Albany County Executive Dan McCoy is touting the health benefits of the Helderberg-Hudson Rail-Trail.
The rail trail is a nine-mile stretch of old Delaware & Hudson track bed between the Port of Albany and Voorheesville.
Tuesday morning in Delmar McCoy participated in the unveiling of an addition to the Rail Trail sign, a small plaque honoring Albany philanthropist Morris Massry, who died of a stroke late last year. MCoy is urging county residents to incorporate a healthier lifetsyle.
"The Massry family has been a backbone of the community for decades, and unfortunately when their grandfather passed away they wanted to do something nice for him. So Murray and Julie Massry-Knox who showed up. We did a little dedication of the rail-trail for the grandfather with a little plaque. But most important thing is the parternship with Albany County Rail Trail and American Heart."
With summer's arrival, the Democrat cites research that shows people can reduce their chances of stroke by 27 percent with moderate regular exercise.
"Every 40 seconds in this country, someone has a stroke. So we're really talking about gettin' out on the rail trail. We have workout stations. We have sunscreen locations if you forget your sunscreen, we have things to fix your bike if your bike breaks down."
McCoy says 200,000 people used the paved trail last year.
