One of the best things about cycling is you’re just one ride away from a good mood.

Come on out to Belle Vue Park at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 5, and you’ll find lots of happy people celebrating a ribbon cutting for a new public bike trail. “The Bridge at Belle Vue Park,” ceremony will be by a community bike ride led by Waubonsee Community College President Brian Knetl.

The Bridge connects Belle Vue Lane to the south via a 10-foot wide shared-use path with the Virgil Gilman Trail to the north, allowing residents to connect to other areas for walking, biking and similar activities.

“The Blackberry Creek bike bridge project is another great example of intergovernmental cooperation,” Sugar Grove township supervisor Tom Rowe said. “Beginning with a concept plan by the Sugar Grove Bicycle Commission in 2009, the local taxing bodies including the Village of Sugar Grove, Township of Sugar Grove, Sugar Grove Park District and Kane County Forest Preserve worked together to make the concept a reality.”

Under Knetl’s lead, riders will cruise on the Gilman Trail to the south side of the college campus. After exiting the trail, riders will continue on College Drive, turn into parking lot S6 and continue pedaling up near the brand new Technical Education Center (TEC). They can view the exterior of the building before circling back for the return trip to the bridge. It’s estimated to be about 5 miles round-trip.

“I am very excited to host a community bike ride as part of our grand opening moment for the new Bridge at Belle Vue Park,” Sugar Grove Park District executive director Scott Nadeau said. “I really enjoy group rides on a casual level with neighbors and their families. We had so much fun at the Independence Day bike parade this year, and that’s a much shorter ride than this one will be.”

Nadeau and Rowe not only will be at the ribbon cutting, but they’ll hop on their bicycles and ride along, too. Village of Sugar Grove President Sue Stillwell also plans on joining in on the fun.

“I will be there and am very excited to participate in the community bike ride,” she said. “It’s a very exciting day for the community.”

The Bridge and added path are huge additions for the community.

“This new bridge is really opening bike and pedestrian connections for our residents,” Nadeau said. “I imagine people of all ages will be able to interact between neighborhoods in ways they never could before. I’m thinking about the families on the south side of the trail playing together with friends on the north side. I even know some who have found the bridge gives them an alternative mode of transportation for work. And, for people coming from the north side who always had access to the Virgil Gilman Trail, now they can easily access the business at 47 and Galena Boulevard, giving them opportunities for shopping and restaurants.”

Those who wish to see more of Waubonsee’s state-of-the-art TEC can return the following Friday on Sept. 12 for a grand opening and open house from 4 to 7 p.m. Perhaps this will be the perfect time to ride across the bridge and onto the Gilman Trail a second time?

The new addition to the community wasn’t without its darker moments. In fact, the bridge idea was birthed from a local tragedy.

Sean Michels, former Sugar Grove village president who now serves as a trustee, began advocating for the bridge after 12-year-old William Pierce was killed after being hit by a car while trying to cut across Galena in 1998.

“It’s taken years from planning to actually have it built,” he said. “Every time I see someone biking along Bliss, I hold my breath. It’s just a great trail and this makes it safer and more accessible. It’s always been a high community wish that we have better bike trails and this really fits in with what the community wants, and partnering with the park district, township, county and state, we got this built while being financially responsible for all to enjoy.”

Rowe said funding was secured with an $800,000 grant from the State of Illinois along with $50,000 in matching funds from each of the participating taxing bodies.

“The bridge provides a critical link connecting Belle Vue Lane to the Gilman Nature Trail to safely accommodate biking, walking, and running without the need to travel on Bliss Road,” Rowe said. “If this project saves just one life, it was worth every dime and all the effort of those involved.”