Steve Flanagan, Princeton staffer, rides PA’s famed GAP Trail

This month, as the 112th Tour de France grinds across France, it seems appropriate to commend some local cycling accomplishments; namely, University staffer Steve Flanagan’s 150-mile ride across Pennsylvania on the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) Trail.

Flanagan, retail operation manager for campus dining, oversees the Princeton Chemistry Ca Fe. He has been an avid cyclist since college. 

Last month, Flanagan rode the rural GAP Trail solo, completing the Pittsburgh, PA to Cumberland, MD trip in two days. The GAP is part of the Rails to TraiIs Conservancy, an old railroad right-of-way that was converted for biking and pedestrian use. The crushed limestone trail traces through old mining and steel towns, through the Laurel Highlands, through darkened tunnels, and past the glittering Youghiogheny River. While it’s mostly flat, the GAP has one tough climb – a long, gradual rise to the top of the Eastern Continental Divide at 2,392 feet.

Enjoy Flanagan’s Q&A about his ride below.

Give us the broad logistics

I did the GAP Trail a few weeks ago, in June. When I started looking into it, I went on the GAP Trail website. It’s a really cool website with interactive with maps. That’s how I planned my trip.

I parked in Cumberland, MD at the end of the trail and took the train into Pittsburgh. But the train times are pretty crazy, so I didn’t get into Pittsburgh until like 2:00 a.m. and then I had to ride my bike through the city. When you’re leaving the city, there are a couple of spots where they need more signs. But as soon as you get out of Pittsburgh, then it’s real nice.

I rode about 75 miles a day, so that was with a break for lunch with a sleepover at 75 miles. I started in Pittsburgh at MM148. I finished in Cumberland at Mile Marker 0.

What did you enjoy most about the trail?

For me, it’s calming. The canal is beautiful. And the GAP Trail is beautiful, going over bridges and along the river and through tunnels. I also didn’t realize that because you’re in the mountains there are so many small waterfalls. And there is the Eastern Continental Divide crossing, which divides rainwater going into the Atlantic from runoff going to the Gulf of Mexico.

From Ohiopyle, you go uphill for probably 30 miles. It’s like a .75 grade. It doesn’t seem that high when you’re going up but to do it for 30 miles, that was a lot. In my head I was thinking, this is just gonna keep going. But then I got to the top of the mountain and there were some nice tunnels, and those were really cool. Some of them had sensors so it was dark and then the lights would click on as you’re riding through.

What supplies did you carry?

I had a little backpack for water hydration, and I carried my stuff in panniers. I had my clothes on one side and some food and drinks, and then the hydration pack with like 70 ounces of water. I drank that all on the first leg and then had to fill up halfway when I had lunch.

I also had some trail mix and Clif Bars. But I had a pretty big lunch when I stopped that first day, and that held me up. The night before, like when I do my races, I’ll carb overload with a ton of pasta and some chicken, so I didn’t really need breakfast when I left. I make my own electrolyte mix, so I put that in my water bottle.

Do you have any advice for those considering the GAP?

If you like biking, definitely do it. I was never in the saddle for seven hours straight. I’d ride and then pull over after 90 minutes and take pictures or just look around. I recommend doing that. I was listening to music and podcasts and stuff, so that kept me company. A lot of news and sports and motivational things.

One person told me, don’t try to fly through it. Just enjoy it. I wasn’t going that fast, so it took me roughly seven or eight hours a day, with a break.

Any caveats?

Well, for some of the time there was no cellular. I could maybe pick up WIFI but I couldn’t send a text. That was one thing I was a little wary about. My wife, Lisa, was tracking me through Life360 and sometimes she was like, “Where is he?” But there were a lot of people doing this, so I was never really alone for long. There were some mudslides and some trees down, so I had to lift my bike over the tree. But they do a really nice job maintaining the trail.

Do you have other cycling goals this summer?

I used to do triathlons, but I hurt my knee so I don’t run anymore. Later this summer I will do the aqua-bike race down in Atlantic City, which means a one-mile swim and a 22-mile bike ride. I’m training for that right now.