Episodes

For Episode 213, we have Noelle Battle, the Executive Director of Bikepacking Roots. We discuss the origins of Bikepacking Roots, its mission, and the organization's work to expand bikepacking through advocacy, partnerships, long-distance route development, and connecting people with the landscape. The conversation also explores the role of natural-surface trails and singletrack within bikepacking, the BOLT initiative, and partnerships with organizations such as IMBA. Together, these efforts sho...

For Episode 212, we've got Udo Blenkhorn and Pat Pero out of Quebec Canada. Both Pat and Udo are heavily involved with volunteer trail building, so much so that they decided to create a nonprofit organization called Dig !t for the purpose of helping other volunteer trail-building organizations. Dig !t serves many purposes for both individuals and trail organizations, with the central theme of organizing volunteer trail-building efforts. The latest addition to the Dig !t platform is a mobile app...

For episode 211, we've got Willie Bittner, founder of Great Lakes Trail Builders, and current President of the Professional Trail Builders Association. Willie has been trail building nearly his entire life, starting out with Boy Scout projects, then working for various Conservation Corps organizations on, and alongside various trail builders before Founding WisCorps, and Great Lakes Trail Builders. Willie brings some insight and stories not commonly found with other guests here on Trail EAffect....

For episode 210, we've got Berne Broudy and Greg Durso back on for a follow-up conversation about their film, Best Day Ever. Berne and Greg were first on in episode 201 back in October of 2025, and since then they've been rallying hard on the film tour circuit, racking up an impressive 22 awards and showcasing the film in multiple countries. Best Day Ever has been making a real impact on how everyday people in the trail community think about adaptive trails and trails for all. This is a special ...

Evan Walterman & Doc Savage | Black Hills Bike Hub – Rapid City, SD | 209 For episode 209, We have Evan Walterman and Doc Savage representing the Black Hills Bike Hub based in Rapid City, SD. Doc is the current President, and Evan is the Director of Trails. We discuss all things mountain biking and trails in Rapid City which has some very unique trail systems. Rapid City was also just named an IMBA Trail Town, and we discussed that process as well. Topics Include: How Evan got into Mountain B...

For episode 208, we have Ethan Edman, the Director of Trail Construction and Maintenance at the OZ Trails Bike Park. If you want a real understanding of how one of the most anticipated bike parks in the country is coming together, this conversation delivers. Topics Include: Ethan on Gravity Based Bike Parks Ethan on his role as the Director of Trail Construction and Maintenance Bike parks he’d visited, and the experiences Ethan has learned about them Angel Fire Bike Park Spirit Mountain Bi...

For episode 207, Phil Waidner is our guest – Now if you read the title, it says West Virginia Mountain Biking and the Arrowhead Bike Farm – This is where Phil Lives and what Phil does, but how he got here is a whole lot of different stories. Phil took us from Indiana to Ashville, to China to Bolivia, to Vail Colorado and finally to Fayetteville, WV. He’s had a lot of different roles in the mountain bike community that span from Tour Guide / Instructor to Leading Teen Trail Corps for NICA and a t...

For episode 206, I’m joined by Mark Eller from Leave No Trace. This might sound like a straightforward conversation. It isn’t. Mark is a veteran of the outdoor industry, with more than a decade at IMBA during a period of major program expansion, and he continues his work today at Leave No Trace. His background includes climbing, mountain biking, and decades of time spent outdoors. This episode sits at the intersection of marketing, mountain biking, trails, and how we show up outdoors in ways tha...

For episode 205 we have Charlie Riou and Cullen McMorrow – the President and Vice President of the Austin Ridge Riders Mountain Bike Club. While Austin may not be on everyone’s radar as a ride destination Austin certainly has a very deep history around mountain biking, mountain bike advocacy and trails. Both Cullen and Charlie provide some excellent stories about the history of mountain biking in the Austin Area along with what they are doing for the future of mountain biking in this region. To...

Nick Ryan | Copper Harbor Trails Club Trails Coordinator | 204 Topics Include: Giving Tuesday for Copper Harbor Trails Club Looking back at the 2025 achievements by the Copper Harbor Trails Club Looking forward at the 2026 goals Wrapping up the Keweenaw Point Trail in 2026 Winter Trails around Copper Harbor that the far east end of the Keweenaw Peninsula More than double your donation through the Giving Tuesday Campaign when you donate through the Copper Shores Community Health Foundation...

IMBA Trail Towns and Ride Centers™ with Joe V. and Marty Caivano | 203 For episode 203 we have Joe V. and Marty Caivano back on to discuss the recently launched IMBA Trail Towns Designation and the recently relaunched IMBA Ride Center™ Designation. We covered everything from the importance of these designations for your community, how to get these awarded these designations, and even provided some example communities for these designations. If you are looking to level up the status of your comm...

For episode 202 we have Miles Ramsey the creative director for 52Eighty Creative. Miles has been working with the PTBA, American Trails, along with others in the Trail Space to improve the marketing game on the outdoor infrastructure we all love to build and use. Miles also the person behind the Outdoor Marketing Boot Camp which was created as a way to help bring new and creative ideas to the outdoor recreation and trail world. The Outdoor Marketing Bootcamp will be hosted in a virtual format ...

For episode 201 we have Berne Broudy and Greg Durso. Berne is an outdoor journalist, storyteller, and happens to be the president of Richmond Mountain Trails a Non-Profit Trail Organization. Greg is an adaptive athlete and senior program director for the Kelly Brush Foundation. Together Berne and Greg helped to create the new film titled “Best Day Ever” a film about adaptive mountain biking, trail building and what it looks like when inclusion is part of the trail building process from the begin...

For Episode 200 we flip the script, and Pete Taylor takes over as the host, putting your regular host myself, Josh into the hot seat. We dive into the backstory how the Trail EAffect Podcast came to be, a mistake or two that I’ve made along the way along with a whole bunch of other topics that Pete had. Topics Include: The Driftless Dirt / Trail EAffect Podcasts Backstory Why Start Trail EAffect Where has Trail EAffect taken me Biggest Surprises and Mistakes Highlights from the show Diffi...

For Episode 199 we have Pete Taylor of Vernon Trails, Bluedog Cycles and Camp Bluedog – the largest longest running kids’ mountain bike camp in the Galaxy. There are so many words that could be said about Pete but I’ll leave all of that up to him! Topics Include: Moving to Viroqua, WI to open a bike shop, a place with zero access for mountain bike trails Starting with Single Track - Vernon Trails – The local trail organization Opening Bluedog Cycles in Viroqua, WI Pete’s take on NICA and ho...

For Episode 198, we’re catching up with Mike Repyak, who’s back on the show for the fourth time, this time with a brand-new role as Director of Development and Outdoor Recreation for the Kocourek Trailhead Foundation in Wausau, Wisconsin. We dive into Wausau’s ambitious trail plans, Mike’s continued work with IMBA, and highlights from the International Trails Summit that was held this past April in Madison, WI – Basically in Mikes backyard. Topics Include: Mike’s new roll: Director of Developm...

For Episode 197 we have Adam Yeoman, the Executive Director for the Copper Harbor Trails Club. During this conversation we talk all things Copper Harbor 2025, which includes some past events, future events, new trails, and there is also some intel on what participants of the 2025 Copper Harbor Trails Fest might have in store in terms of both XC and Enduro Course. Adam covers a lot during our conversation, and Copper Harbor as a trail organization has a ton going on, so even if you are not from t...

For Episode 196 we have J.T. Horn, J.T, is the Trail Director for the Trust for Public Land. J.T. was also one of two guests on episode 192 where we discussed the Economic Impact that Mountain Biking can have on communities. For this episode we are discussing various ways to bridge the gap between Land Conservation organizations and the Trail Community. This topic can be a rather important topic because land access for trails is often one of the most challenging hurdles for trail development. As...

For Episode 195 we have Chris Stindt as our guest. Chris is heavily involved hosting bicycle related events, all sorts of bicycle related events. During this conversation we uncover the value that events bring to communities, and in many ways these events help to build stronger communities. Topics Include: The Chris Stindt backstory Chris’s role at Smith’s Bike Shop Events as a vehicle for raising money to fund trails An overview of multiple events before going into a deep dive on them A B...

For Episode 194 Martha Becton takes over again, this time at the 2025 International Trail Summit, which was held this past April in Madison, WI. Similar to when Martha took over last year at the PTBA Conference, Martha is back, and this time she’s got 6 other guests who dive back into the topic of Women in Trail Building. Topics Include: Intro by Martha Becton – Owner of Becton Trails Desi Jarrell – Director of Outdoor Recreation Perry County Fiscal Court Kathie Brennan – Vice President Ozar...

For Episode 193 we have Uriah Nazario and Brock Wagner who are two of the many personalities behind Beyond the Ashes – An Adaptive Trail Story. Uriah and Brock break down the backstory behind this film, who they brought into the film, along with how Universal Trail Design can be incorporated into trail systems without most people knowing, yet providing access to Adaptive Mountain Bikers. This film will be going live on June 19th at the Bentonville Film Festival. Some of the personalities in this...

For Episode 192 we have Jennifer Clinton and J.T. Horn both of the Trust for Public Land. Earlier this year the Trust for Public Land Partnered with IMBA to author a report on the Economic Impact of Mountain Biking. They also presented this report at the International Trail Summit that was held this past April in Madison, WI. We dug into the report itself along with some takeaways from the International Trail Summit during this conversation. Topics Include: About the Trust for Public Land Jen...

For Episode 191 we have Lars Romig of Sedona, AZ. Lars has been a long-time member of the Verde Valley Cyclists Coalition, along with being a Trail Builder and Mountain Bike Trail Access Advocate. Most Recently Lars led the charge on building the Hardline Trail. This conversation is one that I’ve wanted to have with a Sedona Local for a handful of years now as there is a ton of riding content that comes out of Sedona, but not a lot of content around how the Trails and Trail Access for mountain b...

For Episode 190 we have Chris Riley from Central Maine. Chris is the president of the Central Maine Chapter of the New England Mountain Bike Association, and a board member of the New England Mountain Bike Association. Chris and his organization have come up with some innovative ideas on how to handle both new trail construction as well as handling annual trail maintenance. Maine and the New England region has a ton of momentum with mountain biking and trails, and that is really showcased during...