Event Info

Thursday, December 3
8:00 am-3:30 pm
Charles Mack Citizen Center
215 North Main Street | Mooresville, NC

Trail Forum is the Carolina Thread Trail’s annual day-long educational event that convenes over 250 industry professionals and citizen leaders with a common mission of advancing trails in our region and beyond.

This will be the 19th annual Trail Forum, which remains the largest recurring trail conference in the Carolinas. Attendees learn about current issues, foster peer-to-peer relationships, and collaborate on the opportunities and challenges of developing a trail network. Participants can choose from a diversified menu of educational sessions throughout the day.

Once again we plan to offer continuing education credits for members of AICP, NC Landscape Architects, National Park and Rec Association, and Professional Engineers (select sessions).

Agenda

Check back for 2026 agenda.

As our lunch keynote this year, we will be screening the documentary Best Day Ever, directed by Ben Knight and Berne Broudy. The screening will be followed by Q&A with Berne Broudy.

Best Day Ever follows the stories of adaptive mountain bikers Greg Durso and Allie Bianchi as they navigate the relentless challenges of their disabilities and embrace the tremendous support, friendship, and joy they find in their rural Vermont riding community. Allie and Greg navigate disability and regain independence with humor, attitude, and grit on mountain bike trails that dismantle ableism, build community, and become a blueprint for trails anywhere.

Best Day Ever celebrates resilience, connection, and the beauty of finding joy even in the hardest moments. Through breathtaking storytelling and raw emotion, it reminds us that hope can rise in the most unexpected places. Don’t miss this unforgettable journey. Be inspired to see the world, and yourself, with new eyes.

More about Ben Knight and Berne Broudy:

Ben Knight left rural North Carolina at 17 and landed in Telluride where Mountainfilm inspired him to leave photojournalism for filmmaking. Knight has won 100+ film festival awards and was nominated for National Geographic’s Adventurer of the Year. Berne Broudy is a journalist, filmmaker, and trail volunteer whose work breaks boundaries—physical, cultural, and societal. A lifelong adventurer and storyteller, she has a deep connection to the outdoors and a fierce commitment to social justice. As visionary for the Driving Range trail system, she raised over $400,000 mobilized volunteers, moved rocks, flagged trails, and grilled 2,000 hot dogs for volunteers.

Exhibitors

2026 Exhibitors

Benesch
Dewberry
Great Trails State Coalition
Kimley Horn
Permatrak
Pond
Swamp Rabbit Analytics
Wetherill Engineering
Wildlands

Sponsor

Become an event sponsor or exhibitor this year! As the premier annual trail conference across the Carolinas, Trail Forum puts your organization in front of 250+ of the key decision makers in planning, design, park and recreation, and local government. Attendees come from across North and South Carolina.

In addition to recognition, all sponsors receive exhibitor space in the main hall. Space is limited so reserve your spot today!

SPONSORSHIP PACKAGE

Please contact Alesia DiCosola for additional information.

Parking