Author: Larry Glantz

Two years ago, we were contacted by a rider who was writing a book about losing weight.  The ride had already sold out, but he wanted to be part of the event, and promised if we “snuck him in” he would mention the MLR in his book.

We didn’t see him last year, but he joined us again this year (2017). He shared the link of a New York Times article he was featured in, and as promised, wore his MLR jersey for the photo. Note this article is from 2015.

We thought you’d enjoy seeing/reading this article and meeting one of our MLR riders.

Putting the Presidential Candidates (and America) on a Diet

By KATHERINE ROSMAN | DEC. 11, 2015

At the wooden kitchen table in his rambling home in the horse country of Waccabuc, N.Y., Mike Berland, a crisis manager, public-opinion researcher and veteran political pollster, assessed the so-far lackluster campaign performance of Jeb Bush, the Republican presidential candidate.

Mr. Berland, who has worked for the campaigns of Hillary Clinton, Bill Clinton and Michael R. Bloomberg, is certain he has identified Mr. Bush’s key problem: He is not eating enough fat.

Read the entire article online here

BY RON CHASE – Seniors Not Acting Their Age
The Times Record  – September 22, 2017

Cycling is one of my favorite activities and a primary source of aerobic exercise. The older I get the more I enjoy it. A runner for almost forty years, a knee replacement compelled me to quit. The knee guy said that if I kept running, I’d soon be back for another one. A certified sissy, I’m not suffering that very painful rehabilitation again if I can avoid it.

Harvard Medical School reports what I’ve long believed. Cycling is a great exercise and a wonderful form of recreation for almost everyone, especially us old people. An outstanding workout, it’s much easier on the joints than walking and running. Those clever folks at Harvard say that cycling is excellent for your heart, brain, blood vessels, muscles, balance and bone density. Just finished a bike ride and I’m already feeling smarter and tougher. Unbalanced since birth, doubt there’s any cure for that. If you’re a fellow geriatric, grab a bike and let’s get out on the trails.

I ride a lot. The actual mileage that I log in is confidential as I don’t want to be accused of being obsessive compulsive, a rumor without merit. Safety is my biggest cycling concern. There are simply too many people driving around sexting, texting and nipping. My preference is to get away from traffic and ride safer bike trails whenever possible.

The State of Maine promotes itself as a cycling friendly state. Unfortunately, that’s not really true, at least comparatively speaking. Many states, perhaps most, have a superior network of bike trails. Traveling to Utah and back earlier this summer, I rode 33 trails in ten different states, most just off major highways. In Florida, they have scores of paved bike trails filled with gray haired people that are spread all over the state. Here in Maine, we only have a handful of true bike trails that allow for a decent ride. Many cyclists consider a ten mile round-trip to be the minimum acceptable distance. The vast majority of our scenic country roads lack a safe shoulder for bike travel. The good news, things are improving.

A great trail ride in southern Maine is the Eastern Trail; the Scarborough to Saco section in particular. My wife Nancy recently joined me for a ride. She’s younger than I so you’ll have to consult with her on whether or not she qualifies as a senior.

Leaving the Black Point Road Trailhead in Scarborough, we rode southerly on the hard-packed dirt and gravel trail for about a mile where a toilet is strategically located. This is just far enough away from the parking area to avoid most of the trashing these necessary amenities receive when the people sexting, texting and nipping can easily drive to them. The toilet is remarkably clean, testament to the fine work the Eastern Trail Alliance does maintaining the trail and its facilities.

Just beyond, riders reach the very scenic Scarborough Marsh. This is such a captivating area that it’s almost impossible to avoid stopping to absorb the wonderful views. I’ve never ridden the trail when kayakers and canoeists weren’t simultaneously exploring the tidal waters. As usual, we exchanged the knowing waves of people mutually enjoying a special place.

Read the entire article online here

By Michael Kelley, Staff Writer  |  Scarborough Leader Online | July 21, 2017

Three environmentally-focused groups are coming together to connect with strollers, bicyclists and runners on the Eastern Trail to gauge what the trail, and the Scarborough Marsh, which the trail cuts through in Scarborough, means to them and educate passersby about the value of the marsh.

This summer, through funding from Friends of Scarborough Marsh and support from the Eastern Trail Alliance, interns from Maine Audubon have staffed an information table along the Eastern Trail Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

Friends of Scarborough Marsh Vice President Steve Pinette, who came up with the idea, said the aim of the table is to teach trail users about the “flora, fauna and history of the marsh and the trail.”

Rowan Price, one of the Scarborough March Audubon Center interns staffing the table, said the response has been good. Many users pass by, but others stop by the table to chat, pick up a map of the trail/marsh or look at the display case or hides.

“If they don’t about (the trail) already, they become interested in it after they have walked on it,” said Price, a resident of Portland who is heading into her senior year at Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

Most of the questions she fields are about the Eastern Trail, but Price, and the other interns, do field questions about the marsh and its ecosystem.

Pinette said the Scarborough Marsh Audubon Center, run by Audubon educator and Friends of Scarborough Marsh board member Linda Woodard, does a “great job” educating people, especially children, about the marsh. Pinette said he was looking for a way to reach people who may not stop by the nature center.

I thought another way to get people would be on the Eastern Trail,” he said.

Better educating the public about the marsh and its ecosystem, is a big part of what Pinette, a retired geologist is trying to do as a member of the Friends group.

“I want to make sure we are fulfilling our mission of educating the citizens of Scarborough and the adjacent area about nature and the environment as it applies to the marsh,” Pinette said. “It is a vital natural resources for many things – for recreation, vital habitat, flood control. It’s a bellwether for global climate change.”

As part of the educational effort, the Friends of Scarborough Marsh will be creating a 12-question quiz to handout to people on the trail and through their website.

At Scarborough’s SummerFest on Friday, Aug. 18, the group will raffle off prizes, including a birding tour of the marsh, binoculars and birding and natural resources books, to those who answered the questions right.

The marsh, according to the Maine Audubon website, has had a long history of use. The Sokokis Indians used the area for hunting, trapping, clamming and fishing. By the 1600s European settlers began using the marsh for harvesting hay for cattle and sheep. When haying began to decline in the 1900s, the marsh was seen as a place to fill for developments and was even proposed as the site of the town dump.

Read the entire article online here

By Melanie Sochan on May 11, 2017 SCARBOROUGH

What’s an appropriate gift for a beloved father’s 100th birthday? For one family, it was the decision to donate $25,000 to the Eastern Trail Alliance’s Close the Gap Project.

Philip Thompson, a retired physician who now resides in Portland but was a resident of South Portland for more than 40 years, will celebrate his 100th birthday on May 11.

Thompson’s six children donated the $25,000 on their father’s behalf. Meanwhile, The John Andrews Memorial Eastern Trail 5K will be held on May 20 at 9 a.m.

Sponsored by O’Reilly’s Cure, the run honors John Andrews, the founder of the Eastern Trail, who died Feb. 20. “Without John there wouldn’t be an Eastern Trail today,” said Carole Brush, executive director of the Eastern Trail Alliance. “His vision and untiring spirit gave us the enthusiasm to keep going.” Andrews will be honored at the alliance’s May 11 annual meeting in Wells. Registration fees for the 5K are $20 in advance and $25 on the day of the event. One beer is included for those 21 years of age or older. Participants can register online here. Proceeds from the race will benefit the Eastern Trail Alliance and go directly to the Close the Gap campaign.

The Eastern Trail Alliance is now just under $550,000 away from starting its 1.6-mile Close the Gap project.

The alliance has already raised more than $3.25 million towards the $3.8 million project, closing in on the funding needed to make the proposal a reality. The funding must be in place before construction can begin, most likely in 2018, according to Alliance representatives.

The Close the Gap project would connect the trail in South Portland to Scarborough. Bridging the area would create a 16-mile continuous off-road trail from Bug Light in South Portland to downtown Saco.

The 1.6 miles would link the Wainwright Recreation Complex in South Portland and a section of trail in Scarborough that ends at the Nonesuch River, near Eastern Road.

Cyclists and pedestrians now have to traverse the streets of Gary Marietta Way, Highland Avenue, Black Point Road and Eastern Road to continue on the trail.

Thompson, a family physician who practiced in Portland and specialized in rheumatoid arthritis into his 70s, was an advocate of trails and exercise.

Read the entire article online here.

It is with many fond memories and heavy hearts that we share the passing of John Andrews, the “Founder of the Eastern Trail” and an ETA President Emeritus.  John was, indeed, an inspiring man of vision and untiring spirit.

John’s vision to create the Eastern Trail started in the early 1990’s. He was persistent, but patient, and made tremendous progress in a relatively short amount of time.

Sadly, John passed away this past Monday, February 20th. Read his obituary here.

Go here to read more information about John and his work to build the Eastern Trail, including some of the many public tributes being made to him.

Please take a minute to watch and share this drone video shot by Black Fly Media for the Close the Gap Campaign.

If you can, please share on your social channels, share in your eNewsletters, and tag @eastern trail and @blackflymedia as you see fit.

“Close the Gap” is a formal fundraising campaign…

… which has already raised well over $3 million toward the goal of $3.8 million. A key piece of trail is missing in Scarborough. A 1.6-mile “gap” interrupts off-road travel between South Portland and Saco. The construction of this critical trail segment, which includes two bridges will close this gap and provide 16 continuous off-road miles reaching from South Portland’s Bug Light to Downtown Saco.

More information on the Close the Gap campaign can be found here.

Thanks to a collaboration between the Friends of Scarborough Marsh, the ETA and the Town of Scarborough, the Marsh is now home to art — created by local artist Jada Fitch — that depicts some of the wildlife that thrives there.

Near the end of 2014, the ETA received an anonymous and generous gift, and earmarked a small amount of that gift for its portion of the art’s cost.

Read more details in this online article – Art imitates life with new trail installation at Scarborough Marsh.

Stay tuned for information about a formal dedication of the art!

Breaking news! The Eastern Trail Economic Impact Study has been republished in 2018 with new data. The 2018 edition of the EIS bases its conclusions on data and surveys taken on the off-road sections of the Eastern Trail between 2017 and 2018.

The simple purpose of the study and its publication is to speak to a crucial audience:

• The decision makers in towns and regions served by the Eastern Trail,
• The business men and women who wish to increase their markets,
• Foundations,
• The elected officials who wish their constituents to prosper.
• Local constituents who want to benefit from the recreational and health
• benefits— both physical and psychological— the trail offers.

To inform them of the measureable and considerable economic benefits of the Eastern
Trail. And by informing them, to persuade them to support the growth of the trail
. . . for their own benefit.  We do not seek charity; we intend to encourage investment!

Go here for some insight into the economic benefit of the trail to its host communities.