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Schaumburg and Hoffman Estates loop Details
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trip viewed 55 times
Story: With all the recent rain, I wanted to stay on paved asphalt or concrete trails. I figured the crushed stone trails would be a soupy muddy mess. I turned my eyes to Schaumburg, which has been recognized as a bicycle-friendly community. I recently saw a map from the Village of Schaumburg showing all of their bike trails and bike lanes. This map helped me put together my ride for today.
I started in Schaumburg at the Community Recreation Center on Bode Rd. I followed the trail south along Springinsguth Rd. Unfortunately, I didn't get far before I had to get out my toolkit to tighten my handlebars, which had somehow worked loose and started rattling. I quickly tightened them and rode a little more but had to stop again, this time for a more thorough tightening. This involved loosening my GPS mount so I could get at the bolts better. With this second tightening, I was good to go. My route eventually took me along Wise Rd, Plum Grove Rd, National Pkwy, and the business parks northwest of Woodfield Mall. Terrain was mostly flat along this part of my ride, and in some places I was able to make very good speed. The trails consisted of either asphalt or wide sidewalks. An exception was part of the bike route along Springinsguth that utilized normal-width sidewalks.
I did not encounter anybody else using the trails and bike routes today. Vehicular traffic was surprisingly easy to deal with. I thought my multiple crossings of Higgins Rd (IL72), Golf Rd (IL58), and Meacham Rd would be harrowing. The stoplight timing cycles and the crossings themselves were long, but I felt safe and there were no issues.
When I started heading back to the Rec Center on Bode, the ride started to get tough. The biggest problem was the wind out of the west that gusted up to 30mph. After riding through the business park between Golf Rd and I-90, I joined a trail along Roselle Rd just north of Commerce Dr. This is when the ride started getting difficult. It was a long climb with a crosswind riding south to Golf Rd. Once south of Golf, the terrain evened out but again there was a climb going against the crosswind just north of Schaumburg Rd. I know the wind was a factor because there were parts of the ride along Roselle Rd where I coasted and could feel the gusts of wind actually slowing me down. The last climb that gave me trouble was westbound in the bike lane on Weathersfield Way west of Roselle Rd. This time I was going directly into the wind uphill. That made the hill twice as difficult. I had already rode quite a distance and was getting tired. It's embarrassing, but I had to pull off and stop to take a breather for a minute. The incline and strong headwind were too much for my legs at this point in the ride. Once I turned north onto Braintree Dr, I was finally out of the headwind. Unfortunately, I had to take a short trip along Bode Rd riding against the wind to get back to my car. I felt pretty cold while loading my stuff into the car in all that wind and turned on the heat as soon as I got inside.
I started in Schaumburg at the Community Recreation Center on Bode Rd. I followed the trail south along Springinsguth Rd. Unfortunately, I didn't get far before I had to get out my toolkit to tighten my handlebars, which had somehow worked loose and started rattling. I quickly tightened them and rode a little more but had to stop again, this time for a more thorough tightening. This involved loosening my GPS mount so I could get at the bolts better. With this second tightening, I was good to go. My route eventually took me along Wise Rd, Plum Grove Rd, National Pkwy, and the business parks northwest of Woodfield Mall. Terrain was mostly flat along this part of my ride, and in some places I was able to make very good speed. The trails consisted of either asphalt or wide sidewalks. An exception was part of the bike route along Springinsguth that utilized normal-width sidewalks.
I did not encounter anybody else using the trails and bike routes today. Vehicular traffic was surprisingly easy to deal with. I thought my multiple crossings of Higgins Rd (IL72), Golf Rd (IL58), and Meacham Rd would be harrowing. The stoplight timing cycles and the crossings themselves were long, but I felt safe and there were no issues.
When I started heading back to the Rec Center on Bode, the ride started to get tough. The biggest problem was the wind out of the west that gusted up to 30mph. After riding through the business park between Golf Rd and I-90, I joined a trail along Roselle Rd just north of Commerce Dr. This is when the ride started getting difficult. It was a long climb with a crosswind riding south to Golf Rd. Once south of Golf, the terrain evened out but again there was a climb going against the crosswind just north of Schaumburg Rd. I know the wind was a factor because there were parts of the ride along Roselle Rd where I coasted and could feel the gusts of wind actually slowing me down. The last climb that gave me trouble was westbound in the bike lane on Weathersfield Way west of Roselle Rd. This time I was going directly into the wind uphill. That made the hill twice as difficult. I had already rode quite a distance and was getting tired. It's embarrassing, but I had to pull off and stop to take a breather for a minute. The incline and strong headwind were too much for my legs at this point in the ride. Once I turned north onto Braintree Dr, I was finally out of the headwind. Unfortunately, I had to take a short trip along Bode Rd riding against the wind to get back to my car. I felt pretty cold while loading my stuff into the car in all that wind and turned on the heat as soon as I got inside.
Tags: Schaumburg
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