Iowa
“Shift” documentary is the story of Iowa’s annual RAGBRAI
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tronc/RXS3V6ML3JHIFDV2KYJHCGZROM.JPG "“Shift” documentary is the story of Iowa’s annual RAGBRAI")
They ride and ride and then ride some more, tens of thousands of them. All ages, sizes and shapes, they ride across Iowa every year in the summer heat.
They have been doing this for decades, participants in RAGBRAI, a cumbersome acronym that stands for a joyful annual event, formally known as the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa.
This is the largest bike-touring event in the world, the oldest and longest too. Some have been doing this for years and some will be doing it again in July and some of them powerfully pepper “Shift: the RAGBRAI Documentary,” a compelling and polished new one-hour film that is at once entertaining and enlightening.
It is the work of many people from the Des Moines Register newspaper, primarily two energetic young staff members named Courtney Crowder and Kelsey Kremer.
You may recognize Crowder’s name. A native of Glenview, she was once a bright byline in this newspaper. From about 2010 to 2015 she wrote hundreds of stories for the Tribune, most of them focused on celebrities.
She was drawn west to a position at the Register with the promise that she would be able to realize her lofty ambition which was, she says with typical enthusiasm, “to change the world by writing long-form stories about people.”
She has done so, after spending her first months at the paper detailing the television antics of Iowa farmer Chris Soules, who starred in the 19th season of “The Bachelor” and later got in some serious trouble back in Iowa for leaving the scene of a fatal traffic accident.
She then wrote about the 2016 presidential caucus cycle; the struggles and triumphs of transgender Iowans; murder, sexual assault and other criminal matters; and various social issues and causes.
She did such fine work that in June 2018, she was named the paper’s Iowa columnist, only the fifth since World War II and the first woman so designated. The paper’s executive editor, Carol Hunter, wrote at the time that “I’m betting her fresh perspective will prove illuminating.”
That’s a fine word, “illuminating,” to attach to “Shift.”
Though Crowder had been covering the event for some years, when photo editor Kremer suggested to her in early 2021 that it might make a documentary, the pair got to work. “I had met so many riders and heard so many compelling stories that I knew I might be able to get to the heart of the matter, find answers to the ‘Why are you doing this?’ question,” Crowder says.
Their film gives us a short look back, traveling to the ride’s origins in 1973 when a pair of clever Register writers named John Karras and Don Kaul gave birth to the event. “They were both serious bike riders and they ginned up this idea to ride across the state and have the paper pay for the endeavor,” Crowder says.
Thus did they become the Woodward and Bernstein of the bike world.
“They understood, as I believe, that Iowa is best told by traveling the roads and the towns’ main streets and meeting and talking to people eye to eye,” Crowder says.
That first ride attracted some 200 other bikers and it grew larger and larger. It has been and remains a seven-day-long event, covering 450 miles to 500 miles, with various towns hosting riders for overnight stays. Of course, not all riders tackle the entire course and, naturally, many of them are doing it for the fun of it all, riding and partying with friends and strangers. “It is on one level sort of like a rolling carnival,” Crowder says. “But there is deeper meaning to be found.”
In advance of last year’s ride, she interviewed at some length 40 participants, finally deciding to focus on a smaller number and they wound up with stories that shine, people who shared themselves.
We meet Andrew Boddicker and Ian Zahren, two gay men who grew up in rural America and, after living big city lives elsewhere, returned to the small Iowa town of Lansing, where they found one another, fell in love and have crafted fulfilling lives as school music teachers, community leaders and are as happy as can be.
There’s a woman named Torie Giffin, who first rode as a single woman in her 30s. When she returned decades later, she had been married, divorced and was accompanied by the youngest of her three children, who had been given a chilling cancer diagnosis. When the little boy becomes the target of nasty invective, Giffin fights back with cool courage, which compels others to leap in with encouragement and kindness.
There’s wildly bearded and passionate Adam Lineberry, riding with his 9-year-old son Liam, and talking frankly of how he became addicted to drugs as a teen and of his struggle out of that dark pit. He rides in Iowa and elsewhere in the country to raise money to build a rehab center, at one point saying that he considers riding “freedom on wheels.”
A Black woman named Dayna Chandler lost her husband when they were young parents to a freak car accident. With three young children, she started biking as a way to heal. A Des Moines school counselor on the cusp of retirement, she has become determined to, as she tells Crowder, “put more Black butts on bikes.” Toward that end, she has started a chapter of Black Girls Do Bike.
Working with 10 colleagues, Crowder and Kremer, who traversed the course by car, wound up with some 70 hours of film. In the artfully edited final version, you get a sense of the excitement of the ride but also the stunning landscape, which one rider calls “a canvas that God has made for you.”
With the energetic backing of editor Hunter, the film and accompanying stories became the paper’s major project for this year. Made on a $30,000 shoestring, the film premiered at Des Moines’ Varsity Cinema in early May.
Crowder and Kremer are on the hunt for more screens and they deserve to find them. So far planned is a July 16 screening in Crystal Lake.
That’s just before this year’s 50th RAGBRAI takes off on July 22 from Iowa’s Sioux City and ends in Davenport on July 29.
Crowder again will be writing about this year’s ride. It’s her job. But also, she and her husband, South Side native Scott Graca, who works as a data analyst, have fallen hard for Iowa, all of Iowa. “Chicago will always have my heart,” she says. “This was a big move for both of us but we have been able to discover our real selves here and we have come to know that in this world there is more that connects us all than divides us.”
rkogan@chicagotribune.com
The Iowa Hawkeyes are coming off of a 35-7 thumping at the hands of the Ohio State Buckeyes, and while a loss to Ohio State was expected, it was how Iowa lost that has Hawkeyes fans livid.
Iowa’s offense was absolutely lifeless, Cade McNamara looked lost and head coach Kirk Ferentz did not seem to have any answers.
Not only that, but Ferentz doubled down on McNamara remaining the starter after the game, saying that the quarterback actually showed improvement.
That’s why Ferentz’s reputation may actually be on the line when the Hawkeyes face the Washington Huskies this Saturday.
Iowa is just 3-2 on the season, as it also lost to the Iowa State Cyclones back in Week 2. A loss to Washington would drop the Hawkeyes to .500, and it would add more fuel to the “fire Ferentz” discussion that has been smoldering.
The Huskies are a new addition to the Big Ten and just beat the Michigan Wolverines, and while Michigan has not been as good as expected, Washington is no joke.
However, make no mistake: Iowa needs to beat these guys.
Here is the thing: barring a catastrophic remainder of the 2024 campaign at Iowa City, the Hawkeyes aren’t canning Ferentz. The man is under contract through 2029 on a hefty salary. It isn’t happening.
But Ferentz’s reputation is a different story.
The 69-year-old has been at the helm for Iowa since 1999 and is highly respected by the fans, but patience is running thin.
Last year, the Hawkeyes played three ranked opponents and lost by a total score of 92-0. They also just got destroyed by Ohio State. The Iowa fan base is tired with being second-best, and at this point, that is all Ferentz has offered them.
Sure, Iowa does not have the cachet or prestige of schools like Ohio State, Michigan or Alabama. It typically won’t land the very best recruits as a result. But the Hawkeyes’ inability to even put together respectable offenses over the years does reflect poorly on Ferentz, who is the longest-tenured coach in the country.
And Iowa fans are sick of it.
The Hawkeyes absolutely need to beat the Huskies this Saturday. Iowa should be better than Washington, and at some point, the Hawkeyes are going to have to display that they can consistently beat good teams.
Is all of the Ferentz criticism deserved? No, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that all of it is completely unfounded.
Ferentz can provide some nice pushback to all of the naysayers with a Week 7 win over Washington. Or, he can give fans more reason to complain with a loss.
The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
Here’s who all 71 Iowa high school football teams ranked in this week’s Gazette poll face in Week 7 games Friday night.
Class 3A gets the spotlight this week as its top two teams face top-seven opponents. No. 1 Algona visits No. 7 Humboldt, while second-ranked Williamsburg hosts a Solon team eager to bounce back from last week’s loss to Benton Community that dropped it from the top spot.
There is intrigue in the 8-Player top five as well, where three of the top five teams face fellow unbeaten foes. That includes No. 1 Remsen St. Mary’s taking on No. 10 Woodbine and No. 2 Algona Garrigan hosting Ruthven GTRA.
Class 5A
No. 1 West Des Moines Valley (5-1) vs. Waterloo West (5-1)
No. 2 West Des Moines Dowling (5-1) at Urbandale (3-3)
No. 3 Bettendorf (6-0) at Davenport Central (2-4)
No. 4 Pleasant Valley (5-1) vs. Muscatine (2-4)
No. 5 Ankeny Centennial (4-2) vs. Des Moines Roosevelt (1-5)
No. 6 Linn-Mar (5-1) vs. Davenport West (0-6)
No. 7 Johnston (4-2) vs. Council Bluffs Lincoln (4-2)
No. 8 Iowa City Liberty (5-1) vs. Ankeny (3-3)
No. 9 Waukee (4-2) at Southeast Polk (3-3)
No. 10 Sioux City East (4-2) vs. Des Moines Lincoln (1-5)
Class 4A
No. 1 Lewis Central (6-0) at Winterset (4-2)
No. 2 Pella (6-0) at Des Moines Hoover (0-6), Thursday
No. 3 North Polk (6-0) at No. 10 Indianola (4-2)
No. 4 Gilbert (6-0) vs. Bondurant-Farrar (1-5)
No. 5 Decorah (6-0) at Marion (2-4)
No. 6 Adel ADM (5-1) at Ballard (3-3)
No. 7 Cedar Rapids Xavier (4-2) at Oskaloosa (1-5)
No. 8 North Scott (4-2) at Clear Creek Amana (4-2)
No. 9 Newton (4-2) vs. Carlisle (0-6)
No. 10 Indianola (4-2) vs. No. 3 North Polk (6-0)
No. 10 Western Dubuque (4-2) at Waterloo East (2-4)
Class 3A
No. 1 Algona (6-0) at No. 7 Humboldt (5-1)
No. 2 Williamsburg (5-1) vs. No. 5 Solon (5-1)
No. 3 Dubuque Wahlert (6-0) at West Delaware (4-2)
No. 4 Sergeant Bluff-Luton (6-0) vs. Carroll (4-2)
No. 5 Mount Vernon (5-1) vs. Fort Madison (0-6)
No. 5 Solon (5-1) at No. 2 Williamsburg (5-1)
No. 7 Humboldt (5-1) vs. No. 1 Algona (6-0)
No. 8 Sioux City Heelan (4-2) at Boyden-Hull/Rock Valley (1-5)
No. 9 Independence (4-2) at Maquoketa (1-5)
No. 10 Nevada (5-1) at Harlan (3-3)
Class 2A
No. 1 West Lyon (6-0) at Sheldon (2-4)
No. 2 Monroe PCM (6-0) at West Marshall (5-1)
No. 3 Spirit Lake (5-1) at Garner GHV (1-5)
No. 4 Van Meter (5-1) vs. Centerville (4-2)
No. 5 Carroll Kuemper (5-1) vs. Saydel (1-5)
No. 6 North Fayette Valley (5-1) vs. Oelwein (0-6) — canceled, Oelwein to forfeit
No. 7 Northeast (6-0) at Tipton (2-4)
No. 8 Central Lyon/George-Little Rock (4-2) vs. No. 10 Western Christian (4-2)
No. 9 Roland-Story (4-2) vs. Des Moines Christian (4-2)
No. 10 Western Christian (4-2) at No. 8 Central Lyon/George-Little Rock (4-2)
Class 1A
No. 1 Grundy Center (6-0) at Alburnett (4-2)
No. 2 Wilton (6-0) at West Branch (2-4)
No. 3 Dike-New Hartford (5-1) vs. Aplington-Parkersburg (2-4)
No. 4 Emmetsburg (6-0) vs. Eagle Grove (0-6)
No. 5 Iowa City Regina (6-0) at Dyersville Beckman (4-2)
No. 6 Ida Grove OABCIG (5-1) vs. No. 10 Hinton (5-1)
No. 7 South Hardin (5-1) at Hudson (5-1)
No. 8 Treynor (5-1) vs. Shenandoah (3-3)
No. 9 Sigourney-Keota (5-1) at Colfax-Mingo (1-5)
No. 10 Hinton (5-1) at No. 6 Ida Grove OABCIG (5-1)
Class A
No. 1 West Hancock (6-0) at Lake Mills (4-2)
No. 2 Guthrie Center ACGC (6-0) vs. Mount Ayr (5-1)
No. 3 Saint Ansgar (5-1) at West Fork (1-5)
No. 4 Lisbon (6-0) vs. Danville (4-2)
No. 5 Earlham (5-1) at Oakland Riverside (4-2)
No. 6 Tri-Center (5-1) vs. No. 8 Woodbury Central (5-1)
No. 7 Le Mars Gehlen (5-1) at South O’Brien (0-6)
No. 8 Woodbury Central (5-1) at No. 6 Tri-Center (5-1)
No. 9 North Linn (6-0) vs. Maquoketa Valley (5-1)
No. 10 Madrid (4-2) at North Mahaska (3-3)
8-Player
No. 1 Remsen St. Mary’s (6-0) vs. No. 10 Woodbine (6-0)
No. 2 Algona Garrigan (6-0) vs. Ruthven GTRA (6-0)
No. 3 Don Bosco (6-0) vs. Turkey Valley (3-3)
No. 4 Audubon (6-0) vs. Collins-Maxwell (4-2)
No. 5 Lenox (6-0) vs. Southeast Warren (6-0)
No. 6 Iowa Valley (6-0) vs. HLV (1-6)
No. 7 Gladbrook-Reinbeck (5-1) at Clarksville (5-2)
No. 8 Anita CAM (5-1) at Fremont-Mills (5-1)
No. 9 Bedford (5-1) vs. Lamoni (4-2)
No. 10 Woodbine (6-0) at No. 1 Remsen St. Mary’s (6-0)
Comments: nathan.ford@thegazette.com
Iowa State women’s basketball star Emily Ryan released a video Thursday in which she discusses her battle with an eating disorder.
Ryan, a senior from Claflin, Kansas, has been one of the Big 12 Conference’s best point guards for the past few seasons. She was a first-team all-conference pick in 2022, and a second-team selection in 2023.
“By sharing my story, I hope to build awareness and provide hope to everyone else fighting an invisible battle,” Ryan said in the video.
Ryan said her sense of self-worth was dependent on Iowa State’s success and her individual performance. That led to increased time spent in the weight room in an effort to get stronger and faster. When Ryan didn’t see the results that she desired, she began to focus on her diet.
Ryan said the Iowa State medical staff expressed their concern about Ryan’s eating habits and what it was doing to her body. Ryan said she was in “complete denial” about having an eating disorder, but her health continued to worsen.
Ryan missed the first nine games of the 2023-24 season due to the eating disorder. When she returned, she said, “off the court I was really struggling. By the end of the season, I was physically and mentally hanging on by a thread.”
During the offseason, Ryan spent 88 days at a treatment center in Denver.
“It took a long time but I finally came to the understanding that being sick wasn’t my fault, and eating disorders are real, complex illnesses,” she said.
How to get help
For resources on disordered eating, call the National Eating Disorders Helpline at 800-931-2237 or text NEDA to 741741.
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