TTC Captain: Ethan Fenner
Ethan Fenner, a 17-year-old senior and longtime member of the Keystone mountain biking team, has been riding and maintaining trails for nearly as long as he can remember. “I’ve been riding since I was probably five or six, and I’ve been maintaining and building trails almost as long,” he says. Starting out as a kid simply raking leaves alongside his parents, Ethan grew into a dedicated trail steward who now envisions a professional future in trail building. Through PICL and the Teen Trail Corps, he’s taken on ambitious projects to improve and restore trail systems in northeast Pennsylvania.
One of Ethan’s first major contributions was at Lackawanna State Park, where he worked with local officials to organize the trails, create an official map, and add emergency safety points—making the area safer and more accessible. More recently, he took on a challenging restoration project at the Countryside Conservancy, where a poorly-built trail had become overgrown and unusable.
“The trail was basically a swampy mess. We went in, scraped off the grass, rerouted some sections, reshaped the berms, and made it flow better so everyone could actually enjoy it again.”
Leading these projects taught Ethan a lot about teamwork, patience, and environmental responsibility. “One of the biggest things I learned was how to manage a big group of volunteers,” he reflects. “Not everyone knows how to build a trail properly, so I had to figure out how to give them meaningful tasks—like cutting brush or carrying rocks—so everyone stayed busy and the work got done right.” He also gained a deeper appreciation for sustainable trail design.
“You need to minimize the impact on the environment while still making a fun, rideable trail. Landowners and park managers want it to look natural, not destroyed.”
For Ethan, the most rewarding part is seeing others enjoy the trails he’s worked on. “The selfish benefit is the trails ride a lot better now, and I enjoy them more,” he admits with a smile. “But I also love hearing people say, ‘That was super fun. We should do that again.’ That’s the best part.”
His advice for other PICL athletes considering a TTC Captain Project? “Be ambitious, but reasonable. Go through the proper steps with landowners and the local government so your trail doesn’t get shut down. And do what you love—if you care about it, the community will support you.”