Trail Builder Magazine

12/11/2025

With our upcoming Volume 3, Issue 2 arriving from the printer any day now, I want to take this moment to share about our subscriptions.

Why are they important?

As I shared before, our growing subscriber base has allowed us to publish this next issue 100% ad-free. That's a big deal to me in the volatile print magazine industry.

Next, it's always a juggle determining how many magazines to print for each issue. Having stable subscriber numbers gives me a better understanding, so I'm not printing too many. Like with any issue, once they're sold out, they're sold out. Subscribers always get first priority. Digital subscribers? You're in e-bike mode ... chill. We never run out of digital issues.

Lastly, as a subscriber, you have access to industry discounts with over 20 brand partners (and growing). The savings will more than pay for your magazine subscription.

Learn more and subscribe: https://bit.ly/44fVkOt

12/09/2025

I am seeing a pattern across the trail building world. The work is getting bigger. Expectations are rising. And more people are treating trail building as a career with real skills, training, and pathways.

What began with rogue builders carving lines on local hillsides is becoming something much larger. Colleges are launching trail building programs. National organizations are offering certifications. New builders are entering the field on purpose, not by accident.

This shift will shape how trails are planned, built, and cared for in the years ahead.

How do you think this new era should take shape?

Discover how trail building is evolving into a professional career as mountain biking grows. Explore training programs, certification, and industry trends shaping the future.

12/08/2025

Every year, we hear the same thing from trail builders around the world. The work is getting bigger. The expectations are getting higher. And the industry is starting to look a lot more like a profession with its own skills, standards, and pathways.

Here is the real question.

As mountain biking grows, how should the trail building world grow with it?

We are seeing college programs training the next generation of builders, national organizations offering certifications, and more young people asking how to make trail building their career.

Is this the next major evolution of our industry?

Or will professionalization change who gets to shape the trails we ride?

Let’s talk about it.

12/04/2025

Social media is so much more than marketing and hype for trail builders, nonprofits, and trail companies.

It is education.
It is communication.
It is advocacy.
It is community.

And it is how people begin to feel connected to the mission. When people understand the work, they show up. When they see the impact, they care. When they see the people behind the work, they trust you.

Read more: https://bit.ly/3Md0ILe

12/03/2025

I spend a lot of time with trail builders. Enough to notice a pattern. Most orgs want to tell their story. They want people to understand the work. But social media feels overwhelming, so they avoid it until they have more time.

This month, I wrote a practical and tactical social media guide to help you start where you are. No pressure to be perfect. Just a clear plan for showing the work, the people, and the impact.

If your trail organization needs a simple social media strategy, this one is for you.

A practical social media strategy for trail organizations, volunteers, and trail companies. Learn how to show the work, the impact, and the people, and discover the best platforms, weekly posting plans, and content ideas to grow support, recruit volunteers, and strengthen your trail community.

12/01/2025

Which social media platform is the best place to talk about trail building?

I’ve been thinking a lot about this as I work on the next article this week for Trail Builder Mag.

We all know Instagram is our biggest channel. It is where most of the global trail building community hangs out. But platforms like TikTok, Facebook, Reddit, LinkedIn, and even X each play a different role.

So I want to hear from you.

Where do you think trail building conversations work best?
Where do you share your work, your wins, and your updates?
And where do you see the strongest response from your community?

Your answers will help shape the article. Add your thoughts in the comments.

11/28/2025

Here is something worth celebrating. Our next print issue is completely ad-free. That only happened because subscriptions are growing. Your support gave us room to focus on the stories and the people doing the work.

Here is why that matters. The more our subscriber base grows, the more we can expand what we cover. More topics. More writers. More online articles. Growth creates possibility. Possibility creates momentum. And that is exactly what we are feeling right now.

If you want to help shape what comes next, a subscription makes a real difference.

Subscribe: https://bit.ly/44fVkOt

📸 Fabiola Christian

11/26/2025

I have been thinking a lot lately about what it means to grow something slow and steady. Trail Builder Magazine has changed a lot over the past year, and this month I wanted to pull back the curtain a bit.

The next print issue is a milestone for us. Every feature was written by someone living outside the United States. Canada. Spain. Germany. It feels like the global trail building community is pulling up a chair and joining the conversation in a new way.

This month’s editor’s note digs into all of this. The growth. The pacing. The surprises. And yes, the quiet milestone of our next issue being completely ad-free, thanks to our growing base of subscribers. That support gives us room to breathe and room to focus on the stories that matter.

Trail Builder Magazine is finding its rhythm. In this editor’s note, Sean shares how the publication is growing, why the next print issue is fully ad free, and how global contributors, rising subscriptions, and a clear mission are shaping its future. A behind the scenes look at how the magazine is...

11/24/2025

Guessing what is dropping soon???

Featured articles:

▪️Trail Building: Leaving a Mark That Lasts Longer Than Wi-Fi by Pat Pero
▪️A New Jumpline is Coming to the Flowtrail Stromberg! by Fabiola Christian
▪️Technology in Trail Design by Jack Rahilly
▪️Northern Lines: A Road Trip Through Northeast BC's Trail Networks by Abby Cooper
▪️Trailtool Review: Two-Year Report on the French-Made Tool by Willard Bruce
▪️Why Not Sanction it? by Mathew Wanbon

Subscribe: https://bit.ly/44fVkOt

11/21/2025

If trail work happens and no one sees it, the community never understands its value. That makes it harder to secure sponsors, donors, and partners who believe in your mission.

Social media is not hype. It is how you show the real work happening on the ground and invite others to invest in it.

11/19/2025

Trail organizations do world-class work. The problem is that most people never see it.

Visibility matters. It affects volunteer recruitment, sponsor interest, and even your credibility with land managers.

Our new article breaks down why social media is essential for trail stewardship and how small volunteer-led groups can use simple storytelling to make their work visible.

Trail organizations do incredible work, but much of it goes unseen. This article explains why social media is essential for volunteer-led and small nonprofit trail groups, and how simple storytelling can boost visibility, attract volunteers and sponsors, and strengthen relationships with land manage

11/18/2025

Every trail organization has to communicate the value of its work, and today most of that happens online. Photos, short videos, captions, email newsletters, and stories all shape how your community understands what you do and why it matters.

So here is the question we are asking the trail community: What has been the most effective way to communicate the importance of your work on social media?

Is it before-and-after images, volunteer highlights, behind-the-scenes trail work, long-form captions, or consistent education? Something else?

We would love to learn from what has worked for you.