RAGBRAI riders love a challenge, as shown by the number who every year ride the added mileage of the Century Loop to get in a 100-mile day.

But this year, the Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa will pose a double challenge.

Riders on Day 5, an 83.2-mile grind from Marshalltown to Independence on July 23 that's already the ride's longest, will not only be able to add 21.1 miles on the Karras Century Loop for a total of 104.3 miles, but can opt to add a whopping 76.4 on a second loop. That's a total of 159.6 miles, more than 250 kilometers, a figure chosen to honor the United States' 250th birthday.

“I’ve heard from countless riders, by email and phone, asking if we could create a 250‑mile day to celebrate America,” RAGBRAI Ride Director Matt Phippen said in a statement as he announced the double loop Friday, May 1. “On a week‑long ride like RAGBRAI, that’s a tall order, so we took the spirit of that idea and transformed it into a 159.6-mile loop ― equivalent to 250 kilometers.”

Riders who complete the America 250 Double Loop will earn a commemorative America 250 challenge coin and the novelty of passing through the town of Jesup three separate times in one day. They'll also rack up 4,790 feet of elevation gain.

The greatest achievement of all: They'll be completing the longest one-day ride in RAGBRAI history, surpassing a 150-mile circuit in 1996 that celebrated Iowa's 150th year as a state.

Century Loop riders will get a healthy total of 3,083 feet of gain and will receive the customary commemorative patch.

The double loop and Century Loop will share some roads, but century riders will go around just once, while the double loop riders will make two circuits of their longer loop, beginning, passing through and ending in Jesup.

,

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: America 250 Double Loop on RAGBRAI 2026 will add 250+ kilometers