Remembering Ed Sutton: The Trail Builder Who Gave Us Big Branch
Remembering Ed Sutton: The Trail Builder Who Gave Us Big Branch
The Downeast Cyclists lost a friend this year. Ed Sutton, co-founder of Trail Dynamics and the guiding hand behind Big Branch Bike Park, passed away after a brief battle with cancer at age 68. For those of us who lap Big Branch's berms and flow lines every week, it's hard to separate the trail from the man who shaped it, and harder still to imagine gathering out there without him.
A Career Built One Trail At A Time
Ed spent more than two decades building trails across North Carolina and beyond, starting as a volunteer around Brevard before co-founding Trail Dynamics with Woody Keen in 2002. Their work stretched from DuPont State Forest to Pisgah National Forest and eventually into other states and countries. Along the way, Ed earned a reputation for a light touch with heavy machinery, the rare builder who could run an excavator all day and still leave the ground looking like nature had done the work herself.
Why Big Branch Feels Different
Anyone who has ridden a Trail Dynamics build knows the feeling: flow that seems obvious once it's there, wooden bridges and skinnies built like furniture, lines that work with the land instead of against it. That fingerprint is all over Big Branch. Ed treated Onslow County with the same care and enthusiasm he brought to bigger-name destinations, and the members who spent time around the crew during construction got to see firsthand the patience and craftsmanship behind every turn.
More Than A Builder
Everyone who worked with Ed says the same thing: it was never just about the dirt. He built community as deliberately as he built trail, and he made real friends everywhere the job took him, including right here in our club. A number of our members got to know Ed personally during the Big Branch build, sharing rides, cold drinks, and plenty of stories with him long after the machines shut down for the day. That warmth is a big part of why his loss is being felt so widely across the mountain biking community.
How We'll Remember Him
There's no better way to honor a trail builder than to ride what he built. The next time you're out at Big Branch, take a lap in his memory. Slow down for the features he shaped by hand, and maybe say thanks out loud. It's the kind of tribute he would have appreciated most.
Our thoughts are with Ed's family, his partners at Trail Dynamics, and everyone in the trail-building community who was lucky enough to call him a friend. Singletracks published a wonderful tribute to his life and legacy, featuring reflections from his longtime collaborators, if you'd like to read more.