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The Colorado Springs Premiere of “Shift: The RAGBRAI Documentary”

Updated: Nov 9, 2023



The Des Moines Register, RAGBRAI and the Buffalo Lodge Bicycle Resort will be hosting the Colorado premiere for “Shift: The RAGBRAI Documentary,” which features local business owner Torie Giffin.


“Shift” will premiere at an exclusive event at the Lodge in Colorado Springs at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27, 2023. The film is approximately one hour long. A panel discussion with directors and subjects of the film will follow. Tickets are $15 and are available along with other details at DesMoinesRegister.com/RAGBRAIdocumentary.


In the five decades since 300 brave souls set out on that first bike ride in 1973, RAGBRAI — the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa — has grown into the oldest, largest and longest recreational bicycle touring event in the world.


"Shift: The RAGBRAI Documentary," directed by journalists Courtney Crowder and Kelsey Kremer, explores the people who ride, the towns that host and the space RAGBRAI offers riders to sift through life’s joys and challenges. The film follows three riders and a pair of community leaders as they reach new personal heights, changing their lives in seven days flat and finding themselves — literally and metaphorically — in the middle of nowhere.


One of the main subjects of the film is Colorado Springs local, Torie Giffin. Torie first went on RAGBRAI as an unmarried 30 something and fell in love with the ride’s carefree culture and the gorgeous Iowa landscape.


When she returned to RAGBRAI decades later, she’d been married and divorced, had three kids and was dealing with a brutal cancer diagnosis for her youngest son with whom she was riding, maybe for their last time. When a devastating comment threatens to upend their entire trip, Torie takes to Facebook and Iowa responds with a ferocious kindness that buoys them even today — as they face a seventh brain surgery.


“The heart of RAGBRAI are the riders’ deep, personal stories of growth, overcoming and wrestling with their personal ‘why’ for coming on the ride,” said Crowder, the film’s co-director. “It’s a physical way to grapple with tragedies and triumphs, and you see that clearly in the openness and vulnerability of Torie’s story.”


This documentary is made possible through the support of our fiscal sponsor, Des Moines Film. Tax-deductible donations in support of the project may be made to Des Moines Film. Donation details are available at DesMoinesRegister.com/RAGBRAIdocumentary.


A trailer for “Shift” is available on YouTube and may be embedded on other websites: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBd-f8axARc



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ABOUT THE DES MOINES REGISTER


The Des Moines Register, a member of the USA TODAY NETWORK, is a 17-time Pulitzer Prize winner. We reach readers across the state with our daily Des Moines Register editions, our award-winning DesMoinesRegister.com website and various non-daily publications. We are part of the Gannett Co., an international media and marketing solutions company that informs and engages more than 100 million people every month through its powerful network of digital, mobile and publishing properties.


ABOUT RAGBRAI


RAGBRAI is the oldest, largest, and longest recreational touring bicycle ride in the world. Started in 1973 by Des Moines Register reporters John Karras and Donald Kaul, RAGBRAI is a seven-day bicycle tour that goes from the Missouri River to the Mississippi River with stops in overnight towns along the way.


ABOUT BUFFALO LODGE BICYCLE RESORT


Owned by Torie Giffin and operated by three generations of passionate cyclists, the Buffalo Lodge Bicycle Resort is ideally situated just half a mile from the world-renowned Garden of the Gods at the base of Pikes Peak in Colorado Springs. Our historic motor lodge has been lovingly transformed into a haven for adventure seekers of all kinds. Whether you're a traveler in search of excitement or a local looking for a vibrant community hub, our resort has it all. With daily happy hour specials, a heated pool, yoga sessions, and a weekly lineup of live music, there's something here for everyone. The Buffalo Lodge Bicycle Resort is consistently ranked among the top three hotels in Colorado Springs by the Colorado Springs Independent over the last 5 years, and Silver in the 2023 Best of the Springs by the Colorado Springs Gazette. The Buffalo Lodge Bicycle Resort is your ultimate basecamp for adventure and a gathering place for the community!


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