Volunteer Spotlight: Todd Grassman— Keeping Manawa Alive (and Mowed!)
Name & Hometown: Todd Grassman – Council Bluffs, Iowa
Years Volunteering with THOR: 1 year
Meet Todd Grassman — a trail leader who has been putting in major hours to keep Lake Manawa in great shape for riders of all levels.
About Todd
Todd officially started volunteering with THOR in June 2024, but his connection to Manawa started long before that. Earlier that year, Manawa was an “orphan trail” with no official trail leader — so Todd took it upon himself to start organizing his own maintenance days. When fellow volunteer Todd Zimmerman connected him with THOR, the board unanimously voted to adopt the trail again, provided there was a leader to take it on. Todd stepped up without hesitation.
“I think it's important to keep a beginner-level cross-country trail in the area,” Todd says. “Manawa is a great entry point for new riders, and it provides an option in Council Bluffs that isn’t as technical as Lewis & Clark.”
Trail Work at Manawa
As a trail leader, Todd does a bit of everything — mowing (which Manawa requires a lot of due to its open prairie sections), hiking in with a chainsaw to clear fallen trees, and organizing crews for bigger projects.
His proudest project? Clearing a long-abandoned loop of trail that had nearly been swallowed by nature:
“My friend Lindsey and I spent two very long days clearing almost a mile of old trail. It was so overgrown we had to use old GPS ride recordings to find it again. It was a ton of work, but one of my proudest moments.”
Since officially joining THOR in May 2024, Todd has already logged about 67 volunteer hours — on top of an estimated 100 hours from the year before.
Why He Volunteers
Todd has been mountain biking since around 2012 and started riding Manawa, Swanson, and Tranquility regularly soon after. When the prior Manawa stewards retired, he saw an opportunity to give back to the trail that introduced him to the sport:
“Working on the trail itself can be a fun challenge, but it’s mostly about accomplishing the goal of keeping the trail alive.”
He also believes trails are about more than just riding:
“Trails get people into nature, which I think motivates them to care more about protecting our natural environments. Plus, mountain biking is one of the best ways I’ve found to get into a meditative flow state.”
Off The Tools
While Todd is a proud champion of Manawa, he admits he’s a fan of flowy cross-country trails in general — Swanson and Tranquility being two of his other favorites.
“A couple of my friends coined the name ‘Road Bike Todd’ on a group ride at Tranquility because I’m the guy who loves flat, flowy sections where I can just sprint it out for a bit.”
Outside of trail work, Todd is a cyclist through and through — whether riding his hardtail or cyclocross bike — but he’s got plenty of other interests too:
Profession: ER nurse (and former paramedic & UNO philosophy/ethics instructor)
Passions: Ska/punk/reggae bass player, devoted bike commuter, cyclocross superfan
Fun Fact: He did grad school in Boulder, CO but didn’t start mountain biking until he moved back to Iowa — something he laughs about now.
Thank You, Todd!
Manawa is thriving thanks to Todd’s leadership and dedication — and the local trail community is better for it. Next time you ride Manawa, know that volunteers like Todd are out there keeping it alive, one mow, chainsaw hike, and work day at a time.
Photos by Eric Freudenburg
Become a Trail Volunteer Today!
Become a TAP Trail Steward and be the reason our trails continue to thrive. Learn more and sign up at https://www.thortrails.org/tap
Let’s build and maintain great trails together—see you out there!
