A Trail Friendly Community is one in which trail development and stewardship are a community-wide priority. The Trail Friendly Community Self-assessment provides mountain bike clubs and trails organizations a glimpse into the key elements that Trail Friendly Communities share. 

For the Trail Friendly Community Self-assessment pilot, IMBA chose communities already walking the path of trail development who were willing to try out the assessment, give us critical feedback on the tool and process, and see how the questions and recommendations fit their processes. 

IMBA’s Marty Caivano, Community Engagement Manager, and Lawrence “LC” Colvin, President of the Weatherford Mountain Bike Club (WMBC), recently discussed the pilot. Read on to learn about how the WMBC, an IMBA Local Member Organization, implemented the Trail Friendly Community Self-assessment, and how they are leveraging their results to catalyze action.

Weatherford’s Focus | Taking the Assessment | Implementing Results

Pilot Community: The Weatherford Mountain Bike Club

Marty Caivano: To set the stage, we’d love to hear more about the Weatherford Mountain Bike Club—how long have you been operating? How many members do you have? Tell us about your trails!

LC:  Well, we just celebrated our 10-year anniversary. The club started with just four people sitting around discussing the idea of starting a mountain bike club. We sought meetings with our land manager to explore trail-building opportunities, but it took until December 2015 to get permission to build trails. The WMBC became an IMBA chapter in December 2015. We officially started building a trail at Quanah Hill in January 2016.

Since then, we’ve developed five trails and manage 322 acres of land with five different land managers. We typically have around 160 to 190 active members, so we’re a small club in the grand scheme of things.

We're located in North Texas where mountain biking is quite popular. There are two other very active clubs in the area: one in Fort Worth (Fort Worth Mountain Bikers Association) and the Dallas Off-road Bicycle Association, known as DORBA. With such large clubs in the area, it can be challenging to gain attention, but we’re satisfied with our growth and appreciate our land managers.

We’ve developed a trails plan in collaboration with one of our land managers, the City of Willow Park. We're working on a plan to connect all our trails in the eastern part of the county, which will run along a river corridor. The cities we've partnered with have embraced this idea and are advocating for us as we meet with private property owners and land developers. Since Texas has very little public land, collaboration is essential for us to secure opportunities for trail development.

The East Parker County Trails Plan is  very important to our fast growing county. Creating a singletrack trails plan is just as important as a master thoroughfare plan or any transportation document. I hope other chapter clubs can see how we created a plan for future growth, which conceptually includes over 70 miles of singletrack on 1,000 acres of land. Even if we only manage to develop 20% of those trails, it would significantly enhance our trail network.

Marty:  Next question, what are some of your best mountain bike infrastructure assets? Tell us about the specifics.

LC:  One of our best assets is our collaboration with a professional trail contractor, Shadow Johns of Shadow Trail Designs. He volunteered with DORBA for 10 to 15 years, consistently donating over 4,000 volunteer hours annually. He started his own trail contracting business about eight years ago, and we always collaborate with him for our trail projects. His services are affordable for us, which is a huge help during our fundraising efforts.

Another key asset is our network of trail stewards. Each trail has a dedicated group of stewards who communicate through WhatsApp about trail issues and future projects. This has streamlined communication significantly, as everyone prefers texting over emails nowadays.

We also focus on building more trails; we call ourselves a trail building club. Our logo features trail tools to reflect that. While larger clubs can host events, our events revolve around building and maintaining trails. We hope to start incorporating some fun events next year, rather than always working.

Financially, we’re in a solid position. Like many mountain bike clubs, we can stretch a dollar far, which helps ensure our sustainability. Additionally, each of our trails has a storage facility, which is incredibly useful for addressing issues on-site without needing to drive somewhere for tools.

Lastly, our relationship with land managers is a significant asset. I consider many of them friends; we have lunch together and maintain positive communication. I always try to bring solutions to any problems, which they appreciate because they often hear only complaints.

Marty:  Do you feel the group is in a position to contribute to community development after 10 years?

LC:  Absolutely. We've had nonprofits in our community reach out for collaboration on projects. We’ve worked with Eagle Scouts for tree planting projects, particularly at the Parks of Aledo Trails, a residential subdivision where we’re restoring areas along the trail that have been scarred by grading. The developers and landscape installers provide materials for free, which the Eagle Scouts then use for their projects.

Recently, we partnered with the Young Men’s Service League, a group of moms and their high school sons, to plant 200 trees on a new trail extension. It’s great to see nonprofits approaching us, indicating our reputation as a reliable partner for community service.

Marty:  That really helps position you even better in the community.

LC:  Yes, especially in this neighborhood with over a thousand homes. When residents see these projects happening in their backyard, it fosters a sense of community involvement and support for our club.

Tips on Taking the Trail Friendly Community Self-Assessment

Marty: So, tell us a little bit about the self-assessment. Did you do this by yourself, or did you have board members or others help you answer the questions?

LC:  I sent the link out to some of our board members, focusing on officers. I wanted other people to look at the survey. One of the officers and I printed out the PDF and exchanged it, and we both scored within 10 points of one another. It was cool to see that we had similar assessments without collaborating on the answers.

Marty: If you were going to recommend how other groups should approach this tool, who would you suggest they collaborate with?

LC:  Obviously, the officers of each club and the trail stewards. The stewards might not know everything about planning or community engagement, but they understand the trails. If they have good communication with the officers, they can provide solid answers about the health of the club. However, I don’t think avid trail users necessarily need to fill out the survey. They might not be connected to the ins and outs of running the club.

Marty:  Once it’s an official thing, would it be appropriate to have some of your land managers collaborate, maybe not fill it out themselves but at least review it?

LC:  Absolutely! That’s exactly what I was thinking. It would be good for our land manager to look at this tool because they might not realize that these aspects are part of being a mountain bike club. It would definitely raise their awareness.

Marty:  How long did it take you to complete the assessment?

LC:  It came together pretty quickly; I spent less than half an hour on it—probably around 20 minutes.

Marty:  Did you need to use any other tools or resources to answer the questions, like Trail Forks or Google Maps?

LC:  I did verify some things. Trail Forks is a good resource for figuring out trail mileage. I also referred to information on our website, and one of our trail stewards, who’s a school teacher, has written narratives about our trails, which I looked back on.

Marty:  It sounds like you know the trails well.

LC:  Yeah, as soon as I saw the questions, I knew the answers.

Marty:  How do you think people not familiar with the trails would assess their skill level ratings?

LC:  I think Trail Forks is reasonably accurate with the skill levels. For example, we have a trail called Western Heritage Park that’s very technical. Some people find it intimidating, while others say it’s the best trail they’ve ever ridden. If you check Trail Forks and read the narratives, you’ll understand the difficulty of each trail.

Marty:  Are there any other tools you think people should use to answer the assessment questions?

LC:  I wish more people would visit our website. We have very descriptive narratives about our trails there. Despite having links directing people to the trail maps and narratives, I still hear people say they had no idea we had a trail. Social media is a double-edged sword; while it helps spread the word, word-of-mouth remains the best marketing tool.

Marty:  That’s a solid best practice—having a comprehensive website with information about the trails.

LC:  Yes, and our land managers also have great websites that feature our mountain bike trails. For instance, the City of Weatherford has a dedicated page for our trails at Quanah Hill with maps, rules, and photos which brings in a lot of new visitors.

Marty:  What was their [land managers’] reception? How did they react when they learned about the assessment? What was their perspective?

LC:  I think all of our East Parker County land managers get it. They understand that, particularly here in Texas, we need more awareness from land managers regarding the value that our trails bring. In Fort Worth, for example, there's a trail in Gateway Park, which is a huge urban park—almost 700 acres just east of downtown. The park features soccer fields, baseball diamonds, softball fields, a dog park and a 12-mile mountain bike trail. When city staffers visit the park, they often notice the crowds for stick-and-ball sports, but when I tell them that many cars are actually there to ride the mountain bike trails, they’re surprised. There’s a 12-mile trail out there, dispersed across nearly 700 acres. It’s not as visible as a lighted ballfield – mountain bikers don’t stand still, but it’s equally as important.

That understanding has been a tough battle. I was president of the Fort Worth Mountain Bikers Association for seven years before starting the Weatherford Mountain Bike Club, and getting city staff to appreciate what we offer has been an uphill struggle. That’s where an assessment like this can be really helpful. It can educate land managers and help them understand the value of our trails.

Marty: Did you find the questions and recommendations helpful? Were you able to extract valuable information for yourself?

LC:  Yes, I thought the questionnaire was well-written and asked good questions. Our club has work to do, especially in community engagement and organizing events. One cool aspect of the assessment was trail planning. I think we’re ahead of most clubs in that area, but the assessment helped me see where we excel and where we need more focus.

How Weatherford is Translating Assessment Results to Action

Marty:  Have you taken any actions on certain projects or had any ideas since completing the assessment?

LC:  Yes, definitely. Our club sent Vern Bennett to attend the recent IMBA Level Up Local leadership summit in Knoxville, TN. Vern will be responsible for fundraising for our club. He’s really excited about it. I realized that I need more leadership help, especially since our potential for growth is strong. We want to engage the wellness and medical community here in North Texas, particularly in Willow Park, which has a hospital and wellness program.

We plan to present to these organizations and discuss how we can collaborate on funding projects that promote health and wellness through trail development.

Marty:  Looking ahead, do you believe your community will embrace the idea of becoming a trail-friendly community?

LC:  Yes, especially in Aledo, which has our largest trail network, and also where we turned a dormant tennis and basketball court into a bike park we call “The Pit.” I met with the mayor earlier this year, and he expressed enthusiasm for the idea of getting the Trail Friendly Community designation. Aledo represents our vision for all of Eastern Parker County. We’ve had productive discussions with the Aledo Independent School District about expanding the trail network in downtown Aledo, too.

Marty: What do you think it would mean for your community to achieve that designation? Would it become a rallying point for support?

LC:  It would bring a lot of recognition to our club and attract people from outside the area. They would visit, stay in local hotels or Airbnbs, and enjoy the trails.  

Marty: Do you think the results and recommendations from the assessment will help persuade land managers to support your goals?

LC: Yes. The City of Weatherford recently conducted a parks master plan, and they included positive feedback about our club. The document emphasized that our trails meet the community's needs, recommending continued collaboration with us. The Parks director has already contacted me about developing a new park, with a mountain bike trail as a central feature.

Marty: That's great to hear. You've achieved a lot over the past ten years, and are making a significant impact. Congratulations! We hope the Trail Friendly Assessment helps contribute to your momentum and success.