Doug Crenshaw, MAOL, PGA, Treasurer
Doug Crenshaw was born here in the Orlando area, where he and his wife, Kelly, have raised their three grown children. After spending 15 years as a PGA Golf Professional at several Central Florida golf clubs, followed by a few years as a government consultant, Doug is now on career number three as a healthcare administrator. He joined AdventHealth in 2011 and currently leads a team developing capital planning programs that support each of the eight campuses and their leadership teams. His work in capital planning utilizes his operations and strategic planning experience in creating process improvement and change management practices. Doug’s mid-career passion for studying leadership concepts and practices led to obtaining his master’s in organizational leadership from Gonzaga University.
Doug’s personal trail advocacy started by trying to get better natural surface trails and bike parks built to develop a cycling culture and great mountain bike riding experiences that he can pedal to from his driveway. The need to educate local government leaders about what makes a great riding experience and what types of cycling infrastructure are needed to improve the quality of life in his community has grown to include trail advocacy for our local Mountain Bike Association, SORBA Orlando.
Discovering statistics like 1) there are 50% less kids riding bikes and 2) approximately 30% of kids don’t know how to ride a 2-wheeler, created a secondary why for Doug: to get kids off screens and on bikes. Getting the first Central Florida All Kids Bike program funded and implemented at Wekiva Elementary School, where his wife Kelly teaches, is a start. The hope is that this pilot program leads to more schools participating so that every child can leave kindergarten knowing how to ride a 2-wheeler. Doug also serves on Seminole County’s Park & Preservation Advisory Committee, as well as his HOA.
Why are you devoting your time to this cause?
First, I want to advocate for more cycling infrastructure and the development of better places to ride. This involves creating a great variety of cycling experiences for all interests and user groups. Second, I want to advocate for getting kids off screens and on bikes. To keep kids’ interest while competing against video games will require having great and exciting places to ride with variety and opportunities for progression. Third, we all deserve safe ways to travel by bike, rather than car, to these developed trails, bike parks, and trail centers. This level of cycling infrastructure means your driveway becomes your own trailhead.
Are you a biker or walker?
Since early childhood, riding bikes has been my greatest escape, providing a boundless sense of adventure and exploration. Most of my childhood and early teen years revolved around riding and racing my BMX bike, continuously seeking out new places to uncover new adventures.
A driver’s license followed by college and eventually raising a family led to a 30-year hiatus with the bare minimum riding of any type of bike. Becoming an empty nester and working from home combined with discovering communities like Bentonville and Knoxville that have embraced developing cycling infrastructure as a means to improve the health and quality of life for residents has sparked my desire to ride and advocate for similar cycling facilities to be built here in Central Florida. I have to travel to get the riding experience many enthusiasts seek out and I want to give back by advocating for my hometown to adopt the cycling culture.
What city do you look to as a model for safer streets and courteous road users?
Bentonville and their use of easements and narrow corridors to develop natural surface trails to where their residents live. Their infrastructure of natural surface trails stands out because of the incredible variety of bike-optimized features designed and built by professional trail builders. These multi-use natural surface trails, bike parks, and skills areas intertwine with and compliment their greenway trail system and the cycle tracks along their roadways. The paved greenway trails are the infrastructure that networks the showpieces that are their natural surface network of trails. It’s known as the mountain bike capital of the world. It’s become an integral part of the community, its quality of life, and its economy.
