Missouri Valley Post Office to Offer Souvenir Postcard and Special Postmark for RAGBRAI

The Missouri Valley, IA, Post Office will offer a souvenir postcard and special postmark to celebrate the Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI), which begins in Missouri Valley on July 19.

The souvenir postcards and special postmarks (pictured above) will be available from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on July 19 in front of the Post Office at 116 N 5th St. The postcards feature a map of this year’s RAGBRAI course, and the words “A memento from our community…in commemoration of a special event in the Heartland of America.” Each postcard carries a first-class stamp, special postmark and sells for $1 each. The postcard, without stamp and postmark, will be available for 75 cents each.

“The postcard and special postmark make for very inexpensive souvenirs of this year’s RAGBRAI,” said Missouri Valley Postmaster Vickie Krayneski, who encouraged everyone to come down to the Post Office on July 19.

The special postmark, features the Missouri Valley RAGBRAI Logo with two bike riders and the words “Mo’ Thrills, Mo’ Hills, Mo’ Valley.” The special postmark will be applied at no charge to any item with First-Class postage affixed.

The souvenir postcards, complete with stamp and special postmark, are available through the mail for $1 each. Please add 50-cents for postage and handling. Make check or money order payable to Postmaster, and send to RAGBRAI Postcard, 116 N. 5th St., Missouri Valley, IA, 51555-9998. The postcard(s) will be mailed to the address provided.

The special postmark is also available through the mail for 30 days following the event. Customers should affix first-class stamps to postcards or envelopes of their choice, address the postcards/envelopes (to themselves or others), and place them in a larger envelope addressed to: RAGBRAI Postmark, 116 N. 5th St., Missouri Valley, IA, 51555-9998. After applying the postmark, the envelopes will be returned through the mail. Requests must be postmarked no later than Aug. 18, 2008.

The Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa is an annual seven-day bicycle ride across the state. Heading into its 36th year, RAGBRAI is the longest, largest and oldest touring bicycle ride in the world.

# # #

Please Note: For broadcast quality video and audio, photo stills and other media resources, visit the USPS Newsroom at www.usps.com/communications/newsroom/welcome.htm.

An independent federal agency, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that visits every address in the nation — 146 million homes and businesses. It has 37,000 retail locations and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to pay for operating expenses, not tax dollars. The Postal Service has annual revenues of $75 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail.