CUBS riders give back to Iowa camp

By Kate Hayden, khayden@charlescitypress.com

Ben Gralla of Lake Bluff, Illinois, is “The Corn Bunny.” His corn ears stick out of his helmet; his yellow jacket completes the effect, standing out at the Floyd County Fairground fields.

“It’s next year’s Halloween costume,” he said.

His ears might make him stick out, but Gralla is most eager to talk about his team, the CUBS — the Chicago Urban Bicycle Society — and the fundraising CUBS does for Camp Courageous of Iowa.

The year-round facility is a care and recreational camp for individuals with disabilities, of all ages.

This is the 24th year CUBS has participated in RAGBRAI, but about 15 years ago the team decided to give back to Iowa, Gralla said. Gralla started riding RAGBRAI in 2004.

“We have a banquet on Thursday, we have a silent auction and live auction, and we give whatever we make on that to Camp Courageous,” Gralla said. “We got them bicycles, they have a train car, and it’s all from our donations.”

They’ve also held unofficial ‘Kybo-Roulette’ — six portable toilets assigned numbers. Players bet a dollar on which toilet opens first — “If you bet a buck, you win a buck,” Gralla said — “We’d spend a half hour, or an hour doing that in some of the towns, and the money we collected, we put in the pot.”

“A lot of people that don’t ride anymore with the group but still want to give money to this cause, they’ll put in with the check we give to Camp Courageous,” Gralla said.