You’ll need to be able to chalk up funds initially for team jersey, t-shirts, and of course your R.A.G.B.R.A.I. trip contributions. As a team we share the following minimum expenses:Diesel Fuel / Beer / More Beer / Some More Beer / Random snacks / Bus Parking / Camping Fees / Other Misc Related Expenses

Finally riding with us on RAGBRAI does come with some actual rules:

1. You must bring your own camping gear.  For sanitation purposes nobody sleeps on the bus, so you need to pitch a tent at nights.
   
   

2. Your bike must be able to be stored up top of the bus, being bungeed to the side rails if necessary.
   
   

3. If the driver is going to leave town at a certain time then he’s going to leave.  I would love to change that to he or she is going to leave but so far no she’s will volunteer for that task.  If your not up by then you’ll be responsible for finding your own way into the next towns.  Same applies for leaving Chicago.
   
   

4. Bus toilet is for peeing only.  I should need not have to explain this one.
   
   

5. If something of actual intelligence needs to be discussed (IE a blown hose on the bus) you are not allowed to offer suggestions to the sober driver who actually knows what he’s talking about if you yourself have been drinking!  (I added this one especially for you Mr. James).
   
   

6. Certain overnight stops we’re forced to behave better than at others.  If you screw up and angry our hosts, we will screw you up later (and possibly kick you off the team).
   
   

7. As much as possible no religion, no politics.  Every person on the team holds drastically different views so best we check those at the bus door.
   
   

8. Most important you need to be fun and willing to roll with thing that happen no matter how strange they may seem at the time.  By the time the ride is over it will all most perfect sense to you!
   

    

    Bottom line if you’re a fun person who plays well with others, have at least enough excess money to buy a mid-priced hooker with, and are willing to put in the time and effort to working your ass off on cycling trips you’ll fit in well with all of us!