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

8:00 – 9:00 Check-in

8:30 – 9:00 Optional Networking

9:00 – 9:45 Welcome

Allen Clark, Chair of the Board of Directors, Catawba Lands Conservancy and Carolina Thread Trail

Randy DuTeau, Executive Director, Visit Mooresville

Presenting Sponsor Remarks – Beth Poovey, PLA, ASLA, Principal, LandDesign

Advancing the Carolina Thread Trail in 2026 – Bret Baronak, Director, Carolina Thread Trail

9:45 – 10:00 Break

10:00 – 11:00 Concurrent Session #1

Size Doesn’t Matter: Short Trails with Big Impacts

Matthew Hudson-Flege, Executive Director, Upstate Greenways and Trails Alliance (UGATA)
Sam Davis, Associate Director, UGATA

You Built a Trail! Now What? [PENC Approved]

G. Wade Walker, PE, Hon. ASLA, Kittelson & Associates
Scott Curry, AICP, CNU-A, Kittelson & Associates
Josh Hurst, PE, Kittelson & Associates

Spencer Mountain: TV to Trails

Ashton Lamb, Trail Development Manager, Carolina Thread Trail
Craig Brickser, Principal & Owner, Community Trail Design
Max Hautaniemi, Associate Director of Design Integration, Siteline Design

11:00 – 11:15 Break

11:15 – 12:15 Concurrent Session #2

Use of Drone Videography to Build Excitement for Projects

Merrit McCully, Community Engagement Coordinator, CRTPO
Jesús Ramirez, Exploit Productions
Adrien Ramirez, Exploit Productions

Your Trail Has Economic Value. Here’s a Tool to Estimate It

Steve Bert, Economics & Policy Assessment Group at Institute for Transportation Research and Education
Jane Love, AICP, Trail Development Manager, Carolina Thread Trail
Palmer McIntyre, Director, Great Trails State Coalition
Iona Thomas, Chief Growth and Strategy Officer, McAdams

Great Falls Pedestrian Bridge: Connecting Recreation, Engineering, and Community Through Innovative Infrastructure [PENC]

Brian Couture, Duke Energy
Christy Churchill, Duke Energy

12:15 – 2:00 Lunch and Keynote

Presentation of Awards and Recognitions

Keynote: “Best Day Ever” Film Screening and Q&A

Berne Broudy, Co-founder & President, Richmond Mountain Trails

2:00 – 2:15 Break

2:15 – 3:15 Concurrent Session #3

Creating Adventurous Trails: A Case Study of the John Muir Trail

Nick Armstrong, PLA, Project Manager, Landworks Design Group

The NC Active Transportation Plan: What’s Next for Walking, Biking, and Rolling in Our State?

Scott Curry, AICP, CNU-A, Kittelson & Associates
Kristy Carter, AICP, McAdams

When the Straight Pat Gets Curvy: Getting North Mecklenburg Park Greenway Constructed [PENC Approved]

Tracy Houk, CPRP, Town of Huntersville
Jimmy Prestwood, PE, Active Transportation Practice Lead, McAdams
Nick Lowe, RLA, McAdams
Mark McGregor, Project Manager, Alley Williams, Carmen & King

Adaptive MTB Experiential Mobile Session Wes Hall, Chief Engagement Officer, NC Adapted Sports

Wes Hall, Chief Engagement Officer, NC Adapted Sports

3:15 – 3:30 Closing and Raffle

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