The Armstrong Trail

This tour of the Armstrong Trail took place in June 2023 as a part of a longer tour I called “The Great Western PA Rail Trail Tour” which also included the Pine Creek Rail Trail, the Allegheny River Trail, the Redbank Valley Trail, the Ghost Town Trail and the Montour Trail, encircling the city of Pittsburgh.
If you’d like to enjoy the longer video, please watch that here: • The Great Western PA R...
Music: “Lost”, Vico V
For more info:
armstrongtrails.org
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Camera + camera settings “Filmed on a GoPro 11 Black (4K/24fps, Linear mode), Insta360 One X, iPhone 13 Max Pro and edited in Final Cut Pro.”
contact me at: [e-mail]
(Bryan Wehmeyer, @2023)

[@castle228]

Bryan, thanks for sharing! I spent a good bit of time as a child along, and on, the Allegheny upstream from there just under the Kinzua Dam at my maternal grandparent's "hunting camp" in Warren. I love the Allegheny, it brings back very fond memories paddling and fishing in the canoe with my grandfather. If I concentrate enough, I can still hear him sing, "Rollin' down the river, in a little green canoe. Paddle, paddle, paddle, you little stinkeroo." He liked to make me paddle so he could keep his line in the water. ;) Anyways, I digress. What a great trail, thanks for sharing! And as a 25+ year cyclist, sore butt vs. butt sore is a real topic, as you know. Proper shorts, saddle, bike setup, chamois cream, and time in the saddle are the 5 key essentials to an enjoyable time doing any kind of long distance and/or consistent time on the bike. Cheers!

[@RideAlongAdventures]

Glad you liked it and I’m always glad to help bring back good memories! It’s a beautiful area.

[@elwynanderson9947]

Brooks is absolutely the answer.

[@RideAlongAdventures]

Well, it has certainly worked for me. 😊 at Ragbrai, I was looking at saddles more closely and I have to say, there are a whole lotta choices out there!!

[@dennisspors5264]

Whatever saddle works, make sure the same saddle that is on your bike, is also on the spin bike. Get your seat bones used to the same position. I use Stelle Italia with the gel insert (Pantani) on everything I ride. All my bikes and the Livestrong Trainer, have the same measurements for crank length, saddle height, bar height, and stem length. I always ride at the same tire pressure. If you don't know these measurements, get a bike fit and write them down. Butt Butter is also a close friend of mine as are padded shorts. We are a team.

[@RideAlongAdventures]

Well put. I like your final point: it IS a “team”. Thanks for watching.

[@jonbock4853]

Very nice. Thanks for sharing

[@RideAlongAdventures]

Thanks for watching

[@dctruckguy]

You were less than a mile from the end of the trail. There's a fence there. Soon that section will be open and I think you'll be able to ride straight into pgh and pick up the gap trail

[@RideAlongAdventures]

Oh, really? I thought I was miles from the end. Ok, I feel better. 😊 great trail regardless. PA is just so impressive with their trail development. Other states need to step up.

[@BrentKing-zn9mn]

Great video. Thanks. A couple of comments regarding cycling shorts: First, some cycling shorts are designed for competitive cyclists and are likely to be uncomfortable for average riders, especially on longer rides. Look for shorts that advertise "all-day comfort". Some companies (e.g. RedWhite and Stolen Goat) actually state which of their products are intended for longer rides. Second, and I know this is a sensitive topic, cycling shorts are designed to be worn without underwear. Wearing underwear beneath your bike shorts just gives you another source of chaffing. I personally like bib shorts because the bib straps help to keep the shorts in place. If you don't like the spandex look, put a pair of shorts on over your cycling shorts. Mountain bikers do this all the time.

[@RideAlongAdventures]

Good tips. Especially the no underwear “rule”. It’s funny how that is sort of taken for granted. 😊

[@francisnicoletti4534]

Living Life, enjoying the outdoors! Can’t beat it!

[@RideAlongAdventures]

👍🏻👍🏻

[@philiporourke7896]

Great vid, do you ever have trouble with dogs and can you pitch a tent on that trail. Thanx.

[@RideAlongAdventures]

Thanks! For tent info, you check with: armstrongtrails.org/trail-info/ honestly, I don’t remember camping spots on that section but they are available. Knock on wood, I’ve been really lucky about dogs. I’ve been chased but nothing super aggressive. I used to carry pepper spray but then I lost the little container and never replaced it. That was like 4 years ago.

[@HikerBiker]

For the rare times I've gotten saddle sores I use Bag Balm, the stuff they sell for cow udders. It's cheap and thick so it stays around for a much longer time than other creams. Plus it has an antiseptic in it to help with healing. As far as a sore butt I've tried everything under the sun including a Brooks saddle which i still use and has a few thousand miles on it but I seem to have one spot that just gets sore no matter how many continuous days riding or combination of clothes or whatever. Some days it's more tender than others and I ride a few thousand of miles a year. So enjoy your videos, keep 'em coming.

[@RideAlongAdventures]

Thank you. I’ll check into that. I had issues at RAGBRAI that bummed me out. I applied A LOT of chamois cream and it seemed to help a little more. I wonder if you’re right…there might just be certain spots…just physical issues, bone structure, etc. I don’t know. It’s the same area every time. Anyway…I appreciate the recommendation.

[@kellir.747]

Another great video! ❤ THANK YOU! Regarding saddle sores - 100% agree about saddle type. I found a brand of saddle that I love, so I have that saddle on all of my bikes. I have found that bike fit can also impact sores. If the saddle is too high or too low, that can cause friction sores as your rear moves around on the saddle. I think it’s best to stop in at the local bike shop and ask them for help. Most shops have loaner saddles you can try, so you don’t need to commit to one that might not work for you. They can also help determine whether your saddle is at the appropriate height.

[@RideAlongAdventures]

Thanks. Good advice. Local bike shops are another topic to cover some day.

[@ReimaginedAdventures]

Such a great trail !! You deffinalty hit the best ones !

[@RideAlongAdventures]

I think so too! Do you remember how much further it goes? I’m confused how this links to Pittsburgh. Hey…hope you guys are well.

[@ReimaginedAdventures]

@@RideAlongAdventures after ford city it's pretty much road riding!

[@gorrdd]

Thanks Bryan... I think I liked this one allot for the beautiful, mostly sunny lighting. That GoPro Hero Black 11, on the default settings, sure captures the mood of the day perfectly. What a beautiful trail and ride. I like that you took the time to set up the camera to catch some of the side views and moving panoramas of the most interesting scenes you came across. It's like the highlights in a good movie that you always remember. I know it's a pain to do because you have to stop and set everything up but it sets your videos apart from others who are just throwing it up against the wall with no imagination. Yes, the Brooks saddle is the best together with the correct seat height. Although the Brooks saddle is firm it does three things really well. First off, it's leather which means it will conform somewhat to the bones of your pelvis, giving a more custom fit. At the same time it isn't so soft that it allows the bones of your pelvis to sink in. Here's the deal... Where your pelvis bone meets the saddle you need some firmness there in order to support the pelvis bone. The flesh in-between the pelvis and the saddle needs a bit of time to become thicker and somewhat callus. Soft saddles never allows that callus to form... So you remain tender in that area and longer rides only make it worse. Thirdly, a leather saddle is smooth but not too slippery. This and the correct seat height means you will experience the least amount of abrasion on your butt and thighs without losing grip on the seat. The best of both worlds. The Brooks saddle you got also has the longer skirts down the side. This also helps to protect from saddle abrasion on the inside of your thighs. Regarding creams. I stay away from those because they tend to soften and expand the tissue in that area. Instead, I use a hemorrhoidal ointment that is primarily petroleum jelly base mixed with paraffin, lanolin, and some other ingredients that help shrink the tissue and resolve any rashes. Creams and butters don't do that very well, if at all.🤔🙈 Gord

[@RideAlongAdventures]

Thanks, Gord. I appreciate the saddle info. It’s a tough subject that I’ve been dancing around. I had a bit of an issue last week on RAGBRAI and I ended up using A LOT of chamois cream. But I could tell it was only smoothing over a deeper issue.

[@gorrdd]

@@RideAlongAdventures Thanks Bryan. Is it a pressure point issue deeper into the tissue? Or is it a surface issue? Surface issues just need more time to heal. Gord

[@forkintherode8236]

Anecdotally speaking I still see a good number of young kids on bikes, but what concerns me is the lack of fathers I see playing catch with their kids.

[@RideAlongAdventures]

Yeah, that's another one. Oh well...time's are changing. I gotta say though, I just came back from camping in upstate NY to watch the eclipse and I was so impressed with the families with little kids, camping, playing together, etc. Even when we were clouded out of the actual eclipse the kids still had fun together and people made the best of it. Sort of restored my heart a little bit.

[@forkintherode8236]

@@RideAlongAdventures Awesome the eclipse was incredible. Your location smoked ours; we sat in a rest stop on Ohio Route 2 right on the line on totality. I had my trusty camera and made a shot of the prominences’ at totality. Baileys Beads as they’re called. Glad you had a great time.

[@TheBane1979]

I've probably said this before, but nowadays you see more crackheads on bikes then kids

[@TheBane1979]

i need to pay more attention, ive seen this one lol. I need to just make a list lol

[@RideAlongAdventures]

Sad but true.

[@david78212]

There is only 3 contact points on a bike; saddle, pedals and grips. The bike company (I don't care who) is going to put just about the cheapest ones they can get knowing most people will change those things anyways. You buy 1,000 pieces of anything, you are going to get a deal. I watch more and more videos of people with new bikes complain, complain, complain about the cheap saddles, pedals or grips that come from the factory... just change them like you planned on doing in the first place. Most high-end bikes don't even come with pedals knowing that you are going to throw away the ones that came on it anyways. A quite a few bike companies (on-line bike companies) are getting the idea and allowing you to select the saddle that you want when you order it. Unlike a car, you can easily change those things. Even a car has better seats when you opt to buy the higher end model. It's not rocket science, you buy the cheapest bike or the cheapest saddle that you can find and really expect it to be comfortable? Just like bike thieves that cut through those cheap locks, you get what you pay for. NO seat is going to be comfortable to 100% of the people that sit on it.

[@RideAlongAdventures]

Yup. Agreed.