Recent flooding may impact Bob Leonard run route in St. Charles
The annual Bob Leonard 5K/10K River Run will go forward despite a wet course along the Fox River in St. Charles, according to race officials. But runners should stay tuned for changes in the program if more big rains arrive before Sunday, July 30.
Race start times are 7:30 a.m. for the 5K and 10K races and 9 a.m. for the 1K family color run. All races start and end at the grand pavilion in Pottawatomie Park.
Registration is $10 for the color run, $35 for the 5K and $45 for the 10K.
John Rabchuk, president of the St. Charles River Corridor Foundation, said contingency plans are in place to deal with any course conditions. The part of the course that runs adjacent to the river, under the railroad trestle at the southwest corner of Pottawatomie Park, is the focus of most concern.
The city already posted warning signs at spots near that location, where river water has surpassed the banks and begun to swallow up vegetation and benches.
If those waters continue to rise, the alternative course would take runners toward the southeast corner of Pottawatomie Park, over the railroad tracks on 2nd Avenue, and then around the corner to the footbridge under the railroad trestle. That land sits on much higher ground.
The rest of the 5K and 10K courses, which run through the Timbers and Wild Rose subdivisions, is not experiencing flood problems. The course for the Colonial Cafe 1K Color Run is also expected to be dry, Rabchuk said.
“We are hopeful, along with everyone else, that we can avoid any additional rain during the next few days,” he said.
Proceeds from the race benefit the St. Charles Kiwanis Club and the River Corridor Foundation. The funds headed to the foundation are essential this year. The organization supports enhanced use of the Fox River in downtown St. Charles.
A separate Active River Task Force, which Rabchuk also sits on, is promoting a plan to remove the dam on the river downtown. The removal will create a white water element and related recreation in the downtown. Supporters believe those attractions could make the city a destination for outdoor fitness fans.
Rabchuk said his most recent promotional effort involved a conversion of about 80 members of the Pottawatomie Garden Club.
“Many of their members had been initially very skeptical of the project,” Rabchuk said. “They were born and lived in St. Charles their entire lives and were just reluctant to change of any type. By the end of the (meeting), most of the questions focused on how soon we can get started.”
St. Charles city staff and elected officials will visit a similar project in Greenville, South Carolina. The trip will occur the first week in October. The goal is to copy Greenville's method of creating support, attracting funding and to learn from any mistakes, Rabchuk said.
Members of the Active River Task Force will be at the Bob Leonard run this weekend to answer questions about the project.