CNN

Dodd greets a supporter in Davenport, Iowa Tuesday.

Dodd is traveling across Iowa in his "River to River" tour bus.

DAVENPORT, Iowa (CNN) - Connecticut Senator Chris Dodd urged Iowa voters to keep their powder dry and consider throwing their support his way at the first stop on a Fourth of July bus tour across Iowa Tuesday.

"You may very well choose our nominee," Dodd told a group assembled for breakfast in Davenport. Iowa voters, he said, "don't like being told by outsiders that the race is over seven months before it happens."

But the Democratic hopeful did acknowledge people would start making up their minds soon and asked the group to take into account not only his legislative record but his record of winning elections.

"We need to have a candidate in 2008 that can win an election in 2008," he said. "If we assume that November is going to look like July 2007 we are deluding ourselves."

Dodd's traveling from the Mississippi River to the Missouri River in style aboard an Iowa-based bus complete with leather seats and satellite TV.

The campaign points out the bus was "wrapped" with the Dodd logo and "River to River Tour" emblem in the Hawkeye State. Dodd will be joined by singer Paul Simon for the last few days of the tour which winds up Saturday.

– CNN Senior Political Producer Sasha Johnson