In an effort to encourage interest from the younger generation, a Family Fun Ride is being added to the Mon/Yough Trail Council’s annual Yough-N-Roll event along the Great Allegheny Passage.

Volunteer event coordinator Ken Medved said the Sept. 17 ride will be 4 miles for families, and will include longer options for more seasoned bicyclists starting at the trail’s Boston access and extending into Westmoreland County along the Youghiogheny River. The ride and Party on the Trail afterward are fundraisers for the group.

“(The money raised) goes to helping us advertise, it helps us to promote, it helps us to maintain, it helps us to improve things,” he said, adding that the council has about 30 dedicated volunteers.

The group formed in 1991 when volunteers were mobilizing along what is now the Great Allegheny Passage in an effort to transform sections of the old railroad line into walking and biking trails. The various sections eventually were completed and linked, and officially named the Great Allegheny Passage in 2001.

Mon/Yough Trail Council volunteers are responsible for a 15-mile section between McKeesport and the border of Allegheny and Westmoreland counties. They mow the grass, clear trees and brush and repair landslides, among other maintenance chores.

Riders in the Yough-N-Roll and Family Fun Ride can set their own pace and distance starting from the Boston trailhead. There are 40- and 20-mile options that turn around at Cedar Creek Park in Rostraver or Sutersville, respectively. Rest stops along the way will be stocked with refreshments and snacks. The cost is $20 per rider and $10 for children under 10.

Registration on site will be between 7-8 a.m. for the 40-mile ride, 8-9 a.m. for the 20-mile ride and 9-10 a.m. for the family ride. The preregistration deadline is Sept. 3.

There will be a free community party at the Boston access 11 a.m.-3 p.m. with food, music, raffles, bicycle safety seminars for children and local artists, among other activities. Old bicycles will be accepted during the event through a partnership between the council and Red Lantern Bike Shop, Medved said.

“They refurbish them and they distribute them to the underprivileged,” he said.

More details are available at thebostontrail.com.

The trail is a 150-mile link from Pittsburgh to Cumberland, Md., that runs through Allegheny, Westmoreland, Fayette and Somerset counties. In 2020, the Great Allegheny Passage was visited by about 1.4 million people, up about 50% compared to 2019. An estimated 117,000 users were considered thru-riders, or those who traveled multiple days on the passage.

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