05/01/2026
UPDATE: See update in comments section. Story County voted to allow vendors along most of the route today. Monona county has not made any changes as of yet.
RAGBRAI update: Two counties have either passed or are proposing a complete ban on vendors outside city limits during RAGBRAI this year. This is not just a ban on alcohol sales, this is a ban on pork chops, ice cream, sweet corn, kids selling cookies and lemonade, and anything else that helps service 20,000+ riders each day. Monona County (Day 1) has banned vendors outside of city limits, and Story County (Day 4) is planning to do the same on Tuesday, May 5th at their Board of Supervisors meeting. Again, this isn’t a ban on alcohol vendors; this is a ban on ALL vendors along the route in their county.
Monona County is the first 32 miles of a 3,506-foot climb day. Yes, there are towns at 7, 13, and 32 miles, but the hills are not friendly from mile 8-32. Monona is citing the ban is for safety. Vendors are smart, we don’t set up in unsafe places, that’s bad for business. We setup in spots where the riders will see us and want to stop at safely. The road that RAGBRAI chose sees 700 cars per day, but cars will not be banned, just vendors. Safety is being cited but we know of no incidents in our 12 years on RAGBRAI that have been caused by vendors being on the route. However, we personally know of many times we have helped a person that needed water, shade, or even a doctor (our yard in 2018 in Crawford County had 12 nurses and 6 doctors when we asked for one when a rider needed immediate attention). We are one of the busiest vendors along the route each day, and in 150 farm yards we have had zero safety issues with riders getting on or off or having to deal with traffic at our locations. We are sending letters to the county to reconsider their decision and will include the supervisors’ emails and phone numbers in a comment below. If you choose to email them, be professional and courteous.
Story County has not passed their ban on vendors in the county but did so in 2018 and 2023. Both of those years had Ames as an overnight and therefore had minimal miles in the county due to the sheer size of Ames in Story County. This year, the route goes around Ames, and 37 miles of the ride is in unincorporated Story County. Riders typically like to stop every 10 miles, it’s easier on their mind if you break a 60-mile day into 6 - 10 mile rides. This day is what we also call “Des Moines” day, when the ride swells from day riders, and often riders that may not be ready for a 60+ mile day and will need spots to stop and rest. The first stretch to Gilbert, while it’s not all in Story County is 18 miles. A 75-degree day with a tail wind may be no problem, but make that a humid, 85 degree day at 7am on it's way to 95, with a headwind and you begin to have problems. Gilbert to Nevada (all in Story County) is also 18 miles with the same possible concerns. None of us know what the weather will be like, but they can prepare for it by allowing vendors along the route to service those in need. Story County is claiming they are unable to handle the staffing requirements of allowing vendors in the unincorporated sections from what we have been told. Based on our research their claims are unfounded, and enforcing the ban on vendors for the 9 hours they are in Story County on a 37-mile stretch will cost more. If they choose not to enforce it, or only enforce it once in the morning, they run the risk of rogue vendors not following safe food practices, which isn’t a good look either. We are sending letters to the county to reconsider their decision and will include the supervisors’ emails in a comment below. If you choose to email them, be professional and courteous.
13 of the 15 counties this year, and as you will see in the attached photos the 73 counties we have been in over the last 12 years have had zero issues with us or any vendors that we know of. We have been in counties with more hills with no issues and full support of the counties.
We are respectfully asking counties to reconsider blanket bans and explore reasonable, managed solutions. We’ll include supervisors’ emails and phone numbers in the comments for anyone who wishes to share feedback—please keep outreach professional and courteous.
Thank you for taking the time to read and support a safe, successful RAGBRAI for everyone. We’ll continue to share updates as we have them.
Iowa Craft Beer Tent + Backpocket Brewing + Brewer Family Farms, LLC.
