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The 1st Annual City of Pittsburgh Step Trek is both a celebration of the
city's hundreds of public stairways and a way to support several local
non-profit agencies.

The TREK will begin at noon on Sunday, April 30, 2000, at Josephine &
21st Streets at the base of the South Side Slopes. This unique
neighborhood has 67 separate public stairways, the most in the city.
Overall, Pittsburgh has 700 public stairways with a total of 44,226
steps. Two other "hilly" cities�Cincinnati and San Francisco�have 400
and168 stairways respectively.

Many of Pittsburgh's 700 stairways are considered "streets"�with street
signs and inclusion on city maps. The 44,226 steps that make up the
city's 700 stairways total 23,982 vertical feet (over 4 miles)�which is
higher than many Himalayan peaks.

The TREK will be a non-competitive, athletic event, utilizing  two
courses:
BLACK: 1,440 steps, consisting of 950 steps up and 490 steps down.
GOLD: 1,250 steps, consisting of 660 steps up and 590 steps down.

Participants will be able to leisurely traverse either route or both
routes, setting their own pace, pausing and resting as they choose,
discovering hidden vistas and marvelous views while trekking the steps
and helping charities at the same time. Although there are many steps,
the courses also contain many level and downhill stretches.

For Immediate Release
                                            Contact Mike MIlberger
                                                  at 412-431-4112,
                                                jmm@city-net.com

 SPRING TRAINING � PITTSBURGH STYLE

 The First City of Pittsburgh STEP TREK Event Kicks Off
  April 30, 2000 Showcasing Pittsburgh�s Unique Public
Stairways and Beautiful Vistas, and a way to support local
                    non-profit agencies.*

Celebrated journalist Ernie Pyle once wrote:
Pittsburgh is undoubtedly the cockeyedest city in the United
States. Physically, it is absolutely irrational. It must have been
laid out by a mountain goat�

Well, the goats would have had to climb steps because the City
of Pittsburgh has over 700 sets of public stairways containing
44,226 steps! Over four hundred of these flights of steps are
legal streets and still provide transportation routes for many
hillside residents.

On April 30, 2000, the City of Pittsburgh will celebrate these
famous steps. That�s because the South Side Slopes
Neighborhood Association (SSSNA) is hosting the City�s
first-ever "STEP TREK," an event where participants can
traverse two different 2-mile routes. STEP TREK participants
will climb over 2,690 steps, affording an elevation change of
1,460 vertical feet � equivalent to the height of the Empire State
Building. Best of all, climbers will be able to traverse either or
both routes at their own pace, discovering hidden vistas while
trekking the steps and helping local charities at the same time.

Mayor Tom Murphy is serving as Honorary Chairman and
STEP TREK participant.

*The SSSNA is not doing this event as an Association fund
raiser. Everyone involved in the event is an unpaid volunteer.
But because the Board of SSSNA wanted to benefit others with
all the work that this volunteer effort would entail, contact was
made with many charities or non-profits in Western PA, allowing
them to benefit from this event. Agencies participating include:
the Children�s Institute, Parental Stress Center, Goodwill,
Brashear Association, PUMP-(Pittsburgh Urban Magnet
Project), Women�s Center & Shelter, P.O.W.E.R.-(Pennsylvania
Organization for Women in Early Recovery), and Make-A-Wish.
The non-profit agency has only to publicize the event to its
constituency and collect the donations.

To support our event, we have received sponsorship from:
Duquesne Light, ProPhoto, UPMC South Side, Custom Printed
Graphics, AT&T Cable Services, Soho Invention, South Side
Card & Gift Shop, Desmone & Associates-Architects, Realty
Counseling, and in-kind contributions from Neville Ice Arena,
Frank B. Fuhrer Wholesale Company, Foster Plaza, and Gene
Riccardi.

South Side Slopes Neighborhood Association president, Ed
Jacob encourages just about everyone to participate. "We
know this will be a fun event that will bring out the true
Pittsburgh spirit. We�ve timed it so folks can get out of doors
and enjoy the beauty of spring along the hillsides of our great
city. As the proceeds help area charities, there�s an even better
reason for individuals and teams to sign up."

Registration brochures can be ordered by calling
412-431-TREK (8735), or by writing STEP TREK, P.O. Box
4248, Pittsburgh, PA, 15203, or by visiting our web site,
www.steptrek.org.

STEP TREK - GENERAL BACKGROUND & REGISTRATION INFORMATION
REGISTRATION:
The event will kick-off on Sunday, April 30, 2000 at 12:00 noon.
Registration fee is $10.00 for those 16 years of age and over.
We ask for registration postmarked by April 22 to assure
enough official T-shirts. Younger children walk for free but do
not receive a T-shirt. Additional donations can be made to
participating charities the day of the event..

Directions: The Event will kick-off at the UPMC South Side
parking lot at the corner of South 21st. and Josephine. From E.
Carson St., turn towards the slopes on 21st., and proceed 4
blocks under the railroad trestle, and/or follow the signs to
UPMC South Side.

Registration brochures can be ordered by calling
412-431-TREK, or by writing STEP TREK, P.O. Box 4248,
Pittsburgh, PA, 15203, or by visiting our web site,
www.steptrek.org.

BACKGROUND:
Since we feel that the public stairways of Pittsburgh are an
under-publicized, often unknown asset, offering excellent
low-stress exercise and some of the most outstanding and often
unexpected views of the city, we decided to create an event
that took advantage of these two attributes.

There are over 700 public stairways in 66 neighborhoods of
Pittsburgh�with the greatest concentration in the area known
as the South Side Slopes. Dr. Robert Regan of the University
of Pittsburgh, a committee member, has laid out the course
maps in GIS format and is currently completing a book on the
steps of Pittsburgh.

The South Side Slopes Neighborhood Association is a two year
old civic organization that concentrates on providing a unified
voice to Slopes' residents and improving our unique
neighborhood in matters affecting public safety, public works,
housing, neighborhood unity and the physical beautification of
our public areas. The Association covers the whole slopes area
which includes the area west of S. 18th. St. to Station Square
and east of 18th. to the City/Baldwin line, above the Norfolk
Southern rail line. Examples of successful projects include:
successfully lobbying for a new smaller fire truck; initiating, in
cooperation with the Western PA Conservancy, the installation
of 2 new community gardens (and continued cooperation with
the Conservancy in maintaining two award winning existing
gardens); lobbying for two new foot bridges which the City of
Pittsburgh and Norfolk Southern will install; and, completing a
housing survey and street by street infrastructure survey on the
slopes.


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