2026 Ride Across Illinois (RAIL) South powered by Bicycle Illinois

Event Overview

Bicycle Illinois is proud to present our Ride Across Illinois (RAIL) event series! These fully supported ultra-distance cycling events will challenge you to push the limits of your endurance by riding from one border of Illinois to the other in one day.

• RAIL North will travel approximately 175 miles from Moline to Chicago, IL.

• RAIL South will travel approximately 165 miles from St. Louis, MO to Vincennes, IN.

Even though the RAIL events can be extremely physically challenging, you will be fully supported the whole way. The encouragement you will receive from our staff, along with your fellow riders, will be energizing while the support will be inspiring! Many of the athletes you will be riding alongside with have never attempted this long of a distance before in one day and we can guarantee that no one will be alone on this new journey.

Because of this ride's difficulty level, we have designed the supporting ride logistics to help you reach this achievement. Both events are scheduled immediately before and after June 21^st (the longest day of the year) in order to give you the maximum amount of daylight to complete the ride – 15 hours! There's no need to be concerned about keeping up as you’ll only need to maintain an average riding pace around 12 mph to stay on track with the ride schedule.

Throughout the route, our staff will have snacks, ice water, and sports drinks available at predesignated rest stop locations. By utilizing these rest stops you can take a break, refuel, and focus on staying strong. The distance between each rest stop generally decreases throughout the day giving you the opportunity to take breaks more frequently as you become more fatigued. We know you got this!

Completing a RAIL event is a remarkable accomplishment, and we would like to give you recognition! At the end of the ride, all participants will receive an official “FINISHER” sticker to commemorate your achievement.

If you are up for the challenge, come join us on a RAIL event and claim your spot among a league of the best!

(Please note that RAIL rides are not appropriate for novice or inexperienced riders. We strongly recommend having at least completed a century ride of 100 miles or more before registering.)

Registration & Prices

Check bicycleillinois.com for registration deadlines and additional price information. Partial day tours are also available.

WE DO NOT ISSUE ANY REFUNDS AT ANY TIME FOR ANY REASON. If you do not participate and would like a refund, you MUST purchase an individual travel insurance plan, which will reimburse you according to the plan coverage. Many plans are very reasonably priced. As part of your online registration you will have the option to purchase an individual travel insurance plan offered through RegShield. This plan must be purchased as part of your initial online registration - it cannot be added later. If you do not purchase the RegShield plan you can still purchase another individual travel insurance plan. Click Here or visit https://www.travelexinsurance.com/index.aspx?location=27-019927-0199&go=bp to get the details and benefits of the plan offered through Travelex Insurance, get a quote, and purchase coverage.

Additional Processing Fees Charged by RaceRoster

Please visit bicycleillinois.com for more specific information about the additional processing fees charged by RaceRoster for online registration.

Paper Registration

Please visit bicycleillinois.com to download the paper registration forms if you do not wish to pay the additional processing fees charged by RaceRoster or wish to pay by check or money order. Unfortunately we cannot accept credit cards through paper registration.

All information is subject to change. For more information about the event and the most current information please visit https://www.bicycleillinois.com/rail/rail.htm

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