(Written by our featured cyclist, Tom Bilcze)
Winter in Ohio, especially this cold, icy, snowy one, has me doomscrolling more than I’d like to admit. The algorithm believes I need to take masterclasses, where experts share their secrets, and promise a no-fail formula for success. Apparently, you can master anything in less than an hour.
The algorithm also knows my surfing history, riddled with bike trails, cycling, the outdoors, and trail towns. I don’t consider myself enough of an expert to teach a masterclass. But on a cold, overcaffeinated day, I wondered what a Tom on the Trails version might look like.
A recent doomscroll led me to a video by Road Guy Rob about bike infrastructure on the Swamp Rabbit Trail, a trail I cycled in 2025. His words perfectly aligned with my thoughts. Inspired by his message, I added a dose of my own trail “wisdom” and built a lesson plan.
What does it look like when a city embraces its trails? It looks like better health, thriving small businesses, and a new sense of freedom in the outdoors. This masterclass dives into that transformation. Let’s take a look at the Tom on the Trails lesson plan.
Lesson 1: Start with transformation
Trails have a way of turning places into something more, destinations. An abandoned rail corridor becomes an evening walk with the dog. A vacant storefront suddenly has café tables overflowing with cyclists. A downtown that has seen better days turns into a trail’s town center where people linger.
This is a transformation, both subtle and dramatic. It’s not about budgets, land deals, and engineering that need to be figured out. Important, but the trail’s seed is planted with possibilities. When people can see what could be, they wake up. Tell that story well, and the rest will follow.
Lesson takeaway: Talk about transformations, the lives and communities changed, rather than the pavement and cost. That will come later.
