Lake Leatherwood
With internationally ranked trails, first-in-class parks and courses, and infrastructure that keeps on growing, Northwest Arkansas is a mountain bikers’ paradise! Here are some of the newest hotspots to come online (or that are coming soon!) across the region.
Fitzgerald Mountain Trails:
Near Bayyari Park in east Springdale, this promises to be the city’s largest trail system when complete later this year. The Walton Family Foundation and the NWA Trailblazers are developing 10 miles of mountain bike trails on Fitzgerald Mountain, several of which opened on June 29. These first miles of trail to open feature natural rock formations and premium cut singletrack that make for a fun ride for intermediate to advanced shredders.
Lake Leatherwood Downhill Runs: New downhill trails – perfect for enduro-style racing – opened at Lake Leatherwood recreation area on June 24. These downtown runs feature steep ramps and sharp curves and cater to advanced mountain bikers. In August, Lake Leatherwood hosted its first Arkansas Enduro Race Series. Shuttles are in operation to take riders back up to the top when they’re ready for another run!
Passion Play
The Great Passion Play: The Great Passion Play with its Christ of the Ozarks statue in Eureka Springs has completed the first phase of mountain bike trails on its 700-acre wooded complex. Trail builder Tony Boone and the Carroll County Ozark Off Road Cyclists are helping lead the project that began in 2016 primarily as nature trails for hiking. Since then plans have snowballed to encompass a network of singletrack for all skill levels. Completion is set for 2019!
Runway Bike Park and Pump Track: The new mountain bike skills park at the Jones Center in Springdale will feature skills trails, a children’s bicycle playground and the Velosolutions Pump Track designed for mountain bikes, BMX’s, skateboards and all things wheels. Set to open this fall, the Runway’s pump track will be the site of the 2018 Red Bull Pump Track World Championship Final on Oct. 13. Pump it up!
Mitchusson Park
Mitchusson Park: A new mountain bike skills course opened at Mitchusson Park in Huntsville in May with cool stunt features designed to mimic natural elements found in the region. The centerpiece is an “s” shaped pump track, with outlying features to help cyclists build fun bike-handling skills. Volunteers played a huge role in the project by hand-building several natural rock-gardens course features.
City Lake Park in Siloam Springs: Three miles from downtown, City Lake Park has opened three new intermediate-level mountain bike trails: Simon’s Descent (a flow trail), Wango Tango and Gatsanula, and a beginner’s trail called Osage Flats. The 165-acre park will also include multi-use trails, raised-bed hiking trails and a new bicycle skills course and pump track.
City Lake Park