I just finished the first day of a 2 day ride in SE IA. This is really pretty countryside in and around the Des Moines river centered around Keosauqua IA. The ride was 53 miles long with 1800 ft of climbing but it was a tough day since we fought a wind much of the day. The day started with pancakes made by the local Lions club. The first rest stop had watermelon, the second artisan cheese and grapes, the third had home made ice cream, and then there was lunch. We finished the ride and had a chocolate malt so there is no way that I burned more calories than I ate today which is all you need for a good ride, right?