This construction's done

It was a treat to catch up to Old McHenry Road between Long Grove and Hawthorn Woods and find its repaving ... all done! The construction signs lingered, but even the striping is finished. The best part is the shoulders are mostly nice and wide. I'm sure they did that for us road cyclists.

Meanwhile, if you haven't seen, the City of Geneva late last month finally announced a much-needed detour for the quarter-mile of the Fox River Trail that it is closing at least through mid-September.

And about a 1.1-mile trail is expected to be built off Butterfield Road this year from Gregg’s Parkway in Vernon Hills north to Golf Road in Libertyville after a Lake County Board vote. All this in the latest construction round-up.​

Speaking of great roads

Reservation Road, south of Oswego in Kendall County, has a reputation as a great road for road cyclists. Those of us who rode the Naperville Rotary Ride last weekend got to take it in. (See my review of that ride.) But there's real history behind Reservation Road's name and landscape. What historians say.

Keeping my eye on

News flash: It's been raining a lot. That's been a problem for gravel trail riders. The DPRT Riders Facebook group is reporting regularly on the conditions of the Des Plaines River Trail. And DuPage trail rider Michelle Vaccaro reported that the Mallard Lake, Hawk Hollow and Great Western trails were fixed with new layers of crushed limestone after early July flooding damage.

Then I'm told that the Des Plaines River Trail on the Cook County side has seen developments (at last) between Lawrence and Irving Park roads, with a new boardwalk in place if not yet open. I'm working on getting pictures and news to supplement my last update on the trail.​

The ride calendar

There's a chance of rain, but the Roun'da Manure Bicycle Tour in Sharon, Wis., (near Harvard) is on Saturday. Also now on the calendar for August, starting Saturday, are long-distance rides led by the Chicago Randonneurs club. Like, can you ride 600 km in 40 hours?

Much shorter "Let's Ride, Illinois" community rides are taking shape for next month. Until then, here's what else is left for August:

• Busse Woods Night Ride in northwest Cook County, Aug. 29
• Harmon Hundred by the Wheeling Wheelmen, Aug. 30
• Hope Echoes on the River Charity Bike Ride in Geneva, Aug. 30

​Check the ride calendar for links, information and more in September.​

DUCK AND COVER: That's what you might feel like riding a bike in Sicilian traffic. Yes, I mean on the island in Italy. But I found that the traffic had its own kind of order, compared to our traffic; see what I mean. In a calmer state at home, the duck family above peacefully coexists with bicyclists just off the Deer Grove East trail north of Palatine. The ducks are acting like the Sicilians: Don't bother them and they won't bother you. Capeesh?** — Neil

THANK YOU, DONORS:
Arlington Heights Bicycle Club, Bicycle Club of Lake County, Alan J. White, Mitchell C. Jones, Bill Triplett, John Heer, Terry Witt, T L Szensy, James Krause, Mark Joseph Dugo, William F. Haley, Bill Kragh, Douglas H. Hoffman, Melynda Findlay Shamie, Eric Slagter, Jeffery Norman, Kathleen Hays, Andrew L. Campbell, Mark Rathe, Robert M. Yedinak, John S. Perry, David Waycie, David Michels, Cynthia DeVoss, Cheryl Zalenski, Richard H. Jordan, Richard Wadleigh, Colleen Stevenson, Randy Barich, Michael D. Staples, Michael Vander Weele, Hilliard B. Grossman, Kevin V. Barba, Todd Stocke, Colleen Sanderson, Pete Bolsoni, John VanSanten, Tony Messina.

I create the Suburban Chicago Bicycling website and newsletter with the help of readers like you.
​Buy me a cup of coffee, as they say?

** I'm Italian American, ma's side, with family in Sicily. And Sicilians don't say "capeesh." Hai capito?

For even more, read old newsletters. And please forward this to anyone interested.