ISU alumnus Richard Kresser set out on a mission on July 21 to run the entire length of RAGBRAI. On July 27, Kresser plopped down in the Mississippi River.

His journey was complete.

“With all the support crews there, it was great,” Kresser said. “The feeling of the crowd there at the end was an absolute incredible experience.”

The entire route went smoothly for the most part, Kresser said, with a couple of rough days and a couple of good days to balance the run out. Kresser continued to praise the support of his family, friends and biking community.

Kresser said bikers would ride along side him to support him or just to chat with him for a while. Some even wanted pictures with the runner.

“The best part was how supportive the bikers were of me running. At the beginning, they were all saying how crazy I was for running it,” Kresser said. “But by the end, they were all there to support me.”

The second day incorporated the Karras Loop, an extra mileage day for bikers, named after John Karras, co-founder of RAGBRAI.

Kresser said he ran into the heat too early that day, and wasn’t sure if he was going to be able to finish the rest of the route. However, Kresser got up the next morning, finished the second day mileage and continued into the third day.

The fundraising cause to Kresser’s event, to raise money for the Iowa Veteran’s Home, came in with overwhelming support, Kresser said.

“We have well over $16,000 raised,” Kresser said. “We had fantastic support and we even received $500 cash donation during the week [of RAGBRAI].”

Next year, Kresser plans to come back to RAGBRAI, but only to ride it. He said he enjoyed the experience, but missed out on some of the nightlife each night because he was coming in so late.