Ed Sutton spent over 20 years building the trails that shaped a generation of mountain bikers. The professional trail builder and co-founder of Trail Dynamics passed away recently after a brief battle with cancer at age 68, leaving behind a legacy of innovative trail design and community building that spans multiple states and several countries.
To pay tribute to the man who made a significant impact on modern trail building, Singletracks enlisted the help of Sutton’s former business partner at Trail Dynamics, Woody Keen, and Craig Brickser, a professional trail builder who collaborated with Sutton on several trail projects.
A chance meeting began a friendship that started Sutton’s trail building career
Sutton majored in forestry at NC State and worked as a forester and agriculturalist. He had also been volunteering on trails in and around his home base of Brevard, North Carolina, since the 1990s.
In 2000, he met Woody Keen while volunteering on a trail project outside of Asheville. “The crew that day was pretty disorganized,” said Keen. “I took charge and got everything straightened out. Afterwards, Ed came up to me and asked if he could do trail work with me.” From then on, Keen and Sutton started working together on trails in DuPont State Forest.
In 2002, Keen and Sutton established Trail Dynamics. “Ed called me up and asked me if I wanted to grab a beer together. He pitched the idea of Trail Dynamics to me. Coincidentally, the week before, the Biltmore Estate had asked me if I would do some consulting work for them on trails, so we already had our first client.”
Trail Dynamics started with projects in North Carolina, but soon began building outside the state
Along with the Biltmore Estate, Keen and Sutton built trails for some gated communities that wanted to provide trail systems instead of golf courses for their residents. Then, they were awarded the first trail building contract for DuPont State Forest.
“We did a number of projects in DuPont,” said Keen. “It was where we pioneered a lot of techniques. We pushed the boundaries and knowledge of what was possible.” Of the trails they worked on, the Ridgeline Trail is probably the best-known and best-loved.
Sutton, with Keen as his partner, and later on his own, would do extensive work in DuPont, Pisgah National Forest, Bent Creek, and other parts of North Carolina through Trail Dynamics. But Sutton’s work wasn’t just confined to his home state. He would go on to build trails in several other states and three different countries.
Sutton’s work in Florida made a lasting impression on Brickser
One place where Sutton did a lot of work outside of North Carolina was Tallahassee, Florida. It was where Brickser met him in the late 2000s. At the time, Brickser was, in his own words, “a local dirt jump rat and college kid who was too busy sculpting pyramids of clay on private property for my own enjoyment to be bothered helping out with public trails.”
Brickser and his friends headed out to volunteer at the site where Sutton was working. Seeing Sutton and Keen’s community-driven approach to trail design opened Brickser’s eyes and challenged him to become a more engaged citizen. It also led him to pursue a master’s degree in urban planning.
“Meeting Ed Sutton one autumn day at Tom Brown Park can only be explained as a watershed moment for me,” said Brickser. “Witnessing his level of confidence, skill, and professionalism in such a niche outdoor trade made a mark on a young, impressionable 23-year-old me.”
Brickser and Sutton became both friends and colleagues
Sutton befriended Brickser, and Brickser would often visit and ride with him in North Carolina. After graduate school, Sutton gave Brickser the opportunity to work on his crew in Virginia for a summer.
“I probably lost 10 pounds working in the Richmond heat that July, but Ed’s constant positivity and leadership made the weather feel 10 degrees cooler,” he recalled. Sutton’s work ethic would become Brickser’s north star as he began his professional trail building career.
When Brickser founded Community Trail Design in 2016, he and Sutton continued to work on projects together where they complemented each other’s strengths. “We won several contracts for design-builds, and his trust in my design and planning work became a cornerstone of our working relationship.”
Sutton possessed a combination of qualities that made him stand out as a master trail builder
When asked what made Sutton unique as a trail builder, Keen listed several qualities. “He had an eye for detail. A trail designer puts in a flag line where the trail will go. Ed had a way of interpreting a flag line so a trail could reach its maximum potential.”
He also said that Sutton “had a light touch on the land. Even though he used machinery, it never looked like the land had been mowed down to create a trail.”
“Ed’s vision and ability to create great mountain bike trails with seemingly unremarkable canvases was nothing short of impressive,” said Brickser. “He had a tool for every job, a solution for every problem, and the grit to succeed.”
In addition, Sutton was a master mechanic who could work on every piece of machinery he owned. He also possessed an amazing amount of physical strength. It wasn’t uncommon to see him tossing rocks or logs around like they were weightless.
Finally, there was his skill as a woodworker. Wooden features like bridges and skinnies were often signature parts of his trails, and he designed and built them like works of art.
He also fostered community wherever he went
Sutton had a sense of community that made him stand out among trail builders. “It wasn’t just about building a trail,” said Keen. “It was about building community and building a legacy of trail users who would take care of the trails he built.”
Indeed, it was a major part of Sutton’s work. “It was important to him to make friends with the local community,” Keen said.
Sutton’s willingness to create and build community through trails is part of why his legacy is so far-reaching. “He was as enthusiastic about working in Onslow County, North Carolina, as he was in Boulder, Colorado,” said Brickser. “He treated every community as if they were a world-class destination, and in the process created some world-class destinations.”
His larger-than-life personality impacted and inspired many
It might sound cliché, but Sutton was a true force of nature. He had a magnetic personality that naturally drew others to him.
It’s not surprising that Sutton made a great impact on people’s lives because he gave everyone, everywhere, the same level of respect and effort. “It takes a special person with a titanic level of passion, empathy, and drive to make an impact so large in the world,” said Brickser.
He inspired a generation of budding trail builders who have grown to be some of the world’s best. Brickser said that, in addition to himself, others like Peter Mills (Elevated Trail Design), Mike Thomas (Terra Tek Trails), and Andrew Mueller (Greenstone Trailcraft) all became great trail builders because of Sutton’s influence. “He had an effect on people.”
To honor him, go for a ride on his trails
This article barely scratches the surface of Sutton’s extraordinary life. So much could be said about the way he touched people’s lives. The way he loved his family. The way he saw the good in others that they themselves couldn’t see.
It was impossible to feel down whenever he was around because he was the eternal optimist who was always smiling. Sutton also believed that most of life’s problems could be cured by riding a bike, and he was one heck of a rider.
The legacy of trails he leaves behind will continue to have an impact on the mountain biking community for years to come. Riding those trails is the best way we can pay our respects to him.
“If you’re one of the dozens of communities with the good fortune of having a Trail Dynamics trail, you can honor him by going for a ride on one of his creations,” said Brickser. “It’s what he would have wanted.”
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