IOWA CITY

The Courage Ride, a benefit cycling event that attracts hundreds of participants annually, will hit its 20th year anniversary when the race begins Saturday morning in Iowa City.

The ride, which has raised nearly $900,000 for sarcoma cancer research at the University of Iowa Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center and a sarcoma tissue repository, was begun in 2005 by Jackie and Tom Bailey of Riverside following the death of their son, Seth. He died at age 25 after an eight-year battle with sarcoma.

“It’s hard to believe it’s been 20 years,” Jackie Bailey told The News. “We stay pretty much 400, 500 riders, contributors, and which is very manageable. It’s good.”

The ride, which begins at Big Grove Brewery on South Gilbert Street in Iowa City, includes five different segments or routes, ranging from 18 to 105 miles. The race routes go through Hills, Sharon Township, North English and Millersburg, among other communities.

The first stop west of Hills is the Courage rest stop, which will be run by the Bailey family and is located near the cemetery where Seth Bailey is buried.

Registration can be done through courageride.org. Early packet pickup is scheduled for 6 to 7 p.m. Friday at Hills Bank on Gilbert Street.

The fundraiser also includes a virtual riding option.

The race day timeline includes registration at 6:30 a.m., and racers leaving waves after 7 a.m. Bikers in the shorter race routes will leave at 8 a.m. and after.

Rest stops will include Hills, Courage, Hillcrest Academy, North English and Millersburg.

Since the event began in 2005, it has raised $865,000 for sarcoma cancer research and has seeded multiple research grants at the University of Iowa, which added sarcoma research after the event was begun.

“I’m very, very blessed the way the money is used,” Jackie Bailey said. “It is seed money to allow the researchers and doctors at the university to collect the information for the different grants that they may want to apply for.”