Bicyclists in a nationwide relay are passing proclamations instead of batons.

The passing of the packet yesterday at Columbus City Hall was the third stop in a 100- day coast-to-coast campaign for a national bicycle trail. Riders will collect proclamations from leaders in 17 cities to show support for the plan.

"I want to see riding become safer,'' said Sharon Bouchonville, who arrived at City Hall at noon after leaving Pittsburgh on Monday.

The hardest part of her trip, she said, was "riding out of the Ohio River valley from Steubenville. It was a long, long, long climb. I was also cold and wet.''

Bouchonville, an air-traffic controller in Oberlin, passed on proclamations from Washington and Pittsburgh to Gahanna resident Rosemarie Rossetti, who added documents from the Columbus City Council and Mayor Michael B. Coleman.

Rossetti rode west on Broad Street to the Hilltop area, where Chris Detwiler on Wednesday will start the two-day, 190-mile ride to Indianapolis. Detwiler, 21, is a Columbus native who now lives in Springfield but works at a Gahanna bike shop.

Rossetti, an avid bicyclist, was partially paralyzed four years ago when an 80-foot, 3 1/2 - ton tree fell on her as she rode on a bicycle trail near Granville. Within two years, she had found a $4,200, English-made, recumbent tricycle and had strengthened her legs enough to pedal again.

Two years ago, she said, "I was on that same stretch of trail for a victory lap.''

She rides every day, sometimes on a stationary bicycle, to enhance her limited walking ability and improve her health. Her longest ride since the accident was 25 miles -- averaging 8 mph, down from her pre-accident pace of 12 mph.

Before council member Maryellen O'Shaughnessy joined her on her leg of the relay, Rossetti offered advice for bicyclists: always wear a helmet, carry a cellphone and ride with another person.

She also cited a need for more bike trails -- with wider lanes, restrooms and tougher regulations on the safety of trails and nearby trees.

Council President Matt Habash touted local plans for 165 miles of interconnected trails, which the city is building in cooperation with Franklin County Metro Parks and suburbs such as Westerville and Worthington. He said he'd like to see those trails linked to a national system.

National Bicycle Greenway, a nonprofit group based in Santa Cruz, Calif., organized the relay. The national trail the group envisions would use existing trails, abandoned rail lines, highways and utility rights of way. It would be open to bicyclists, hikers, joggers and roller skaters.

The group intends to raise money for a national study to identify existing trails that could be part of the network and then raise public and private dollars to create the network, establish design standards and improve and maintain the trails.