With a wide-open waterway in front of him, folks like Christopher Foltyn of McHenry were more than happy to spend some time on the Fox River over the weekend.
“This is something I’ve done for like 12 years and in the spring, we do this boat race from this side and in the fall, from the other,” Foltyn said as he unloaded a boat from his truck Saturday morning. “The first race I did was on the kayak and I switched to canoe now. There’re not so many races like this, and the canoe is more challenging.”
Foltyn along with hundreds of others came to Pottawatomie Park in St. Charles Saturday for the second annual Fox River Frenzy.
The event, which kicked off at 9:30 a.m. and lasted well into mid-afternoon, included boat races, a land and water challenge in a timed race known as the Dash Bash, music with a DJ, a sidewalk chalk decorating event, food options and more.
Lara Piner, who serves as the Pottawatomie Community Center supervisor, said the event was held at the park last year and was seen as a way to promote certain programs being offered by the St. Charles Park District.
“The park district has been kind of building on our rowing and paddling programming and our superintendent of recreation is an avid paddler and we have been building that type of programming for the district,” Piner said.
Piner said a number of new offerings were added this year and that while some are land-based, “I got to watch the aquatics events last year and the start of the race and it was pretty exciting to see that.”
“The race is really kind of the highlight but this is really about showcasing the things you can do on the river as well as the things you can do at Pottawatomie,” she said. “People will get to tour the riverboat this year as it won’t be cruising the river yet and people can stop and see all the improvements that have been made to it. We also have an agility dog show and a family event where they can compete in an obstacle course.”
The Buster Boat Race is an annual challenge where members of the St. Charles Canoe Club compete on a five-mile course or nine-mile course on the Fox River.
Karl Teske of North Aurora, who is a member of the Canoe Club, said the Fox River is a key attraction in the area.
“We’re giving a lot of recreational classes here and there was as a survey of everyone in St. Charles and the vast majority said they wanted more activities on the river,” he said.
Hillary Bryson of Park Ridge said Saturday was the first time she raced in the St. Charles event and was planning to go out in an outrigger canoe.
“I got into this with dragon boating which has been around a very long time. It’s from China,” she said. “We are part of the Windy City Dragon Boat Club in Arlington Heights. I like the community and the camaraderie. We’re all here to have a good time.”
Doug Vojtko came from Kenosha, Wisconsin, and said he visited the race a year ago and would be competing in an outrigger canoe.
“I used to do stand-up paddleboard and discovered the outrigger and really liked it,” he said. “I like this venue. It’s a good challenge. It’s going up river and then down river and they do the same course every year, so you can compare yourself one year to the next.”
David Sharos is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
