BRAN stands for Bicycle Ride Across Nebraska. Jerry Baird, a Northwest Rotarian, given the job of finding a community service project for a fledging Rotary Club spawned it. He saw an employee of his, Ray Weinberg, take a week of vacation to ride his bicycle across Iowa on the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI). After questioning Ray’s sanity, he proposed the project to the club as a fundraiser for charity. It was such a simple idea, a cross-state bicycle ride with proceeds to help others. With the help of wayward dentist John Wupper, BRAN was conceptualized in 1980.
