Charlie Dundas Tri State Company Inc. PTBA Sustainable Trail Conference 2022 (#63)

Trail EAffect Episode 63 Charlie Dundas of Tri State Company Inc

Part 1 of the PTBA Sustainable Trails Conference 2022

Topics Covered:

The Charlie Dundas Backstory and how he got started in Trail Building
How a map from 1914 was pivotal
Charlie’s first trail build, the 32-mile Kanawha Trace is 60 years old in September of 2022
Early Tools of Trail Building for Charlie
How Charlie got into mechanized trail building with a Gravely Tractor and rotary cultivator
The Start of Tri State Companies for employing a trail crew as economic development
Starting trail building for the US Forest Service
The transition to using Mini Excavators
Building to US Forest Service Standards
Flying a rented Mini Ex to the build site via Helicopter
Mini Excavators and Ring Gears that don’t wear out with CAT Mini Ex’s
The transition to 48” wide trails
Going into the Sutter Mini Dozer to increase daily production
Transition from Plate Compactors to Double Drum Rollers
Adding a mechanical mule and a chipper to the trail building train
Building from 250’ a day to 2,000’ a day of completed trail with a staff of 2-3 people
What Trails do for communities according to Charlie
The various projects in urban areas and for private developers for their developments
What Mountain Biking has done for the trail building industry
Charlie’s NICA Trail that Tri State Companies Built
Charlie’s view on “Shared / Multi Use Trails” and the standards that said trails need to get built to
Charlie’s Words of Wisdom
- Sands through the Hour Glass of Life and respecting Volunteers Time

Links:

Professional Trail Builders Association: https://www.trailbuilders.org/

This Podcast has been edited and produced by Evolution Trail Services

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Evolution Trail Services: www.evotrails.com

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