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community connections
the lights and the valley view are sights to
behold.
“The first time seeing the bridge and
view was breathtaking,” said Ali. “He
timed our arrival perfectly, and when the
bridge lit up he asked his brother to take
a picture of us underneath the lights. The
next thing I knew, Tyler got down on his
knee and asked me to marry him. I was
completely shocked, as you can tell in
our photo. That is a genuine photo, not a
reenactment!”
“I chose [the trail] because it is a one-
of-a-kind location,” said Tyler. “Also,
I wanted to get a photo of the special
moment, and it was a perfect place to cap-
ture that. I knew that Ali wouldn’t expect
me to propose that night, and it would
take her by surprise.”
He continued, “I was so nervous the
whole bike ride, I kept looking down and
feeling inside my pocket to make sure the
ring was still there!”
The Sloans, who were married on
Sept. 27, 2014, still visit their favorite trail
whenever they can. And they look forward
to a time when they can share the trail—
and the memories of that day—with their
own family.
“We will always look back and cherish
the rail-trail because that’s where the jour-
ney of our marriage started,” said Ali. “The
trail and the view are absolutely beautiful;
it’s a really unique place here in Iowa.”
PENNSYLVANIA
Broken Hearts Repaired
RTC is pleased to share this story by
Marcia Laus of how, after losing a son
to epilepsy and battling their own health
problems, she and her husband Rick are
renewing their health and repairing their
hearts on America’s trails.
The 1990s and early 2000s were very
difficult for our family. Our beautiful
son Kevin developed severe epilepsy,
causing a significant cognitive disability.
My husband, Rick, quit his full-time job
to take care of Kev. I would get home
from my job in the evening, and Rick,
a musician, would head out the door to
teach or perform percussion.
Kev was just a baby when Rick
underwent triple bypass surgery—bro-
ken heart number 1—and the next sev-
eral years after Kev was diagnosed, we’d
find ourselves again making frequent
trips to the hospital. Kev improved for
a time when he was 10; however, in
October 2005, he lost his battle with
epilepsy, and we lost our joy. Broken
heart number 2.
For a long time afterward, our eve-
nings consisted of me sitting in front
of the television and Rick staring at the
computer. Then, in 2008, we had anoth-
er scare when Rick had a mild heart
attack and had to have stents placed in
his veins via a heart catheterization.
In 2012, we had an epiphany that
we better get our act together and get
healthier. We changed our eating habits
and upped our exercise significantly. We
walked on the Panhandle Trail, which
happens to run through our Pittsburgh
area neighborhood in Pennsylvania.
After many walks on the same por-
tion of the trail, we decided to walk the
whole length of the trail in 2- or 3-mile
segments. Each day, we would drive a
little further along the trail and start out
on a new segment that we hadn’t walked
before. And as the weather got better, we
also started biking. We would go about
IOWA
A Perfect Backdrop
Sometimes it only takes one moment on a
trail to change lives forever. Just ask Ali and
Tyler Sloan, who experienced an unforget-
table, life-altering moment on Aug. 20,
2013, when, after several years of dating,
Tyler proposed to Ali on the High Trestle
Trail in Iowa—and she said yes!
“It was a moment I will never forget,
with a beautiful backdrop,” said Ali.
According to Ali, she and Tyler, who
live and work in Des Moines and are 27
and 29, respectively, had planned to ride
the High Trestle Trail since diving into bik-
ing several years ago. So when Tyler called
her at work and asked if she’d like to go to
the trail with his brother and a few mutual
friends later that evening, she agreed. And
that was that.
Until they made the trip, that is, and
Tyler surprised her with a question of a
lifetime. The 25-mile High Trestle Trail
is named for a revamped, 2,530-foot
bridge that rises 13 stories above the Des
Moines River Valley between Madrid
and Woodward. Arching over the bridge
decking are 43 steel “cribbings” lined
with LED lights that come on at night,
creating the sensation of moving through
a mineshaft—and honoring the region’s
coal-mining heritage. And of course, both
A moment to remember, Aug. 20, 2013:
Tyler proposes to Ali on the
High Trestle Trail
in Iowa.
courtesy tyler and ali sloan
The stories in this issue’s Community Connections demonstrate how trails connect
people and inspire us—for health and renewal, for love and forever after.
Want more great inspiration? Check out RTC’s TrailBlog
(
railstotrails.org/trailBlog
).
