Meet Larry Lehman

We’ve entered a new era for Truckee Trails Foundation thanks to the commitment and hard work of Larry Lehman, Trail Project Engineer.

How’s that? A new era?

GETTING HERE

For 20 years, Truckee Trails Foundation has been instrumental in maintaining nearly all of the 180 miles of non-motorized trail in Tahoe National Forest (Truckee Ranger District). You’ve been on them, you know just how big that is. If not, trust me, that’s a lot of miles. Over that time, we’ve been invited to build trails for the Truckee Donner Land Trust, Tahoe Donner Association, Glenshire Resident’s Association, Truckee Tahoe Airport District, and others.

More recently, TTF’s trail crew has been busy building 27 miles of new trails at Waddle Ranch, the Sawtooth Network, and beyond.

We’re proud of all that and especially what it means to you: connecting you to incredible outdoor experiences to explore nature, feel great, and challenge your limits.

But there’s more.

THE MISSING ELEMENT

Absent from our work has been a licensed and certified trail builder. With Larry, we now have this skill set, and trail-building legal requirement, covered in-house.

Ok, I’m with you, you’d be forgiven for thinking that sounds like just so much operational minutiae.

But it’s a big deal … here’s why this clever upgrade is so valuable:

• Lower Cost Trails: With a certified engineer on board, we can legally bid on more projects (specifically non-federal projects). As a nonprofit, our trail-building costs are lower than our commercial peers. The result – lower cost trails for everyone.
• More Trails: Lower-cost trails mean more new trails for the same budget. This is a huge win for the region.
• Deeper Expertise: Larry injects deeper know-how into every project from start to finish.
• Better Trails: Inevitably the resulting trail design and build are even better, too.

Ultimately when you combine these benefits it translates to Truckee Trails Foundation building more truly great trails for you. That means more opportunities for you to get out in more places … to connect, explore, and challenge your limits.

THE LATEST ON LARRY

As I write this, Larry is focused on the engineering designs for a connector trail linking the Sawtooth Network to the downtown Legacy Trail. It goes live this summer. Just one of many projects he’ll tackle this season.

If you see Larry out on the trail be sure to say hello and a big thank you. With his help, Truckee Trails Foundation is ushering in a new era of trail building that brings still more fun and excitement to the region’s trail network.