Dear <<First Name>>,
Maybe you’ve met Dale Shultz, the most welcoming guy on the Great Allegheny Passage. As a Meyersdale native and the just-retired manager of the visitor center in town, he has greeted tens of thousands of trail travelers.
The Great Allegheny Passage draws visitors from all over the world.
He’s met tandem riders, visitors from Japan and Germany, happy honeymooners, pannier-packed thru-riders and first-time day trippers. He’s seen muddy long-distance hikers, Lycra-wrapped fitness freaks, and even some determined folks “you’d never guess could ride a bicycle up from Cumberland.”
“Once,” he recalls, “I introduced myself to visitors from Alaska and asked them, ‘what brought you here?’ They said, ‘We have no reason to be in Pennsylvania except for the Great Allegheny Passage.’ That was amazing.”
And it’s beloved by local residents who have seen the economy change.
Meyersdale is known for maple syrup, but it was built on the backs of coal miners and railroaders. Dale started working in a local open-pit mine in 1978, operating a dragline to expose coal seams. He held this job for decades, even as mines closed and the railroad tracks that once hauled away coal were transformed into the Great Allegheny Passage.
When the coal company cut employees’ hours on Fridays, Dale began to ride his bike on the GAP. “I’d always liked riding a bicycle, and now I had time.” At first, he’d cycle from Meyersdale to Rockwood and back, about 24 miles. Later, he’d loop to the Pinkerton Low Bridge, nearly 40 miles.
Eventually, his job with the coal mine ended after 35 years, so in 2013, Dale notched it up a few gears. He started pitching in at the visitor center in the old train station. He started riding to Ohiopyle. Then Connellsville. And finally, the long haul to Pittsburgh. “It’s my favorite trail, and I get to ride it a lot since it’s right in my backyard.” To date, he’s logged well over 10,000 miles on the GAP.
You can keep the GAP welcoming for the long haul.
Just like the railroads, and coal mines, the GAP may not always be there. “We need support to keep this trail going,” Dale observes. Indeed, maintenance is performed entirely by local residents, nearly all of them volunteer. “And people do want to support the GAP.” Many don’t realize that resurfacing a mile of trail costs $10,000. Replacing a broken drainage culvert – and there are thousands that keep stormwater from flooding the trail -- runs from $2,000 to $200,000 depending on how deep it’s buried. Will you pitch in?
Make a generous gift to support the Great Allegheny Passage!
Dale stepped away from the visitor center this fall. Over the last seven years, he’s greeted practically every GAP traveler who has stopped in town. “I’m going to miss those interactions with people!” But it will give him more time to ride. “I’ve got to get my centuries in!” In 2020, Dale completed ten “century rides” on the GAP, each 100 miles in a day. “Every Wednesday this fall, unless it rained. Then I rode on Thursdays.” Still, he claims, “I’m not a cyclist, I’m just a small-town boy from Meyersdale who likes to ride a bike.”
Will you mark Dale’s contributions to the Great Allegheny Passage by making a year-end gift in his honor? You can keep the GAP great for the long haul. Thanks so much for considering!
Sincerely,
Bryan Perry, Executive Director
P.S. Your tax-deductible donation will help preserve the GAP for the future!
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