Wrapping Up 2022 and Anticipating 2023
We’re two days away from the end of the year, and it has been a year! The details are fuzzy as I don’t recall the exact time and place I decided to start Trail Builder Mag, but it happened. February 25th was the fateful day I created @trailbuildermag and posted for the first time. That was the day after I bought the domain trailbuildermag.com and started building the website. It’d take several more weeks to get a website up and running. Simultaneously I began working on a business and marketing plan. In my mind, it was going to be a slow trickle of a release. You know, get my social media accounts set up, slowly build the website, and then begin seeing if I can grow a following.
I didn’t anticipate you.
I didn’t anticipate the momentum, growth, response, engagement, DMs, emails, and more. That’s when I realized I had struck a nerve. This is something people want. I quickly heard from trail builders all over the U.S., Canada, Norway, Australia, South Africa, Mexico, Italy, and every place in between. All I said was, “Mountain biking celebrates its top riders, influencers, and brands (and rightly so!). We believe that trail builders, the unsung heroes, are integral to mountain biking.” That statement elicited countless comments, responses, DMs, and emails from trail builders, professional mountain bike racers and free riders, mountain biking brands, and more.
As momentum took off, I went from, “Hey, I’ll need to eventually get a print issue out” to, “Ah, crap, I gotta get going on this NOW!” I spent the summer traveling, meeting people over coffee, having Zoom calls, and amassing content for the release of the print issue. That’s when I hit the wall.
What am I doing? A print magazine?
Every magazine from Freehub Magazine from the past five years is on my shelf at home. I’d regularly pick one up, thumb through it, look at the layout, and put it down, only to pick up another magazine and do the same. I hadn’t even landed on the dimensions of the magazine for Trail Builder Mag. Would I stick with the standard magazine size or do something else? I asked several trail builders what they preferred and got some excellent feedback. Then there are standards for print quality, photography, layout and design, and more. I look to Freehub because they’ve created something truly special and amazing. The temptation would be to attempt to replicate what they do, but obviously, that won’t work, nor should I try. Trail Builder Magazine needs to be its own thing. It will. It is.
2022 has been a year of “Hey, this is a great idea” that has quickly transformed into “Sweet! This is exciting! There’s momentum. Now let’s turn this idea into a reality.” Once my semester teaching wrapped up earlier this month, it freed me up to dive deeper into working on this magazine. When I say “dive in,” it’s not the kind of stuff that will ever see the light of day … business plan, branding, strategy for online content and print magazine, and more. I am moving forward, fully aware that my insecurities are shouting at me.
As this year draws to a close, I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you. This wouldn’t be possible without your support, encouragement, and excitement. I am truly thankful and humbled by your response to Trail Builder Mag. This next year is exciting for me as I continue to move forward to releasing the first print issue. Until then, I have something fun I’m cooking up for you all to enjoy. So keep tagging us, DMing, commenting, interacting, emailing, and sharing your world with us. Thank you for letting us in.
Note: these photos were taken in August during S.H.I.F.T (St. Helens International Festival of Trails) as I was moving from one trail building crew to another. The last crew out trimming on the Plains of Abraham. It was a spectacular time to be watching the clouds move around the mountain and seeing the different herds of mountain goats.
Words: Sean Benesh Photos: Sean Benesh
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sean Benesh
Sean is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Trail Builder Mag. He is also the Communications Director for the Northwest Trail Alliance in Portland, Oregon. While in grad school, he worked as a mountain biking guide in Southern Arizona. Sean also spends time in the classroom as a digital media instructor at Warner Pacific University.
