RAGBRAI was a bucket ride for me, which I did in 2008. Once was more than enough. For some, the huge crowds are a selling point, but not to me. I found being hemmed in by throngs of people, in the heat and humidity, very wearing. By the end of the ride, virtually everything about it bugged me, from the burned casseroles in hot church gyms to the way they detoured us into towns just so we could walk through the extremely crowded 'downtown' block or two before getting back on our bikes to ride.