The 38th annual bicycle ride from one side of the state to the other begins today, as RAGBRAI officially got rolling this morning in Sioux City. As with every year, the river-to-river trek includes thousands of veteran cyclists, but also brings with it some rookies who are taking the ride for the first time. One of those riders this year is Knoxville resident Brian Kendall.

Kendall, who works at Ulrich Motors in Pella, says he’s not at all worried about whether or not he can finish the 450-plus mile route, but rather says he’s excited about the chance to reap the reward of several months of hard training. Kendall will be checking in with KNIA/KRLS News and Sports daily to provide progress reports on each day of his first RAGBRAI ride.

Today’s first segment will take riders from the Missouri River at Sioux City to Storm Lake on a 69-mile route. RAGBRAI ends Saturday at the Mississippi River in Dubuque.