Late last November, the Monitor rushed to share some exciting news, even though it was a few days before our next issue was due to be out. Clarion had just been named one of the overnight stops for the inaugural year of Iowa’s Ride, a cross-state bike ride that was planned for July of 2020. A little over five months later, it seems like we’re living in a different world. And sadly, in this world, Iowa’s Ride needed to be cancelled.
On Monday, April 27, the announcement was officially made. Iowa’s Ride Director, TJ Juskiewicz, issued an official statement that they had pulled the plug on the ride. It came as no real surprise to most, especially considering that RAGBRAI had been cancelled the previous week. The organizers of Iowa’s Ride had been holding off on the decision for weeks but finally shut down the event that was set to take place from July 12-18.
The statement from Juskiewicz explained: “Unfortunately, after evaluating the current situation surrounding Coronavirus (COVID-19) and great concern for the safety of the general public, the townspeople, riders, support drivers, volunteers, the Iowa State Patrol troopers, safety officials and staff, it will not be safe nor feasible to host the inaugural Iowa’s Ride.”
This no doubt came as hard news to everyone across the state who was planning to participate in the ride, Clarion folks included. Hopes were high that this would be a great event for the city, its residents and its businesses. Clarion was set to be the overnight stop for the ride on Wednesday, July 15. Committees had been formed and plans discussed.
Even so, when the news of the cancellation was made public, city officials found themselves relieved even as they were disappointed. Clarion Chamber Director Ali Disney who was heading up the planning committee said, “It would have been a great opportunity, but the committee felt it would be too soon for such a huge gathering. We want to err on the side of safety.”
City Administrator Clint Middleton agreed. “From a public safety standpoint, no one thought it was a good idea,” he stated. “That’s a lot of outside people coming in.” Both he and Disney were also concerned that people would pile on to Iowa’s Ride since RAGBRAI was cancelled.
Both Disney and Middleton also noted concerns for businesses and organizations who were planning for an influx of business during the ride. With the state organizers planning to take up to 5,000 registrants and thousands more likely to shows up as support people and visitors, the event looked to be a boon for restaurants, bars, and organizations alike.
Yet, all Clarion businesses consulted agreed that the decision to cancel was for the best. Owners of Fuel, Kammy and Curt Nelson stated, “With all that is going on in the world today, it was a good call just in case.” Teresa Lancaster, owner of Timbukbrü, along with her staff David Koerner and Mindy Loats echoed that sentiment. “We respect the organizers decision on how they will handle any challenges they face. We're positive Iowa’s Ride wanted to get off on a great start, and it's unfortunate that these series of events happened on their inaugural ride.”
The businesses explained that they were looking forward to the event and had indeed made plans. Nick Barrett, owner of Chappy’s said, “We had laid the groundwork and finalized a plan of attack,” though he said that they had not put any money down yet. Other businesses but been further along in their plans. Lancaster said that the brewery had music, food and staff already lined up for the event. The Nelsons confirmed that Fuel too had music booked for the day.
Though these businesses all experienced partial closures and therefore reduced profits in the last several weeks, they still supported caution. Barrett emphasized that the risk of the event for him was not going to be worth it. “If the ride was to proceed, that opens up a lot more risk to the business owners who were putting up significant capital to host the event. With the current ban, my resources have been severely limited with the reduced revenues. I'll be playing catch up for months to come when this ban is fully lifted.”
City officials had echoed this concern. “That’s a lot to ask of businesses for them to spend their limited resources on entertainment,” Middleton noted. “It’s likely tough to come up with that money right now.” Disney added, “We really didn’t know how many people would end up participating in the ride after all that’s happened. We didn’t want to see businesses put a bunch of time and money into planning and then only get a few people in town.”
Though the businesses agree that ride being cancelled this year is a missed opportunity, they are all optimistic about the future. There is no word yet as to whether Iowa’s Ride will be held next year and if the route will be the same, but the Clarion businesses will be ready. For Fuel, the Nelsons added, “This just gives us another year to plan even better.” The Timbukbrü crew confirmed that they look forward to being able to introduce many more people to their little niche “in the middle of nowhere.”
In the end, Clarion businesses have kept their eye on what it important, and it’s not necessarily a bike ride or even a huge event. “Yes, it would have been a great opportunity to show off our community and bring in extra revenue,” confirmed the Nelsons, “But money isn't everything. Health comes with prosperity, so let's just hope all gets back to normal soon.”
