Trent and Allie

Trent and Allie (all pictures found online courtesy of their YouTube page)

From time to time, I've tried to find more positivity and relay that to you.

So, allow me to introduce you to two friends.

Well, wait. No. I've never met them. I literally didn't know they existed until a few days ago. But, now, after watching several of their videos on YouTube, I can't help but feel a hint of friendship.

It started because of something I was reading in one of my road groups. A post there said to look up Trent and Allie about their adventures on the Pan American Highway. Soon, I was watching their videos and getting to know this newlywed couple.

Trent and Allie are a couple of 30(ish)-somethings who abandoned their corporate life to embrace LIFE! They tricked out two different vans and began traveling.

Showing some entrepreneurial moxie, the duo found sponsors for their videos, sell merchandise, and built a steady following that numbers at 365,000 when I joined them on Sunday.

Their travel adventures intrigued me. Go to the very bottom of South America? Bounce around Italy, including a case of pink eye for Allie? Build their own house in Utah?

Get engaged on camera at Mayan ruins in Guatemala? Bike riding in Jackson, WY?

Abandon their van in South America due to the pandemic?

Get it back and find it ransacked?

Yes to all!

Go visit Boston and not realize they have tall buildings (well, Trent didn't realize it)?

Go to...wait for it...the Hudson Valley (Beacon, just down the road from Dutchess Stadium), and have a crazy blogger/broadcaster/whatever the heck I am, recognize where they were?

Of course!

No, seriously, they needed propane for the van while they were staying in Beacon, NY. They called around looking for what they needed on a Sunday, only to be told that one place could help them out. They said it was a half-hour away. So, as I watched the video, I saw them on Interstate 84 in Fishkill with the Gap warehouse in the background.

Climbing I-84 with the Gap in the background in Fishkill

(You might not recognize it. But, remember, I'm nuts. Oh, and I live a half-hour away in a different direction.)

Anyway, they filmed as they turned off a very New York-looking road into a parking lot with an Acme grocery store and a True Value hardware store. My brain began to twist...Pawling? No. Brewster? No. It's definitely not the Acme in Mahopac. How about Fishkill?...close...East Fishkill...HOPEWELL JCT ON NY ROUTE 82?!?!

NY Route 82 in Hopewell Jct, NY

BINGO! It was the William Tell True Value Hardware store that Sean and I have driven by many times. I've also shopped in that Acme when it was an A&P.

Sean's other home isn't too far from there. Oh, and the bank-looking building in that screenshot? That's Tompkins...MAHOPAC Bank. Yep. 

They also hiked to the top of Mount Beacon and visited the fire tower that I chickened out of going to the top of. They also did a good video walking around New York City.

OK, I'm babbling. So, what attracted me to these two, given that my days of mountain biking and hiking are long over, and I've never really been interested in going to South America?

It's them. They dealt with the pandemic (yes, we all have). They dealt with all kinds of issues in all kinds of situations. And, while there might be bad stuff that happens off-camera, they have such a great attitude. They clearly adore each other (Hi. I'm Rob and I'm a hopeless romantic.)

Dammit. In such a brutal time, Trent and Allie are just upbeat, positive people. Maybe it's nifty editing that keeps the real story from coming out. Maybe I'm just not going to question it.

I love -- love, love, love -- what they're doing. I don't think it's for me (well, I think some of it is) but it's entertaining. Even now, as they're building their house, I can't help wondering what's next?

Yes, they have to put sponsor mentions into the videos (if I haven't mentioned it before, #ItsABusiness) and there are a lot of ads pop up on YouTube, but I find the payoff worth it. I've bounced around and have picked different things to watch to learn about them.

They're funny and charming and seemingly decent people.

Maybe I'm being naive, but it's quite charming.

Oh, and I haven't even mentioned Frank, their trusty travel companion dog.

I admire people who can stay fairly calm despite everything. I admire a couple who clearly works together.

I like what they're doing and while I might not watch every minute of what they've already produced, they've intrigued me to keep checking them out.

If you love to travel and love adventures and laughs and everything that goes into it, then give Trent and Allie a try and support what they're doing. I really think you'll enjoy it. 

Who knows? Maybe one of these days I'll interview them for a radio/podcast spot.

They also have a website and they're on Instagram. If you wish to support them via Patreon, you can do that here.

In a week -- an era -- that has produced so much bad, I'm trying to throw some good your way.