Updated June 22, 2026 12:52 pm
The mountain at the brand new OZ Trails Bike Park isn’t very big. Being less than 300 feet tall, I don’t think you can call it a mountain. This is a hill. But what the trail designers have done with that hill is nothing short of amazing. The park features a high-speed quad lift that takes bikers on more than 20 miles of gravity trails, providing plenty of options for every level of rider. There are green cruisers and blue flows and black jumps and double black boulder drops – it’s a world-class bike park spread over 200 acres on a small hill in Arkansas on the border of Bella Vista and Bentonville. I got a chance to ride the new park during grand opening weekend, and I came away with an overwhelming feeling: jealousy. I live in Asheville, North Carolina, a famous mountain bike town, where there are lots of trails, but we don’t have a bike park like this.
Bentonville and the greater Northwest Arkansas area is already considered one of the best mountain bike destinations in the country. There are hundreds of miles of singletrack connecting small towns to the Ozark Mountains. The aggressive approach Bentonville has taken to construction over the past decade, inspired by the Walton family of Wal-Mart founders, has made this small Arkansas town a prime example of what’s possible. Extending from city streets to singletrack. There are jump lines next to the greenways. When I visit other mountain towns, they try their best to hold down Bentonville. So why invest money and energy in a lift-serviced bike park?
“This is the kind of ride we’ve been missing here,” says Gary Vernon, general manager of OZ Trails Bike Park. Vernon grew up in northwest Arkansas and has been involved with growing trail infrastructure for over a decade. “Before, bikers had to go out West to get these style of trails, these facilities. Now they don’t have to go out west to continue progress.”
To be fair, that’s all you can do with unlimited money. The bike park, like most other trail projects in Bentonville, was underwritten by the Walton family (owners of Walmart), who have invested $75 million in mountain bike infrastructure in the northwest Arkansas region since 2007.
What makes Bentonville so unique is that the trails were built with mountain biking in mind, and they are integrated throughout the community. Singletrack extends through the city and runs alongside footpaths. Trails lead to restaurants, museums and schools. The chairlift alone at the OZ Trails Bike Park cost $8.25 million. Because Walton is also invested in bringing art to the public, the park features large-scale art installations, like the giant bear on top of the mountain that makes for a perfect social media post.
It’s safe to say there’s nothing like the OZ Trails Bike Park anywhere else in the Midwest. I’ve been traveling the country mountain biking for over two decades, and the kind of infrastructure found at OZ Trails Bike Park is impossible to find outside of established ski resorts. And unlike existing lift-serviced bike parks at ski resorts, this one has no ski hill. Too Offers mountain biking in summer. It is a dedicated bike park with lifts for cyclists 365 days a year, with infrastructure specifically designed for mountain bikes. It’s unique, but it won’t be the only lift-serviced bike park in Arkansas for long.
The state park system is partnering with the Ouachita National Forest to build and open another mountain bike park in Mena, a small town 170 miles south of Bentonville. That park will have lifts reaching heights of up to 1,100 vertical feet. This is an entirely separate $48 million project funded largely by state taxes dedicated to large-scale outdoor recreation projects.
“Arkansas is really invested in the impact of projects like this from an economic and quality of life standpoint,” says Shea Lewis, secretary of the Arkansas Parks Department. She says this type of lift-assisted park is the next logical step for the state because so many bikers are looking for this exact experience.
Not everyone likes lift-serviced bike parks. There are still plenty of mountain bikers who enjoy the satisfaction of “earning” money by climbing and working hard on the slopes. These parks also require the purchase of lift tickets, which poses a barrier for some bikers. But these downhill parks are becoming increasingly popular for a growing field of mountain bikers, and Arkansas is poised to become a gravitation destination.
The Mena Mountain Bike Park project is targeted to open in spring 2028. So be it Two This lift-served bike park in the middle of Arkansas allows bikers to zip around on progressive trails year-round. breath. Yes, there is no way to hide it. Paint me green with jealousy.
Take a look at the Oz Trails Bike Park here.
What to Expect at OZ Trails Bike Park
The trail builders and designers spared no expense on this project. The entire terrain extends from a spacious courtyard, which surrounds the 20,000-square-foot base lodge, which houses a restaurant, retail space, and full-service bike shop. There are lots of places to visit in the courtyard and also on the top of the mountain.
The high-speed quad lift is the center of operations, with the capacity to transport 1,000 bikers up the mountain every hour. But there’s also a 1.2-mile climbing and hiking trail that winds through some cool limestone rocks to the top of the mountain. It also gives you a view of some of the hill’s biggest features. While I was there I climbed the trail a few times and saw young people whizzing by on e-MTBs and older couples climbing to the top of the mountain to enjoy the view before climbing back up on the lift.
I have no doubt that this bike park will attract riders from all over the Midwest. I’ve ridden Lyft with people from Texas, Wisconsin, and Missouri, but I think this will be primarily a biking hub for locals. It integrates seamlessly into the existing network of trails. I paddled from my hotel in downtown Bentonville. It was a fun, six-mile cruise that mixed singletrack and paved greenways.
On the mountain, I saw multiple generations of bikers, from grandparents to grandchildren, riding together. I sat on an elevator and overheard a 65-year-old father bragging to his son about clearing a jump line filled with the entire Mission Control, progressively larger tabletop. I saw groups of elementary school and middle school kids riding in droves. With the ability to have sessions and progress through these trails, I have no doubt that some of these kids will be the next generation of professional mountain bikers.
trails
With less than 300 feet elevation, it’s not a big mountain, but the trail builders have done a wonderful job making the most of the terrain. Every route I took on this mountain was fun. Some of the downhill lines weren’t long – only a few minutes – but every one of them had me smiling and eager to get back on the lift.
The trails are a mix of fast flows and technical slopes. The builders incorporated as much of the mountain’s natural limestone rock as possible. The black lines go directly over the stones while the green lines run along the base of the mossy rocks. There are wide, jump-heavy lines with fast berms and more discreet, narrow singletrack that winds through the woods.
Bentonville’s trail mantra has always been “beginners first” and that ethos is evident at the OZ Trails Bike Park. There are plenty of options for new mountain bikers or cyclists who don’t want to push themselves. But there are also a surprising amount of blue paths that give you the option of either sending it to the tabletop and double rollers or cruising at a more restrained pace and getting everything rolling. And the black and double black routes are legitimately challenging, with some thrilling features that I’m sure will soon become standard on social media.
Beginner: Fire Starter
Firestarter can be an ideal beginner mountain bike trail. It’s long and curves around the edge of the property, like the green cruiser that starts at the top of the ski hill and gradually makes its way down the entire mountain with easy grades. The surface is chip and sealed (similar to pavement) so it’s easily rolled on and you don’t have to worry about any rocky techniques. There are berms and rollers everywhere so even intermediate riders will enjoy the route.
Intermediate: Archimedean flow
This is my favorite route on the mountain. It’s full of rollers that are fun to pump up and fast, steep slopes that allow you to wander through the woods. If you want to keep two wheels on the ground there are some little tables you can jump on or just roll over. And it’s all smooth flow without any significant technicalities. This is the path I walk most often, and every time I reach the bottom, I immediately want to get back to the top and do it all over again.
Advanced: Mission Control
It is a long jump line consisting of 30-foot jumps and alternating drops. It sounds intimidating, but it’s a good route to take as all the jumps are tabletop so there is no mandatory lag. But these are big piles of dirt, so be prepared for air time.
Large Senders: Critical Mass
This is the signature on the mountain, the double black line. It’s short, but demands several options on different sized boulder drops. The largest boulder fall is a huge wooden gap jump that crosses over a creek. The park management installed benches in the woods below the jump because it is so much fun to watch the dare devils dispatch it.
Logistics and life tickets: what to know
OZ Trails Bike Park There is everything you need on site, a full-service bike shop that offers rentals, and a gear shop that has every piece of protective gear you could possibly need. There is also a restaurant and pub on site.
Lift Tickets: $59 for an all-day lift ticket; $39 for half a day. Locals (or frequent travelers) can get the All Travel Pass for just $99 per month.
graham averill is Outside The magazine’s national parks columnist. He loves all types of biking and generally enjoys uphill more than downhill, but the OZ Trails Bike Park won his heart.
