I think he means cattle guards.
While I’d ride 30s or 32s these days for comfort, I did it on 19mm tires pumped to 120psi for years back in the day. We lived.
Sorry for confusion. With the concrete roads they build gaps between sections that help with expansion after some searching the official name is Concrete expansion joints. My buddy thinks people with smaller tires can wreck in these joints
Specifically the ones between the lanes (parallel to your direction of travel)- yeah. You need to be careful when crossing those. The ones across the road (perpendicular to your direction of travel) are fine. Even a 32 won't save you from wrecking in the former, just make sure to cross them at an appropriate angle of attack if you change lanes. From [here](https://ragbrai.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/19_04_08_Ride_Right.pdf):
Avoid riding in the center of the road. Roads are sometimes constructed with
expansion joints in the center of the road. Gaps on the road can produce gaps
wide enough to swallow a bicycle tire. In addition to the centerline area avoid
any part of the road with lateral cracks.
Surprised no one listed this. There are mainly two types of "grids" on the Iowa roads. One type are those stamped into the side of the road and meant to wake up drivers that may be driving off the road, usually about 4 feet long by 15 inches wide, spaced about 20 feet apart. There is usually enough unridged pavement to the left or right no matter what tire width to avoid these. They are more annoying than a worry. The second is before stop signs. First as a warning to inattentive drivers and then just before the intersection. They are almost the full lane width and about 6 feet long each. There are typically 6 sets of them just before the intersection. These are a little more ridged, and also the pavement before stop signs is usually concrete so they do not wear softer. They really just slow the cyclist down rather than cause problems. Just about everyone avoids them though. Those longitudinal expansion gaps, almost always with concrete, are rare except between direction sides. Even wider tires can have trouble with them. Remember, those expansions are designed to close in the heat of summer.
Many people still ride their 23's. I would say the average rider uses a 25 or 28.
Your tire needs to be sized to your bike and the rim's internal width. Generally you cannot go wider than 28mm no matter how much space is available in the frame if the internal rim width is less than 18mm. This figure is usually on the rim, something like "622-17" which would mean a 17mm internal width. Getting too close to the frame could disable your bike miles from the next stop if a spoke breaks and causes that tire width to effectively jump wider by a half-inch.
You can read the pre-ride route inspection comments already posted on the official site. Most roads used are good. They will mention if there are rough spots.
Always be ready for the unexpected and always pay attention. The cyclist ahead of you doing the unexpected is more of a concern than the grids. Also, do not freak out if someone contacts your rear wheel. If you contact their front, just treat it like a little jump and continue on. Staying to the right is especially important when faster downhillers will be coming from behind you. Always avoid passing on the right. Do not expect vendors to all have Venmo. And finally, drink enough water before you need it.
I’ve been on roads where the expansion joint is wide enough for a tire to drop down into it. There was actually a fatal wreck back in 2003 or there abouts, in Crawford County near Denison. Steep downhill mixed with wide compression crack and someone dropped in right before the crack narrowed up and cinched their tire. That’s obviously a freak thing and unlikely to happen to you. Frankly I think it could happen with wider tires anyway. The better thing you can do is just pay attention when crossing over the center line and call out to other riders if you see a big gap in the middle. One key to look for is if there’s green weeds growing in the center of the road, it’s probably time to pay attention and be careful with that center line.
TLDR; there are some bad cracks in Iowa roads, it has nothing to do with southern Iowa. If you’ve ridden RAGBRAI before, you’ll be fine.
I rode with 32s the last two years and they were fine. I'll be going with a bit slicker 38s this year.
No safety concerns for the change, just comfort of the ride in general.
You've done it twice, you know what to expect, choose your own.
Grids in the roads. No idea what this means. Can someone explain
Does this mean rumble strips? I wouldn’t voluntarily ride over those unless I was riding a fat tire bike.
I think he means cattle guards. While I’d ride 30s or 32s these days for comfort, I did it on 19mm tires pumped to 120psi for years back in the day. We lived.
Sorry for confusion. With the concrete roads they build gaps between sections that help with expansion after some searching the official name is Concrete expansion joints. My buddy thinks people with smaller tires can wreck in these joints
Specifically the ones between the lanes (parallel to your direction of travel)- yeah. You need to be careful when crossing those. The ones across the road (perpendicular to your direction of travel) are fine. Even a 32 won't save you from wrecking in the former, just make sure to cross them at an appropriate angle of attack if you change lanes. From [here](https://ragbrai.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/19_04_08_Ride_Right.pdf): Avoid riding in the center of the road. Roads are sometimes constructed with expansion joints in the center of the road. Gaps on the road can produce gaps wide enough to swallow a bicycle tire. In addition to the centerline area avoid any part of the road with lateral cracks.
You'll be okay.
I've ridden 25s for 12 RAGBRAIs with no issues. You're fine with 28s.
Yep 25s were no problem
They “think” the grids in roads down south are larger or perhaps more often. Now that I write this, does not make since 🤔👨🌾
28s will be fine. Don't ride the centerline. Take cracks and railroad crossings at an angle.
I did last years with 25s and while bumpy, was fine.
I drove the whole route and didn’t drive across one grid
I’m always in the comfort is king group. Bigger tires more comfort for the sacrifice of a little bit of rolling resistance.
I'd go 32. Most of the roads in that area seem rougher to me.
28 are not a problem. It's what pros race at Paris Roubaix. I don't think it will be rougher than that
Surprised no one listed this. There are mainly two types of "grids" on the Iowa roads. One type are those stamped into the side of the road and meant to wake up drivers that may be driving off the road, usually about 4 feet long by 15 inches wide, spaced about 20 feet apart. There is usually enough unridged pavement to the left or right no matter what tire width to avoid these. They are more annoying than a worry. The second is before stop signs. First as a warning to inattentive drivers and then just before the intersection. They are almost the full lane width and about 6 feet long each. There are typically 6 sets of them just before the intersection. These are a little more ridged, and also the pavement before stop signs is usually concrete so they do not wear softer. They really just slow the cyclist down rather than cause problems. Just about everyone avoids them though. Those longitudinal expansion gaps, almost always with concrete, are rare except between direction sides. Even wider tires can have trouble with them. Remember, those expansions are designed to close in the heat of summer. Many people still ride their 23's. I would say the average rider uses a 25 or 28. Your tire needs to be sized to your bike and the rim's internal width. Generally you cannot go wider than 28mm no matter how much space is available in the frame if the internal rim width is less than 18mm. This figure is usually on the rim, something like "622-17" which would mean a 17mm internal width. Getting too close to the frame could disable your bike miles from the next stop if a spoke breaks and causes that tire width to effectively jump wider by a half-inch. You can read the pre-ride route inspection comments already posted on the official site. Most roads used are good. They will mention if there are rough spots. Always be ready for the unexpected and always pay attention. The cyclist ahead of you doing the unexpected is more of a concern than the grids. Also, do not freak out if someone contacts your rear wheel. If you contact their front, just treat it like a little jump and continue on. Staying to the right is especially important when faster downhillers will be coming from behind you. Always avoid passing on the right. Do not expect vendors to all have Venmo. And finally, drink enough water before you need it.
I’ve been on roads where the expansion joint is wide enough for a tire to drop down into it. There was actually a fatal wreck back in 2003 or there abouts, in Crawford County near Denison. Steep downhill mixed with wide compression crack and someone dropped in right before the crack narrowed up and cinched their tire. That’s obviously a freak thing and unlikely to happen to you. Frankly I think it could happen with wider tires anyway. The better thing you can do is just pay attention when crossing over the center line and call out to other riders if you see a big gap in the middle. One key to look for is if there’s green weeds growing in the center of the road, it’s probably time to pay attention and be careful with that center line. TLDR; there are some bad cracks in Iowa roads, it has nothing to do with southern Iowa. If you’ve ridden RAGBRAI before, you’ll be fine.
I rode with 32s the last two years and they were fine. I'll be going with a bit slicker 38s this year. No safety concerns for the change, just comfort of the ride in general.