Health and Wellness

Creeper Trail Ride in Virginia Supports Cancer Research, Honors Legacy

Posted 06/13/17 by Amy Kapp in Health and Wellness, Trail Use | Tagged with Biking, Health and Active Living, Virginia

The late Penny F. Garrett on the Virginia Creeper Trail in 2014 | Photo courtesy Penny F. Garrett Sarcoma Foundation

On July 28 and 29, 2017, the Penny F. Garrett Sarcoma Foundation will host the 8th Annual Creeper Trail Ride [and walk] to End Cancer in Damascus, Virginia—with a purpose of raising money for rare cancer research and giving hope to those who are afflicted by the disease.

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Biking with Margot on the Schuylkill River Trail in Pennsylvania | Photo courtesy Dr. Peter Doehring

Accessible Trail Adventures for People of All Abilities

Posted 05/15/17 by Peter Doehring in Trail Use, America's Trails, Health and Wellness | Tagged with People with Disabilities, Schools and Young People, Trail Use Tips, Why Use Trails?

Sometimes it can be hard to imagine how to plan a successful adventure for your family with special needs. But when the trips are successful, the exercise and shared enjoyment that trails offer can be incredibly powerful and restorative! Here are a few tips on how to ensure people of all abilities are having a great time out on the trail.

Brownsville, Texas' Historic Battlefield Trail, part of the planned route for the 428-mile Lower Rio Grande Valley Active Plan multiuse trail network | Photo by Mark Lehmann

A New Star for Texas: the Lower Rio Grande Valley Active Plan

Posted 04/14/17 by Alexandra Becker in Building Trails, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Connected Systems, Disparities and Underserved Communities, Featured Magazine Articles, Health and Active Living, Texas, Tourism and Economic Development

There’s a saying that “Everything’s bigger in Texas.” In the Lower Rio Grande Valley, 10 municipalities in Cameron County are proving the expression right as they embark on the creation of a 428-mile network of multiuse trails, bicycle routes and paddling trails aimed at connecting the region’s rich natural and cultural resources. Learn about the ambitious project in this article by Rails to Trails magazine.

10 Ways to Celebrate Opening Day for Trails on April 8

Posted 03/13/17 by Amy Kapp in America's Trails, Trail Use, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Community Events, Encouraging Trail Use, Health and Active Living, Healthy Aging, Trail Destinations, Walkability and Bikeability

This year’s Opening Day for Trails is going to be the best yet, as people across the country officially kick off spring by hitting their favorite pathways (or new ones!). Below are just 10 ways you can celebrate Opening Day in your own neighborhood and beyond.

Five Ways Trails Make Us Healthier (and Happier)

Posted 03/06/17 by Ashley Ashworth in Health and Wellness | Tagged with Best Of, Encouraging Trail Use, Health and Active Living, Healthy Aging, Transportation and Health, Walkability and Bikeability, Why Use Trails?

If you are like most Americans, you probably exercise less during the winter. It is hard to keep those New Year’s resolutions when it’s snowing outside! Nevertheless, warm weather is just around the corner—and what better way to be active outdoors than on your favorite trail? Regardless of your age, fitness level or ability—trails are for everyone. Here are five ways getting out on the trail can improve your health.

Taylor on the chainless bicycle on which he won the world championship and broke world records in 1899. Uncredited photo, Taylor scrapbook. | Courtesy Major Taylor Association, Inc.

Honoring the Legacy of African-American Cycling Legend Major Taylor

Posted 02/16/17 by Danielle Taylor in Success Stories, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Biking, Champions, Encouraging Trail Use, History Happened Here, Illinois, Minnesota, Success Stories

Around the turn of the 20th century, bicycle racing dominated America’s sporting scene, with top cyclists commanding the same media attention that A-list Hollywood celebrities enjoy today. As with other mainstream sports in the U.S., professional bicycle racing was generally understood to be for white competitors only, but in the late 1890s, an African-American dynamo exploded onto the scene, racing at record-breaking speeds that couldn’t be ignored. Today, Marshall “Major” Taylor’s legacy lives on in cycling clubs across the U.S. as well as a popular rail-trail in Chicago, his final resting place.

A look back at RTC President Keith Laughlin's resolution to walk 2,000 miles in 2016 | Photo by Brittni Geibel

How I Walked 2,000 Miles in 2016

Posted 12/29/16 by Keith Laughlin in Health and Wellness, Success Stories | Tagged with Health and Active Living, How-to, Trail Use Tips

Last December, I made an ambitious New Year’s resolution: In 2016 I would walk 2,000 miles on an “imaginary trail.” I made this resolution publicly with trepidation, knowing that there were numerous reasons that could cause me to humiliate myself by failing to walk an average of 5.5 miles a day, seven days a week for an entire year. But there was no reason for all that angst. I’m proud to report that I beat my goal and will finish the year with about 2,200 miles logged on my Fitbit. And you know what? It really wasn’t that hard. Here's how I did it.

Barbara Brown, founder of Healing Rides, with her mother on the Constitution Trail in Illinois | Photo courtesy Barbara Brown

Illinois Wheelchair Bike Program Restores Health, Happiness One Ride at a Time

Posted 11/07/16 by Maureen Hannan in Health and Wellness, Trail Use | Tagged with Encouraging Trail Use, Health and Active Living, Healthy Aging, Illinois

On a summery Saturday morning, 23-year-old T.J. sets out to ride a stretch of trail in his hometown of Bloomington, Illinois. As he gathers speed on the canopied straightaways of the Constitution Trail, he shouts for joy and races the other riders. T.J. rides as a passenger in a wheelchair bike. He’s a participant in a community-based program called Healing Rides, which pairs disabled or elderly “guests” with trained volunteer “pedalers.”

Photo courtesy Mikey Wally | CC by 2.0

13 Reasons Bicycles Are Perfect for the Zombie Apocalypse

Posted 10/29/16 by Barb Chamberlain in Health and Wellness | Tagged with Biking, Health and Active Living, How-to, Washington

Special thanks to Barb Chamberlain, chief strategic officer of Cascade Bicycle Club and Washington Bikes, for permitting us to re-post this blog—originally published on the Washington Bikes blog on Oct. 25, 2014. Just in time for Halloween, your list of 13 reasons bicycles make the perfect vehicle for the zombie apocalypse!

Anacostia Riverwalk Trail in Washington, D.C. | Photo by Milo Bateman

How Will Trails Change the Course of America by 2036?

Posted 09/16/16 by Keith Laughlin in Health and Wellness, Taking Action | Tagged with Celebrating 30 Years, Connected Systems, Featured Magazine Articles, Mode Shift, Transportation and Health, Walkability and Bikeability

Imagine that we are celebrating our 50th anniversary in 2036. What do we want the world to look like? How will our lives be different? And—perhaps more importantly—what do we need to achieve over the next 20 years to make this vision a reality?

Boundary Bay Park in Tsawwassen, south of Vancouver, British Columbia | Photo courtesy Gord McKenna | CC by 2.0

CDC Says Few Older Adults Get Enough Physical Activity. Trails Can Help.

Posted 09/15/16 by Ashley Ashworth in Health and Wellness, Policy | Tagged with Facts and FIgures, Health and Active Living, Health Organizations, Healthy Aging, Transportation and Health, Why Use Trails?

In its report released today, Physical Activity Among Adults Aged 50 Years and Older, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shared some troubling news: more than one in four older Americans are physically inactivity and only 20 percent meet physical activity guidelines. But here’s the good news: Physical activity can help manage the most prevalent chronic conditions, and trails provide the perfect low-stress environments in which to be active.

RTC Youth Sojourn participants cross the Ben Franklin Bridge between Philadelphia and Camden, New Jersey, on the Circuit Trails network. | Photo by Blake Rubin

23 Youth Tackle 170-Mile Watershed Sojourn in Pennsylvania and New Jersey

Posted 09/01/16 by Anya Saretzky in Health and Wellness, Success Stories | Tagged with Circuit Trails, Community Events, Connected Systems, Ecology and Environment, Encouraging Trail Use, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Schools and Young People, Young Champions

As a culmination of our summer youth programming in the Greater Philadelphia Area, RTC brought 23 young people together this August for our second annual Youth Sojourn—a five-day bike ride over 170 miles of Circuit Trails in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Led by RTC Youth Engagement Coordinator Jolie Chylack and several Youth Leaders, the sojourn capped off a great summer of watershed health education programming.