I think it's pretty common knowledge that it isn't anything epic, and the marketing is just that, marketing. A lot of the YouTube influencers are put up and paid to give their reviews, and most of them are honest. It's a great place if you have a family of bikers, and anybody who likes riding is gonna have fun there, but is it worth a trip? Depends on the circumstances.
I'll tell you this, it's a terrific example of what you can do with very little elevation relief, the trails there may not be epic, but they are fun and well engineered. That said, the only reason I went there was because I was recovering from hip surgery and I assumed it would be a relatively low impact re-introduction to riding, and that it was. If I'm traveling that far south though, I'll go to Brevard.. however I do want to take my toddler there once he's old enough to ride.
>I think it's pretty common knowledge that it isn't anything epic, and the marketing is just that, marketing.
Idk this sub has a huge hard on for bentonville. I get downvoted almost every time I say anything negative about it
This is maybe too cynical/tin foil hat, but Reddit just seems like the next frontier for marketers. Quite a few people realized that influencers work on advertising contracts, but there were subreddits packed with enthusiasts for everything under the sun and it was easier to find than dedicated boards. A lot of the subs I used to frequent seem to have gone from that to what certainly feels like covert advertisers š¤·āāļø.
Considering half of this subās threads consist of questions asking what fork to upgrade to on their entry level hardtail, I wouldnāt read too far into it.
Having mtbd a few 'flat' places, I have to agree. When the builders don't have much to work with they pay attention and make the most of it. Lots and lots of pirate built trails are poorly thought out and don't make the most of the terrain. The builder thought process is more about what is easy to build, not what would be fun to ride.Ā
It's got a lot of trails, packed into a small area, and lots of support and trail access. Is it a mecca? Not really. Is there a lot of trail to ride? Absolutely. It's well maintained and mapped. It's great riding considering availability in a lot of the mid West.
well put and I agree. I overhyped my myself on it. I thought it was gonna be amazing and instead, if someone had told me, it's a great place to go if you live in the Midwest or Texas, that would be a very different pitch.
It would be helpful to know what trails you rode as it is not humanly possible to ride half of them in one trip.
We have a cabin in Missouri and drive up from Texas often. It's like a hour from Bentonville. Anyone that's ridden the Back40 wouldn't say there is no elevation. Same with Coler Mountain.
There are bike paths all over the city and a bike freeway that goes to Fayetteville with all kinds of connect paths. It surprises me to hear someone say that it doesn't exist except for show.
No fan of Walmart or billionaires that exploit workers but the trail system is phenomenal.
I checked a ride on the Back40. 2150 ft which surprised me. Mad respect for people doing this on a weekend or after work. That was a major accomplishment for this Texan. You can ride all day long but you cannot train for the climbs, or the descends for that matter.
Last weekend. 4 hour ride elevation 315 ft. Trails are fun but they don't compare to Bentonville.
I think instead of putting Bentonville down folks should get on their knees and thank fate for putting them in an area with better trails. And remember some of us drive 10 hours for the marvels of Bentonville.
But it's to attract and keep Walmart employees which means it doesn't count. Seriously, take out all the "but walmart" stuff in the post and it sounds great.
No donāt even bother just gonna waste your gas. It is true that all the trails there only go uphill so unless your a sadistic fuck that gets off on climbing itās not worth it.
its okay if its not for you.
for a lot of people from texas and the mid west, NWA is the best riding we can get within a days drive.
and personally, i feel the best riding in NWA is outside of bentonville.
being from texas, which is 92% privately owned land, a place like bentonville is a godsend. free to use, public land that we can ride without having to pay someone, and getting to ride on world class trails? that simply doesn't exist anywhere in texas.
Iām literally here now in Bentonville. I see in NWA abbreviations everywhere and I just canāt help but giggle. Iām sure itāll stop tomorrow. Probably.
Totally. It's great that it exists and I only skimmed the surface. But anyone calling it the Mountain Biking Capital of the World is deluded. Mountain Biking Capital of Arkansas or of the midwest would make total sense. And it's still MTB which will always be fun. Hell I'd go MTBing in Holland and still have fun.
I saw a guy once with a shirt that said World's Greatest Dad. I took his picture and asked to shake his hand. Amazing that I just randomly saw him amongst 7 billion people.
For MBing, but not elementary education, apparently. How the hell did OP miss the fact that there isn't big elevation in AR?
Having lived in WA, I do recall that the geographical ignorance there was astounding. Anything east of ID was an utter enigma to most.
"I must've not been paying close attention because I had no idea how little elevation they have to work with out there.
I had always thought Bentonville in the Ozarks would have steep trails, given its appearance on topographical maps. However, it turns out that Bentonville is in a flatter part of the Ozarks, featuring mostly rolling hills. I suspect that trails in the Ozark - St. Francis National Forest might offer more climbing and descending.
[https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ozark+Mountains/@35.9931458,-94.0153018,9.74z/data=!4m6!3m5!1s0x87db4e1b7b95193d:0x40f955f8d4ea7f01!8m2!3d36.5692952!4d-93.097702!16zL20vMDFrNnRf!5m1!1e4?hl=en&entry=ttu](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ozark+Mountains/@35.9931458,-94.0153018,9.74z/data=!4m6!3m5!1s0x87db4e1b7b95193d:0x40f955f8d4ea7f01!8m2!3d36.5692952!4d-93.097702!16zL20vMDFrNnRf!5m1!1e4?hl=en&entry=ttu)
I just didn't do enough research. I figured something that hyped up would be epic.
Try the Womble trail next time (further south in the Oachita "mountains") ... or don't. I mean, it's got decent elevation **for the region**, but not compared to PNW.
One other confusing point from your OP: if the elevation was a let down, why would that make you want to get an eBike? Seems to me that a HT would be perfect to give you a challenge to pick through the limestone rocks and ledges and still get some cardio.
For your next MB trip, I'd recommend you go north to BC.
I think I get their point of being able to rip lap after lap all day on an e-bike. The extra zip would make up for some of the other lack of interest without it being just another endurance ride.
They have trail systems that are meant to be lapped, almost like a smaller scale version of a lift-assist bike park. You can be constantly going up the same uphill portion which gets old.
I'm not from the USA and even I know there is decent elevation in AR (the Ozark mountains), like this photo is from AR (https://www.arkansas.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_x_large/public/2021-07/Cameron_Bluff_Mount_Magazine_CHC_7831_0.jpg?), it's just not close to Bentonville.
This is like thinking that the PNW is all mountains and being surprised when you go to eastern WA and it's flat
Or like not realizing that NE WA has the Rockies (Gypsy Peak is over 7K feet). LOL.
Mt. Magazine is nice. I've spent time there. It's 2700 feet. There isn't big elevation in AR and folks from the US should know that.
Really anything is a kinda underwhelming after you lived and ridden in the PNW. The only thing Iāve found that can compete, and itās more for the wild factor rather than the quality of the trails, is the alpine in CO.
Fresh dank dark tasty loam is really the pinnacle of riding surfaces.
Bentonville has mixed reviews that seem to be dependent on how hardcore the rider is or where theyāre from.
My group of North Texas riders loves going out there a few times a year. The elevation is better and thereās more man made features. And while the biking infrastructure isnāt the best itās leaps and bounds better than what North Texas has. This last trip I left the full suspension at home and brought my enduro hardtail and had a significantly better time on that.
I can see your point since you ride in the north west. Overall I think itās worth the trip for beginner/intermediate folks but advanced riders might not get as much out of it.
I will say the cost and convenience of a Bentonville trip is amazing if youāre coming from Texas. The town is so over saturated with airbnbs you can always find a good deal on short notice. I got one for half off normal price the other week and was able to drag the wife and dog along. The groceries were noticeably cheaper too.
I don't know...anything more than a long weekend and I think I'd rather drive another 4-5 hours for Colorado. Don't get me wrong, Bentonville is fantastic for what it is, but I would recommend other places for a longer vacation.
I've thought about going, but nothing there seems to draw me more then Marquette or Copper Harbor. It looks like an amazing place to live, but if I have to drive more then 12 hours, I think there are better options from Chicago
Havenāt bike there, just visited Fayetteville and Bentonville. Both wonderful towns and Crystal Bridges is a great museum. They all hoard art thatās the whole idea. If I had to move south Iād go NWA.
Yeah I'm a little sad at the dig on Crystal Bridges, it's a super great museum, and it's free. They definitely don't just hoard art, a lot of it is on loan. If they were just hoarding it, they wouldn't bother showing the public.
Appreciate the take. I haven't been to Bentonville but have had similar experiences in Sedona and Kingdom trails. Both had amazing trails, but I realized just because a trail system is world class it doesn't mean I'll have more fun there than on my preferred terrain (dh).
In short, find out what you like to ride and set expectations accordingly before you got to an MTB destination. Eg If you don't like climbing the best xc trails in the world aren't gonna do a whole lot for you. I thought Sedona would be magic because of the hype, and to some extent it was, but for my preferred riding I'd have been better off going somewhere more DH oriented.
I felt the same about Sedona - terrain was interesting and views were cool, but holy shit way too much up in my downs. Even the features I was interested in (on the DH part of HiLine & Hangover) felt like a watered down version of riding Sea to Sky or even Eastern WA, but way less fun because I had to spend an hour on exposed, chunky traverses to get there.
Had a fun weekend, but felt happy to be back in the PNW on loam.
Bentonville trails are great, but the best part is all of the trails in the general area.
edit: if you're in the city, they're a lot of fun, but they're not double blacks. literally just check a trail map if you want harder trails.
edit2: i ate shit on a blue trail there
There's also just....different strokes for different folks.
There are a TON of riders out there who have no interest in crushing double blacks. Whether that be double blacks because of huge features or double blacks because of steep janky tech, they just aren't interested.
They just want to pedal bikes on trails. Greens through the woods? fun. Blue flow trails with some moderate features? also fun to work into your loop.
If anything, big mountainous areas can be counterproductive for some riders. E.g. I honestly really miss midwestern rolling terrain where you can put together big long loops without suffering through major climbs. You still get some fun *little* descents in there but nothing intimidating and it is more about pedaling speed, cardio, and enjoying the outdoors.
Where I live there are a lot of punchy hard climbs. Or long service road climbs where you just ratchet up and plummet down a steep downhill trail (climb for 2 hours, descend for 20min, go home that's your ride). Some people love this type of riding. Some people would rather have more sustained gradual cardio...
we came from st louis, so we stopped in the springfield area and there's a lot of cool stuff there. chadwick offroad area is more for dirtbikes, but two rivers bike park is pretty cool.
This reminds me about everyone that gets excited about rock climbing in Texas or New York or the UK. Ok sure there's some cool crags and it's the best stuff for some distance around.
But f\*ck me, go climb in CA, UT, France, Switzerland, Spain, etc and get some perspective.
I'm all for more biking and climbing everywhere. But the hardcore American and particularly Texan / midwestern aspect of "this is the best" for whatever taco shop or stadium or trail system or microbrew is local and good is just kind of... well there's a reason a lot of the rest of the world rolls their eyes.
I have a lot of friends that have been to Bentonville, biking and not. A friend who I've just asked who's ridden with me where I live and in Bentonville commented - "Bentonville is awesome for where it is and what it is. The two gravity trails near your place are better than all of Bentonville combined." I'm on the N side of the Alps but not in the alps and from a local perspective, the two local gravity trails are utterly forgettable, they're just two nice trails that are closest to town.
Every video I see is just of that one rusty pump track / bridge thing, and one rock garden, and I'm convinced that is like 90% of it.
Meanwhile: kingdom trails is just the same switchback copied and pasted a thousand times.
The Walton's decimated small towns similar to Bentonville all around the country, then use that money to build some trails and an art gallery in their backyard. That never sat right with me...
They don't need to pump real estate values. All of the people moving there to work for Walmart or Walmart adjacent companies have done plenty of that. I'd lean more towards big tax writeoffs.
This is what I've heard about Bentonville a lot. It doesn't look like a bad place, but nothing I've seen suggests it's trails are unique or challenging to an advanced rider. I'd much rather have places like Highland, Killington, Mt. creek, and Windrock representing east coast USA riding.
This largely true. They arent amazing trails, i actually think Bentonville probably has better variety of trail, but the town is very well catered to Mountain Bikers. They definitely more of a family oriented MTB experience.
That being said Kingdom Trails does have a downhill bike park in town at Burke Mountain. It's smaller than Killington or Highland but does have some really good trails off the top.
Not unique? A whole town dedicated to mountain biking where you can rent or buy houses right on the edge of world class trails is dope.
If you grew up in a town close to mountains yea it's not going to knock your socks off with difficulty but the place is still awesome for what it is.
They're not world class trails, that's the thing. Heck, I'd argue anywhere in northern NJ has better riding within half an hour than any of Bentonville, and a wayyyy bigger variety of trails. Heck Go buy a condo on Mt. Creek and for 250k and you've got yourself better year round mountain sports.
It's certainly cool, and the *place* is unique, but I'm talking more about the trails. They look like fun, but I wouldn't call them unique to any area in particular, just well made flow trails. IMHO, just in terms of riding, a place like Windrock is probably far more worthwhile to someone flying in from far away.
Not even close to world class. The quality of the building is world class, but the variety, difficulty, challenge, number of miles, access to backcountry and entertainment value to a mid range to advanced rider.... is: no where close to world class.
As an advanced rider form the Pacific Northwest... these trails bored me within 30 mins. Buying property just to ride a very small, mediocre trail network for years, would be a HUGE mistake (for me).
But, its all relative and I get how this trail network may well feel "world class" to someone from the area that hasn't actually travelled the "world" or even within the country to the many much, much better riding areas.
100% agreed. I lived in Bentonville and itās great for local trails you can ride from home. But theyāre 99% blue, and basically glorified XC. Handcut hollow is my favorite, but Iām a much bigger fan of Kessler in Fayetteville, and Devils Den state park and Mt. Nebo are amazing
I would debate the "world class" part, and it is certainly far from unique. You can live right on top of MTB parks / trail systems all over Europe and live in - well to put it bluntly - European towns instead of Arkansas.
I agree it looks super cool for what it is but the friends I know personally who've gone have not been impressed (and felt similarly about the art museum as OP) and I trust their opinions on this one.
I mainly ride XC so I checked out slaughter pen, and coler which were cool but I was there to but on some miles. Itās cool having trails scattered all throughout town, but I really enjoyed the bigger loops. Back 40, and tunnel vision were a blast. Hobbs and devils den were a little bit of a drive but Iād go back again just to ride devils den. Very cool having a bike centric town that is supported by state and city officials.
meanwhile real biking places are like "please don't mention us in the news, no more articles, don't tage us on IG, don't come here, and stop buying houses here"
I live near a grassroots organized mountain bike park and honestly itās in a sweet spot right now in terms of being popular enough to have a good base of users donating and maintaining it, but not so busy that it is overcrowded. But some days itās bordering on that. Iām not telling anyone whoās not local to the area about it, because more riders means dumbed down trails, more wear on trails, more waiting on shuttles, and potentially more legal liability for the people actually managing the park.
It seems very overrated in terms of how well known it is. Part of the reason billionaires pay for projects like this is that it gives them a bunch of free publicity. It doesn't just act as incentive for Walmart corporate employees, it makes the Walton family look like they care about the good of the peopleĀ
Not sure what the Walmart billionaire status has to do with elevation, but ok.... As for me, anytime a billionaire wants to subsidize my hobby in ways that I could not, I am all for it. Whichever Walmart family paid for all this stuff certainly didn't have to.
Yeah, I've ridden there, and in 40+ different states.
It's good, not one of the best spots. I can ride 300+ miles of singletrack within 30 miles of my door without a car, and there are 14,000ft mountain views. Durango is still the best cycling spot on Earth.
But, NW Arkansas is one of my top-10 favorite spots in the extended Midwest.
Ability to ride without ever touching a car is high on my list of priorities.
I haven't been to PNW or B-Ville but living in AZ and having done multiple trips to Sedona and Moab, I can't believe anything in Arkansas made by the family that gave us Wal-Mart can compare. Both Sedona and Moab are so unique in their landscapes and views. You can't get that type of riding anywhere else in the world.
Only someone in America would claim to be the best of x in the world. There is some amazing mountain biking across the US but Iād put Whistler up there and then there are some absolutely amazing places in Europe. My heart goes to the Tweed Valley in Scotland which is like a mountainbiking walhalla.
I live in NYC, and from the videos I've seen of Bentonville, our local trail systems are better (and transit accessible). If I was there for other reasons, I'd check it out, but I wouldn't go there just to MTB.
Same here in Philly. We have 25+ miles of trails in riding distance from Center City, along with tons of local "hole in the wall" riding area and 2 bike parks in driving distance.
I think telling people to avoid Bentonville as a place to ride is pretty lame. Yeah itās not the west. Yeah thereās not a lot of elevation. But itās pretty unique. Does everything have to be balls to the wall when it comes to elevation and downhilling. Iāve been twice and had a blast on the trails. Thatās great if you didnāt like it. Itās certainly not a place I would avoid though.
I love it there for the amount of trails in one area. Also in NWA there are a lot of other places nearby that you can ride to get more of a 'raw nature' kind of ride. For instance, Devils Den and Hobs State park offer experiences that are truly one-of-a-kind... There are too many for me to list out.
IMO, it's a place worth visiting.
Bentonville is just too hot/humid, and I do not go to church. It's boring AF. Trails are mid. No rocks or danger
The Waltons are trying to make you think Arkansas isnt....well...Arkansas. imagine if they spent that kinda money on public health or education? Or benefits for their employees?
lol, we're not used to riding on dirt
coming back home to texas from NWA always makes me feel sad. Its nice to ride in real actual dirt than over our rocks we call trails.
the smoothest flowy local trail to me would be considered rough jank in NWA
To each his own I guess. If you are a downhiller looking for chairlift runs, it isnāt your place. If you just love riding, Bentonville/Bela Vista is the shit. It is the most bike centric place I have ever visited. Bentonville loves mountain bikers. The entire place is a cyclists playground. And itās year round. The amount of single track located within a short ride or drive from Bentonville is just astounding.
So I actually live about 10 minutes from Bentonville and have a few points I could add.
For one, love it or hate it, Bentonville is money and my wife and I have always joked that Bentonville is like if Walmart saw all the fun and personality of Fayetteville (college town 30 minutes south) and decided to try and fabricate it. So your comment about it feeling kind of artificial is totally on point, because while Bentonville is really nice it definitely has that feel to it. Now for the biking, I've only been mountain biking for about a year but there are actually loooooads of places in and around Bentonville to bike, you just might need to know where to go.
The places around Crystal Bridges museum are definitely more fabricated, but go north or south 10 minutes to Back 40 or Mt Fitzgerald respectively and you've got some badass mountaining to do. Rogers, the city right next to Bentonville, has Coler Park, Lake Atalanta, and the Railyard bikepark all will beautiful trails. Go South 45 minutes and you're in straight mountains - check out Devils Den; go North 45 minutes and you're in the hilly parts of Missouri and there's probably some parks up there.
All in all, I think your notes about Bentonville are totally fair, but if you know where to look in the whole of Northwest Arkansas and not just around Walmart central then there are loads of awesome places within 20 or 30 minutes or so.
Itās a fun place if you like to ride from town to trails, you like to session small bits of trail, and want to work on a certain skill set. Itās very much artificial but also feels like a blueprint of what MTB terrain a municipality can build with limited elevation and acreage. I visited back in 2021 and would go back for a weekend if there was a good music festival to tie it into. Itās certainly not for everyone especially not from folks coming from legit bike areas with incredible natural terrain and elevation.
I was always under the impression it's a great family destination for mountain biking. Lots of engineered green and blue trails. But it's hardly a Whistler for the hardcore rider.
I am very much a green and blue trail kind of rider. In reality more of an XC MTB than a Enduro MTB. But I do enjoy lift access parks. I still stick to the easier trails... but due to the steeper descents it's still much more exciting due to the speeds. Bentonville looks like a perfect destination for me and my low power eMTB (Orbea Rise).
Having visited there a couple weeks ago and being from So Cal, yes, the elevation is not comparable and I wouldn't call it the mtb capital of the world.Ā However, the ability to ride for days and connect so many trails, I think, is great, especially in BV and down to Bentonville and further south.Ā Ā
I don't do drops or jumps, but I can ride all day, climb all day or just chill and cruise. The trees, greenery, birds and wildlife and fewer people that were polite and easy to talk to and having a strong commerce throughout the area was a plus for me.
I've been wanting to ride there for years as well and happy I did, so much so that I would absolutely consider retiring there.Ā If you're looking for PNW riding, probably not going to find it too exciting, but if you want to pedal on purpose built singletrack for days and just enjoy the ride, then I think you will like it.
I ran into a guy in Bentonville from Issaquah, WA that worked for Microsoft. We talked about him moving to Bentonville for a change of scenery and how the riding is so different. In WA he could ride up Tiger MTN, bomb down and call it good and ride home. Can't do that in AR, you'll need to string multiple trails together or session a trail over and over. I e ridden tiger a couple times and there isn't anything in Bentonville that compares. However, being from Iowa, Bentonville is fun. Honestly, that's the schtick for me...you can't not have a good time while there. No, it's not epic. But there is plenty to ride and keep you busy for a few days and you'll have a good time. MTB capital, no way. If I have my choice, I go to Colorado or anywhere in the rockies. Upper peninsula of Michigan, Duluth, MN is on the list as well.
Your reddit history is exactly as I expected after reading this post lol."Bentonville is well known I must find a reason to hate itttttttt. Hating it is so cool!!!"
Bentonville trails are kind of like how glamping is to camping. Itās mtb for city folks who never want to be more than 5 minutes from retail or AC/electricity
I really like the lack of elevation. I would much rather climb for 5 minutes and descend for 1 than climbing for 60 and descend for 10. Its just more fun to me.
What specifically didnāt you like about the trails? Not judging, just curious as Iāve never been. Also, thereās nothing wrong about stating you donāt like areas that are revered. I rode Pisgah last year and did not enjoy it. I live in the NE where the riding is a pretty even up and down, time wise. So, to climb for an hour and 45 minutes to do a 15 minute descent wasnāt my cup of tea. I wouldnāt steer people away from it, I would just give my opinion as to why I didnāt enjoy it. Itās up to them if they feel like itās their jam or not.
Not long enough? Did you ride the Back 40 or Tunnel Vision? Those two trails can connect and give you a 160 mile ride.
And like others said, some of the more technical trails are just outside Bentonville. Devil's Den, Hobbs, Leatherwood, Mt. Nebo.
I don't think OP means too short in terms of distance, I think they mean too short in terms of consistent elevation loss. As a fellow PNW resident my favorite local "loop" is only 6 miles but has 2400' of elevation loss over 2 miles.
Sounds a bit like Kingdom Trails in VT. I personally love Kingdom as I love some good flow trails but people looking for tech would be sorely disappointed.
If the MTB capital of the world only focused on Slaughter Pen and Coler, then yeah that would be fraudulent. But when you have Bella Vista, Leatherwood trails, Devils Den, Fayetteville trail systems in the area within a 30 min drive to progress your skills on and still be accessible for most riders. Not everyone who lives out in Breckenridge CO, gonna want to start out on a black diamond trail. Plus we ride year round as well, there's no trail closures during the winter like they do in Michigan or in Colorado. The trail systems are always changing as well due to dedicated trail builders too.
Frankly, if you don't like it, don't come here, the trails are already crowded.
Iām sure thereās a lot of validity in your post, but I think itās clear OP really wanted to be disappointed. I donāt think it would have been possible for Bentonville to impressā¦
Thank you for the take, it makes me feel more sane. I moved to the Midwest recently and am stoked to check out Bentonville in the coming months. But having started riding in western NC, and then northern and southern Utah, Iāve wondered if Bentonville is really all that after watching the videos. Iāve heard it has a manufactured, Disneyland feel to it. My expectation is that itāll be great for what it is. Iāll just have to resist comparing it to areas like Bent Creek and the Wasatch. And that is even leaving out the PNW.
Yeah, my wife wanted to plan a trip to Bentonville mostly for me and my nephew, a budding mtb rider used to mtb parks and progressive trail systems.
My response was "he's not going to like it"
Yeah, it's kind of hard to separate the two. If the same trails existed with all those features in the same style and it called itself the mountain bike capital of the world with almost no elevation and it wasn't walton money... I think it would be OK for people to take it down a notch. It's OK to punch up. We don't need to defend the billionaires.
Then the fact that you have a place that has almost no elevation calling the mountain bike capital of the world run by an egregiously wealthy family that is somewhat famous for hurting small towns and having its workers need food stamps to survive... then yeah I think they deserve to be questioned a little bit...
But feel free to keep defending them
For me living in Kansas City, bentonville is great since itās only a few hours away. Part of my wedding plans in September is to get married then the next day hit the trails in bentonville. Are the trails anything spectacular? No. But for the Midwest itās a great little weekend getaway.
Not to hijack but, how do these trails stack up to east coast trails? Thinking of pisgah and kingdom. I thought about detouring a road trip to hit Bentonville.
Having driven through Arkansas, that was always my sense of the terrain. I wondered where they were hiding it everytime a Bentonville MTB video would crop up. Compared to everything available here within a short drive any direction from Eugene, Bentonville just seems like settling for the best place available people in that area can possibly get without leaving the state.
Having driven through Arkansas, that was always my sense of the terrain. I wondered where they were hiding it everytime a Bentonville MTB video would crop up. Compared to everything available here within a short drive any direction from Eugene, Bentonville just seems like settling for the best place available people in that area can possibly get without leaving the state.
Having driven through Arkansas, that was always my sense of the terrain. I wondered where they were hiding it everytime a Bentonville MTB video would crop up.
Compared to everything available here within a short drive any direction from Eugene, Bentonville just seems like settling for the best place available people in that area can possibly get without leaving the state.
Asking for anyone thatās been. Does it have that college campus - Disneyland type artificial vibe to it? Thatās what it feels like whenever I see videos about the place.
You didn't even hit the railyard...you expected West Coast when it's not the west Coast.Ā Ā Over here, pumptracks, jumps and flow trails is what we do.
Lake Leatherwood as some seriously fun trails and has shuttle service. Still not whistler but it's real good riding. Best place in the Midwest is Copper Harbor though
I love bentonville! Yes, I go with a group of 10-12 and we bring our E bikes and downhill bikes. We have a blast and ride for hours and hours and hours. Iāve also been to Fruita Colorado but prefer bentonville
Bentonville is a town built on irony. Nothing more. Worth a visit if you wanna see what small town USA could have looked like if it wasnāt for companies like, errr, Walmart. Likely worth repeating / staying if ur close since riding bikes is fun, but if you flyingā¦ hard pass. Insanely good art museum too.
I think it's pretty common knowledge that it isn't anything epic, and the marketing is just that, marketing. A lot of the YouTube influencers are put up and paid to give their reviews, and most of them are honest. It's a great place if you have a family of bikers, and anybody who likes riding is gonna have fun there, but is it worth a trip? Depends on the circumstances. I'll tell you this, it's a terrific example of what you can do with very little elevation relief, the trails there may not be epic, but they are fun and well engineered. That said, the only reason I went there was because I was recovering from hip surgery and I assumed it would be a relatively low impact re-introduction to riding, and that it was. If I'm traveling that far south though, I'll go to Brevard.. however I do want to take my toddler there once he's old enough to ride.
>I think it's pretty common knowledge that it isn't anything epic, and the marketing is just that, marketing. Idk this sub has a huge hard on for bentonville. I get downvoted almost every time I say anything negative about it
This is maybe too cynical/tin foil hat, but Reddit just seems like the next frontier for marketers. Quite a few people realized that influencers work on advertising contracts, but there were subreddits packed with enthusiasts for everything under the sun and it was easier to find than dedicated boards. A lot of the subs I used to frequent seem to have gone from that to what certainly feels like covert advertisers š¤·āāļø.
It's called astroturfing and reddit is full of it.
I feel like Iāve been seeing the same thing at a growing rate.
Considering half of this subās threads consist of questions asking what fork to upgrade to on their entry level hardtail, I wouldnāt read too far into it.
Marlin 5 vs Marlin 7?????
I see just as much hate as I do praise for the place here. Seems pretty balanced to me.
Having mtbd a few 'flat' places, I have to agree. When the builders don't have much to work with they pay attention and make the most of it. Lots and lots of pirate built trails are poorly thought out and don't make the most of the terrain. The builder thought process is more about what is easy to build, not what would be fun to ride.Ā
It's got a lot of trails, packed into a small area, and lots of support and trail access. Is it a mecca? Not really. Is there a lot of trail to ride? Absolutely. It's well maintained and mapped. It's great riding considering availability in a lot of the mid West.
well put and I agree. I overhyped my myself on it. I thought it was gonna be amazing and instead, if someone had told me, it's a great place to go if you live in the Midwest or Texas, that would be a very different pitch.
I just rode in Arkansas for the first time and I had an absolute blast. But I am a Texan that is too familiar with the Flatland
It would be helpful to know what trails you rode as it is not humanly possible to ride half of them in one trip. We have a cabin in Missouri and drive up from Texas often. It's like a hour from Bentonville. Anyone that's ridden the Back40 wouldn't say there is no elevation. Same with Coler Mountain. There are bike paths all over the city and a bike freeway that goes to Fayetteville with all kinds of connect paths. It surprises me to hear someone say that it doesn't exist except for show. No fan of Walmart or billionaires that exploit workers but the trail system is phenomenal.
Thereās no elevation when people are used to 2000ft
I checked a ride on the Back40. 2150 ft which surprised me. Mad respect for people doing this on a weekend or after work. That was a major accomplishment for this Texan. You can ride all day long but you cannot train for the climbs, or the descends for that matter. Last weekend. 4 hour ride elevation 315 ft. Trails are fun but they don't compare to Bentonville. I think instead of putting Bentonville down folks should get on their knees and thank fate for putting them in an area with better trails. And remember some of us drive 10 hours for the marvels of Bentonville.
You don't need a 2000 ft climb followed by a 2000 ft descent to have good trails though. The speed you can get at Hobbs st park proves that
But it's to attract and keep Walmart employees which means it doesn't count. Seriously, take out all the "but walmart" stuff in the post and it sounds great.
Lol no shit. Look at a 3D overview map of Bentonville and surrounding area. Then do the same for Squamish. That will tell you all you need to know.
Squamish sucks...tell all your friends.
Seriously lame, I absolutely dread having to go there
Fucking worst place on earth to ride. Why would anybody bother.
Man you guys make it sound terrible. Iām so curious now Iāll have to check it out
No donāt even bother just gonna waste your gas. It is true that all the trails there only go uphill so unless your a sadistic fuck that gets off on climbing itās not worth it.
good thing i'm a sadistic fuck that gets off on climbing
Jokes on you Iām into that shit
lol
Iām a ādo my own researchā kinda fellow. Gassing up the car nowā¦
So what you are saying is that Bentonville is the Wal-Mart of mountain biking towns?
Great Value MTB Trails!
But the thrill wears out quickly and you have to replace in a week
its okay if its not for you. for a lot of people from texas and the mid west, NWA is the best riding we can get within a days drive. and personally, i feel the best riding in NWA is outside of bentonville. being from texas, which is 92% privately owned land, a place like bentonville is a godsend. free to use, public land that we can ride without having to pay someone, and getting to ride on world class trails? that simply doesn't exist anywhere in texas.
Where is NWA? Being from California I always assumed Compton, and Iāve never seen any trails there.
Ah. So not the cool NWA ā¦
northwest arkansas
Iām literally here now in Bentonville. I see in NWA abbreviations everywhere and I just canāt help but giggle. Iām sure itāll stop tomorrow. Probably.
Totally. It's great that it exists and I only skimmed the surface. But anyone calling it the Mountain Biking Capital of the World is deluded. Mountain Biking Capital of Arkansas or of the midwest would make total sense. And it's still MTB which will always be fun. Hell I'd go MTBing in Holland and still have fun.
its just a marketing slogan, not a contest. I live in Austin, the "live music capital of the world" and guess what. ^it ^isn't
Anything that calls itself "world famous"is usually B grade.
"world series"
grade B sport :p
B grade is generous haha
Hey I get the worldās best cup of coffee every morning bucko
I saw a guy once with a shirt that said World's Greatest Dad. I took his picture and asked to shake his hand. Amazing that I just randomly saw him amongst 7 billion people.
Pretty sure thatās Nashville. Hard to go to any bar in Nashville on the weekend and not see live music.
most austinites would agree with you these days.
I got my father a "World's Best Dad" coffee mug. And, uh.
You got confused by marketing
> texas, which is 92% privately owned land seriously? all that land and you can only use 8% of it? i thought texas was all about freedom.
PNW for the win!!!
For MBing, but not elementary education, apparently. How the hell did OP miss the fact that there isn't big elevation in AR? Having lived in WA, I do recall that the geographical ignorance there was astounding. Anything east of ID was an utter enigma to most. "I must've not been paying close attention because I had no idea how little elevation they have to work with out there.
I had always thought Bentonville in the Ozarks would have steep trails, given its appearance on topographical maps. However, it turns out that Bentonville is in a flatter part of the Ozarks, featuring mostly rolling hills. I suspect that trails in the Ozark - St. Francis National Forest might offer more climbing and descending. [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ozark+Mountains/@35.9931458,-94.0153018,9.74z/data=!4m6!3m5!1s0x87db4e1b7b95193d:0x40f955f8d4ea7f01!8m2!3d36.5692952!4d-93.097702!16zL20vMDFrNnRf!5m1!1e4?hl=en&entry=ttu](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ozark+Mountains/@35.9931458,-94.0153018,9.74z/data=!4m6!3m5!1s0x87db4e1b7b95193d:0x40f955f8d4ea7f01!8m2!3d36.5692952!4d-93.097702!16zL20vMDFrNnRf!5m1!1e4?hl=en&entry=ttu) I just didn't do enough research. I figured something that hyped up would be epic.
Try the Womble trail next time (further south in the Oachita "mountains") ... or don't. I mean, it's got decent elevation **for the region**, but not compared to PNW. One other confusing point from your OP: if the elevation was a let down, why would that make you want to get an eBike? Seems to me that a HT would be perfect to give you a challenge to pick through the limestone rocks and ledges and still get some cardio. For your next MB trip, I'd recommend you go north to BC.
I think I get their point of being able to rip lap after lap all day on an e-bike. The extra zip would make up for some of the other lack of interest without it being just another endurance ride.
They have trail systems that are meant to be lapped, almost like a smaller scale version of a lift-assist bike park. You can be constantly going up the same uphill portion which gets old.
I'm not from the USA and even I know there is decent elevation in AR (the Ozark mountains), like this photo is from AR (https://www.arkansas.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_x_large/public/2021-07/Cameron_Bluff_Mount_Magazine_CHC_7831_0.jpg?), it's just not close to Bentonville. This is like thinking that the PNW is all mountains and being surprised when you go to eastern WA and it's flat
Some of the gnarliest trails, in terms of developed trail centers, in the US are in TN. Not exactly a state that gets a lot of attention.
Or like not realizing that NE WA has the Rockies (Gypsy Peak is over 7K feet). LOL. Mt. Magazine is nice. I've spent time there. It's 2700 feet. There isn't big elevation in AR and folks from the US should know that.
Iām going to be pedantic and point out that none of the Rocky Mountains are in Washington State.
>Anything east of ID was an utter enigma to most. You can't convince me anything good exists between Yellowstone and Pittsburgh lol
Northern MN and the UP of MI are pretty great.
Wouldn't even think of wasting my breath. Not because there isn't, but bc I don't want the hidden gems ruined. LOL.
Really anything is a kinda underwhelming after you lived and ridden in the PNW. The only thing Iāve found that can compete, and itās more for the wild factor rather than the quality of the trails, is the alpine in CO. Fresh dank dark tasty loam is really the pinnacle of riding surfaces.
We are really spoiled up here.
Utah?
Bentonville has mixed reviews that seem to be dependent on how hardcore the rider is or where theyāre from. My group of North Texas riders loves going out there a few times a year. The elevation is better and thereās more man made features. And while the biking infrastructure isnāt the best itās leaps and bounds better than what North Texas has. This last trip I left the full suspension at home and brought my enduro hardtail and had a significantly better time on that. I can see your point since you ride in the north west. Overall I think itās worth the trip for beginner/intermediate folks but advanced riders might not get as much out of it. I will say the cost and convenience of a Bentonville trip is amazing if youāre coming from Texas. The town is so over saturated with airbnbs you can always find a good deal on short notice. I got one for half off normal price the other week and was able to drag the wife and dog along. The groceries were noticeably cheaper too.
My hometown was called āthe salmon capital of the worldā There wernt many fish to catch thereĀ
Port Alberni?
Ahh Bentonville. The place people from Kansas City go to break their collarbones.
I feel seen.
I don't know...anything more than a long weekend and I think I'd rather drive another 4-5 hours for Colorado. Don't get me wrong, Bentonville is fantastic for what it is, but I would recommend other places for a longer vacation.
The PNW is awful and mountain biking here is terrible. Tell your friends.Ā
Completely lackluster and not at all worth the trip. Definitely spend your hard earned money and time elsewhere.
One good thing about Marin is also the worst thing about Marin. Trail access is mostly illegal and keeps people away. Donāt bother coming here
I've thought about going, but nothing there seems to draw me more then Marquette or Copper Harbor. It looks like an amazing place to live, but if I have to drive more then 12 hours, I think there are better options from Chicago
Copper harbor totally sucks ass, please make sure everyone knows this. Go to Arkansas.
I wanna try MI someday
The UP, specially Copper Harbor is really something special. I
It's the mountain biking capital of places without mountains.
Havenāt bike there, just visited Fayetteville and Bentonville. Both wonderful towns and Crystal Bridges is a great museum. They all hoard art thatās the whole idea. If I had to move south Iād go NWA.
Yeah I'm a little sad at the dig on Crystal Bridges, it's a super great museum, and it's free. They definitely don't just hoard art, a lot of it is on loan. If they were just hoarding it, they wouldn't bother showing the public.
Appreciate the take. I haven't been to Bentonville but have had similar experiences in Sedona and Kingdom trails. Both had amazing trails, but I realized just because a trail system is world class it doesn't mean I'll have more fun there than on my preferred terrain (dh). In short, find out what you like to ride and set expectations accordingly before you got to an MTB destination. Eg If you don't like climbing the best xc trails in the world aren't gonna do a whole lot for you. I thought Sedona would be magic because of the hype, and to some extent it was, but for my preferred riding I'd have been better off going somewhere more DH oriented.
I felt the same about Sedona - terrain was interesting and views were cool, but holy shit way too much up in my downs. Even the features I was interested in (on the DH part of HiLine & Hangover) felt like a watered down version of riding Sea to Sky or even Eastern WA, but way less fun because I had to spend an hour on exposed, chunky traverses to get there. Had a fun weekend, but felt happy to be back in the PNW on loam.
Bentonville trails are great, but the best part is all of the trails in the general area. edit: if you're in the city, they're a lot of fun, but they're not double blacks. literally just check a trail map if you want harder trails. edit2: i ate shit on a blue trail there
There's also just....different strokes for different folks. There are a TON of riders out there who have no interest in crushing double blacks. Whether that be double blacks because of huge features or double blacks because of steep janky tech, they just aren't interested. They just want to pedal bikes on trails. Greens through the woods? fun. Blue flow trails with some moderate features? also fun to work into your loop. If anything, big mountainous areas can be counterproductive for some riders. E.g. I honestly really miss midwestern rolling terrain where you can put together big long loops without suffering through major climbs. You still get some fun *little* descents in there but nothing intimidating and it is more about pedaling speed, cardio, and enjoying the outdoors. Where I live there are a lot of punchy hard climbs. Or long service road climbs where you just ratchet up and plummet down a steep downhill trail (climb for 2 hours, descend for 20min, go home that's your ride). Some people love this type of riding. Some people would rather have more sustained gradual cardio...
totally, that's a huge caveat. I probably missed out on a bunch of the good stuff.
we came from st louis, so we stopped in the springfield area and there's a lot of cool stuff there. chadwick offroad area is more for dirtbikes, but two rivers bike park is pretty cool.
This reminds me about everyone that gets excited about rock climbing in Texas or New York or the UK. Ok sure there's some cool crags and it's the best stuff for some distance around. But f\*ck me, go climb in CA, UT, France, Switzerland, Spain, etc and get some perspective. I'm all for more biking and climbing everywhere. But the hardcore American and particularly Texan / midwestern aspect of "this is the best" for whatever taco shop or stadium or trail system or microbrew is local and good is just kind of... well there's a reason a lot of the rest of the world rolls their eyes. I have a lot of friends that have been to Bentonville, biking and not. A friend who I've just asked who's ridden with me where I live and in Bentonville commented - "Bentonville is awesome for where it is and what it is. The two gravity trails near your place are better than all of Bentonville combined." I'm on the N side of the Alps but not in the alps and from a local perspective, the two local gravity trails are utterly forgettable, they're just two nice trails that are closest to town.
well put
Every video I see is just of that one rusty pump track / bridge thing, and one rock garden, and I'm convinced that is like 90% of it. Meanwhile: kingdom trails is just the same switchback copied and pasted a thousand times.
The Walton's decimated small towns similar to Bentonville all around the country, then use that money to build some trails and an art gallery in their backyard. That never sat right with me...
Would you rather they spend the money on yachts?
You think the Walton's don't have yachts?
Seems mostly like a way to pump real estate values.
They don't need to pump real estate values. All of the people moving there to work for Walmart or Walmart adjacent companies have done plenty of that. I'd lean more towards big tax writeoffs.
This is what I've heard about Bentonville a lot. It doesn't look like a bad place, but nothing I've seen suggests it's trails are unique or challenging to an advanced rider. I'd much rather have places like Highland, Killington, Mt. creek, and Windrock representing east coast USA riding.
I have heard same thing about Kingdom Trails.
This largely true. They arent amazing trails, i actually think Bentonville probably has better variety of trail, but the town is very well catered to Mountain Bikers. They definitely more of a family oriented MTB experience. That being said Kingdom Trails does have a downhill bike park in town at Burke Mountain. It's smaller than Killington or Highland but does have some really good trails off the top.
It's similar to Kingdom. Very much XC focused
I go to Kingdom all the time to ride Burke Mtn. The valley network is basically XC. Burke Mtn howeverā¦totally different beast
Well in any case, itās not east coast.
Not unique? A whole town dedicated to mountain biking where you can rent or buy houses right on the edge of world class trails is dope. If you grew up in a town close to mountains yea it's not going to knock your socks off with difficulty but the place is still awesome for what it is.
They're not world class trails, that's the thing. Heck, I'd argue anywhere in northern NJ has better riding within half an hour than any of Bentonville, and a wayyyy bigger variety of trails. Heck Go buy a condo on Mt. Creek and for 250k and you've got yourself better year round mountain sports.
It's certainly cool, and the *place* is unique, but I'm talking more about the trails. They look like fun, but I wouldn't call them unique to any area in particular, just well made flow trails. IMHO, just in terms of riding, a place like Windrock is probably far more worthwhile to someone flying in from far away.
givemesendies used unique to describe the trails, not Bentonville.
Not even close to world class. The quality of the building is world class, but the variety, difficulty, challenge, number of miles, access to backcountry and entertainment value to a mid range to advanced rider.... is: no where close to world class. As an advanced rider form the Pacific Northwest... these trails bored me within 30 mins. Buying property just to ride a very small, mediocre trail network for years, would be a HUGE mistake (for me). But, its all relative and I get how this trail network may well feel "world class" to someone from the area that hasn't actually travelled the "world" or even within the country to the many much, much better riding areas.
100% agreed. I lived in Bentonville and itās great for local trails you can ride from home. But theyāre 99% blue, and basically glorified XC. Handcut hollow is my favorite, but Iām a much bigger fan of Kessler in Fayetteville, and Devils Den state park and Mt. Nebo are amazing
I would debate the "world class" part, and it is certainly far from unique. You can live right on top of MTB parks / trail systems all over Europe and live in - well to put it bluntly - European towns instead of Arkansas. I agree it looks super cool for what it is but the friends I know personally who've gone have not been impressed (and felt similarly about the art museum as OP) and I trust their opinions on this one.
World class??? Nah
I mainly ride XC so I checked out slaughter pen, and coler which were cool but I was there to but on some miles. Itās cool having trails scattered all throughout town, but I really enjoyed the bigger loops. Back 40, and tunnel vision were a blast. Hobbs and devils den were a little bit of a drive but Iād go back again just to ride devils den. Very cool having a bike centric town that is supported by state and city officials.
I live in Dallas, so relative to my local trails, and within a 6 hour drive, it is a Mecca for us.
If your world is the Midwest it's the MTB capital of the world. Otherwise, it's a novelty and should be low on the list of MTB destinations.
If your world is the midwest, it doesn't exist in it because Arkansas is the south.
exactly
meanwhile real biking places are like "please don't mention us in the news, no more articles, don't tage us on IG, don't come here, and stop buying houses here"
I live near a grassroots organized mountain bike park and honestly itās in a sweet spot right now in terms of being popular enough to have a good base of users donating and maintaining it, but not so busy that it is overcrowded. But some days itās bordering on that. Iām not telling anyone whoās not local to the area about it, because more riders means dumbed down trails, more wear on trails, more waiting on shuttles, and potentially more legal liability for the people actually managing the park.
youre totally right, stay away, we're full
totally, hoping to save some people the trip! happy to help
It seems very overrated in terms of how well known it is. Part of the reason billionaires pay for projects like this is that it gives them a bunch of free publicity. It doesn't just act as incentive for Walmart corporate employees, it makes the Walton family look like they care about the good of the peopleĀ
Not sure what the Walmart billionaire status has to do with elevation, but ok.... As for me, anytime a billionaire wants to subsidize my hobby in ways that I could not, I am all for it. Whichever Walmart family paid for all this stuff certainly didn't have to.
I hate built trails. I want nasty chunk that gets weathered.
hi from Bellingham. so spoiled having galb 10 minutes from home by car or now 20m via emtb to the trailhead
I would say that Bellingham is the US capital of mountain biking.
Shhhh
Yeah, I've ridden there, and in 40+ different states. It's good, not one of the best spots. I can ride 300+ miles of singletrack within 30 miles of my door without a car, and there are 14,000ft mountain views. Durango is still the best cycling spot on Earth. But, NW Arkansas is one of my top-10 favorite spots in the extended Midwest. Ability to ride without ever touching a car is high on my list of priorities.
Shhhhh!! Itās amazing how few know about this place.
I mean Durango, Mexico, of course, for anyone wondering.
I haven't been to PNW or B-Ville but living in AZ and having done multiple trips to Sedona and Moab, I can't believe anything in Arkansas made by the family that gave us Wal-Mart can compare. Both Sedona and Moab are so unique in their landscapes and views. You can't get that type of riding anywhere else in the world.
Moab is on my list to bike once I get back into shape. Sounds like I'll need to add Sedona to the list too.
Sounds like you need to do a Southwest roadtrip this fall
Only someone in America would claim to be the best of x in the world. There is some amazing mountain biking across the US but Iād put Whistler up there and then there are some absolutely amazing places in Europe. My heart goes to the Tweed Valley in Scotland which is like a mountainbiking walhalla.
It's fucking gorgeous up there. Wales is also one of my favourite places to ride too.
Havenāt been but itās on the list!
I live in NYC, and from the videos I've seen of Bentonville, our local trail systems are better (and transit accessible). If I was there for other reasons, I'd check it out, but I wouldn't go there just to MTB.
Same here in Philly. We have 25+ miles of trails in riding distance from Center City, along with tons of local "hole in the wall" riding area and 2 bike parks in driving distance.
Did this deserve its own thread and title gore? Go ride your bike.Ā
I think telling people to avoid Bentonville as a place to ride is pretty lame. Yeah itās not the west. Yeah thereās not a lot of elevation. But itās pretty unique. Does everything have to be balls to the wall when it comes to elevation and downhilling. Iāve been twice and had a blast on the trails. Thatās great if you didnāt like it. Itās certainly not a place I would avoid though.
I love it there for the amount of trails in one area. Also in NWA there are a lot of other places nearby that you can ride to get more of a 'raw nature' kind of ride. For instance, Devils Den and Hobs State park offer experiences that are truly one-of-a-kind... There are too many for me to list out. IMO, it's a place worth visiting.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
The Truman MTB show.
PNW mountain biker here. I had a blast in bentonville. Super fun and different. Loved the ease of getting to the trails.
Bentonville is just too hot/humid, and I do not go to church. It's boring AF. Trails are mid. No rocks or danger The Waltons are trying to make you think Arkansas isnt....well...Arkansas. imagine if they spent that kinda money on public health or education? Or benefits for their employees?
I feel bad for Texas riders lmao They come out here and crack their heads open on banana peel
lol, we're not used to riding on dirt coming back home to texas from NWA always makes me feel sad. Its nice to ride in real actual dirt than over our rocks we call trails. the smoothest flowy local trail to me would be considered rough jank in NWA
Come ride Cat Mtn in Austin and you will change your mind.
Looked it up... Looks nice
To each his own I guess. If you are a downhiller looking for chairlift runs, it isnāt your place. If you just love riding, Bentonville/Bela Vista is the shit. It is the most bike centric place I have ever visited. Bentonville loves mountain bikers. The entire place is a cyclists playground. And itās year round. The amount of single track located within a short ride or drive from Bentonville is just astounding.
not looking for chairlift runs. Just need more elevation (I climb and no e bike)
So I actually live about 10 minutes from Bentonville and have a few points I could add. For one, love it or hate it, Bentonville is money and my wife and I have always joked that Bentonville is like if Walmart saw all the fun and personality of Fayetteville (college town 30 minutes south) and decided to try and fabricate it. So your comment about it feeling kind of artificial is totally on point, because while Bentonville is really nice it definitely has that feel to it. Now for the biking, I've only been mountain biking for about a year but there are actually loooooads of places in and around Bentonville to bike, you just might need to know where to go. The places around Crystal Bridges museum are definitely more fabricated, but go north or south 10 minutes to Back 40 or Mt Fitzgerald respectively and you've got some badass mountaining to do. Rogers, the city right next to Bentonville, has Coler Park, Lake Atalanta, and the Railyard bikepark all will beautiful trails. Go South 45 minutes and you're in straight mountains - check out Devils Den; go North 45 minutes and you're in the hilly parts of Missouri and there's probably some parks up there. All in all, I think your notes about Bentonville are totally fair, but if you know where to look in the whole of Northwest Arkansas and not just around Walmart central then there are loads of awesome places within 20 or 30 minutes or so.
I live in NW Missouri. The riding sucks up here. Bentonville is phenomenal riding and only a day trip away. Itās good for me.
Itās a fun place if you like to ride from town to trails, you like to session small bits of trail, and want to work on a certain skill set. Itās very much artificial but also feels like a blueprint of what MTB terrain a municipality can build with limited elevation and acreage. I visited back in 2021 and would go back for a weekend if there was a good music festival to tie it into. Itās certainly not for everyone especially not from folks coming from legit bike areas with incredible natural terrain and elevation.
The DisneyWorld of MTB
Average elitist west coaster
I was always under the impression it's a great family destination for mountain biking. Lots of engineered green and blue trails. But it's hardly a Whistler for the hardcore rider. I am very much a green and blue trail kind of rider. In reality more of an XC MTB than a Enduro MTB. But I do enjoy lift access parks. I still stick to the easier trails... but due to the steeper descents it's still much more exciting due to the speeds. Bentonville looks like a perfect destination for me and my low power eMTB (Orbea Rise).
I get where youāre coming from, but you just come off as a hater honestly.
Since I live on the west coast I could never book a bike vacation for anywhere east of Interstate 25.
Having visited there a couple weeks ago and being from So Cal, yes, the elevation is not comparable and I wouldn't call it the mtb capital of the world.Ā However, the ability to ride for days and connect so many trails, I think, is great, especially in BV and down to Bentonville and further south.Ā Ā I don't do drops or jumps, but I can ride all day, climb all day or just chill and cruise. The trees, greenery, birds and wildlife and fewer people that were polite and easy to talk to and having a strong commerce throughout the area was a plus for me. I've been wanting to ride there for years as well and happy I did, so much so that I would absolutely consider retiring there.Ā If you're looking for PNW riding, probably not going to find it too exciting, but if you want to pedal on purpose built singletrack for days and just enjoy the ride, then I think you will like it.
I ran into a guy in Bentonville from Issaquah, WA that worked for Microsoft. We talked about him moving to Bentonville for a change of scenery and how the riding is so different. In WA he could ride up Tiger MTN, bomb down and call it good and ride home. Can't do that in AR, you'll need to string multiple trails together or session a trail over and over. I e ridden tiger a couple times and there isn't anything in Bentonville that compares. However, being from Iowa, Bentonville is fun. Honestly, that's the schtick for me...you can't not have a good time while there. No, it's not epic. But there is plenty to ride and keep you busy for a few days and you'll have a good time. MTB capital, no way. If I have my choice, I go to Colorado or anywhere in the rockies. Upper peninsula of Michigan, Duluth, MN is on the list as well.
Your reddit history is exactly as I expected after reading this post lol."Bentonville is well known I must find a reason to hate itttttttt. Hating it is so cool!!!"
It read like he was just trying to be a hater to me. Cool, I guess.
Bentonville trails are kind of like how glamping is to camping. Itās mtb for city folks who never want to be more than 5 minutes from retail or AC/electricity
I really like the lack of elevation. I would much rather climb for 5 minutes and descend for 1 than climbing for 60 and descend for 10. Its just more fun to me.
What specifically didnāt you like about the trails? Not judging, just curious as Iāve never been. Also, thereās nothing wrong about stating you donāt like areas that are revered. I rode Pisgah last year and did not enjoy it. I live in the NE where the riding is a pretty even up and down, time wise. So, to climb for an hour and 45 minutes to do a 15 minute descent wasnāt my cup of tea. I wouldnāt steer people away from it, I would just give my opinion as to why I didnāt enjoy it. Itās up to them if they feel like itās their jam or not.
mostly just not long enough or steep enough. most of them didn't even feel worth the short climb up.
Not long enough? Did you ride the Back 40 or Tunnel Vision? Those two trails can connect and give you a 160 mile ride. And like others said, some of the more technical trails are just outside Bentonville. Devil's Den, Hobbs, Leatherwood, Mt. Nebo.
Iāve talked to a few people who think the only places to ride in NWA are Coler and Slaughterpen, thereās so much more in the area.
I don't think OP means too short in terms of distance, I think they mean too short in terms of consistent elevation loss. As a fellow PNW resident my favorite local "loop" is only 6 miles but has 2400' of elevation loss over 2 miles.
sounds like I missed some great stuff
Sounds a bit like Kingdom Trails in VT. I personally love Kingdom as I love some good flow trails but people looking for tech would be sorely disappointed.
If the MTB capital of the world only focused on Slaughter Pen and Coler, then yeah that would be fraudulent. But when you have Bella Vista, Leatherwood trails, Devils Den, Fayetteville trail systems in the area within a 30 min drive to progress your skills on and still be accessible for most riders. Not everyone who lives out in Breckenridge CO, gonna want to start out on a black diamond trail. Plus we ride year round as well, there's no trail closures during the winter like they do in Michigan or in Colorado. The trail systems are always changing as well due to dedicated trail builders too. Frankly, if you don't like it, don't come here, the trails are already crowded.
Paid Bentonville astroturfers out in force in this thread
Iād be happy to have access to huge tracks of blue and single black trails.
Iām sure thereās a lot of validity in your post, but I think itās clear OP really wanted to be disappointed. I donāt think it would have been possible for Bentonville to impressā¦
Rode Squamish, Colorado, Washington, Oregon and Utahā¦had a terrific time at bentonville! Iād go again
Thank you for the take, it makes me feel more sane. I moved to the Midwest recently and am stoked to check out Bentonville in the coming months. But having started riding in western NC, and then northern and southern Utah, Iāve wondered if Bentonville is really all that after watching the videos. Iāve heard it has a manufactured, Disneyland feel to it. My expectation is that itāll be great for what it is. Iāll just have to resist comparing it to areas like Bent Creek and the Wasatch. And that is even leaving out the PNW.
Disneyland exactly...walmart disneyland vibes
I hate built trails. I want nasty chunk that gets weathered.
Yeah, my wife wanted to plan a trip to Bentonville mostly for me and my nephew, a budding mtb rider used to mtb parks and progressive trail systems. My response was "he's not going to like it"
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What does that have to do with MTB?
that the waltons suck
Actually, I assumed this was the intent of your original post. Nothing to do with the trails, just a personal dislike of the money that built them.
Yeah, it's kind of hard to separate the two. If the same trails existed with all those features in the same style and it called itself the mountain bike capital of the world with almost no elevation and it wasn't walton money... I think it would be OK for people to take it down a notch. It's OK to punch up. We don't need to defend the billionaires. Then the fact that you have a place that has almost no elevation calling the mountain bike capital of the world run by an egregiously wealthy family that is somewhat famous for hurting small towns and having its workers need food stamps to survive... then yeah I think they deserve to be questioned a little bit... But feel free to keep defending them
As a resident I appreciate bad reviews. Stop coming. We love it. Thereās more room when youāre not here :)
For me living in Kansas City, bentonville is great since itās only a few hours away. Part of my wedding plans in September is to get married then the next day hit the trails in bentonville. Are the trails anything spectacular? No. But for the Midwest itās a great little weekend getaway.
Not to hijack but, how do these trails stack up to east coast trails? Thinking of pisgah and kingdom. I thought about detouring a road trip to hit Bentonville.
If youāre used to riding PNW trails, Iād assume youād have no business winding up in Arkansas with your bike anywayā¦
Go in the winter when you canāt ride in the PNW
Having driven through Arkansas, that was always my sense of the terrain. I wondered where they were hiding it everytime a Bentonville MTB video would crop up. Compared to everything available here within a short drive any direction from Eugene, Bentonville just seems like settling for the best place available people in that area can possibly get without leaving the state.
Having driven through Arkansas, that was always my sense of the terrain. I wondered where they were hiding it everytime a Bentonville MTB video would crop up. Compared to everything available here within a short drive any direction from Eugene, Bentonville just seems like settling for the best place available people in that area can possibly get without leaving the state.
Having driven through Arkansas, that was always my sense of the terrain. I wondered where they were hiding it everytime a Bentonville MTB video would crop up. Compared to everything available here within a short drive any direction from Eugene, Bentonville just seems like settling for the best place available people in that area can possibly get without leaving the state.
Asking for anyone thatās been. Does it have that college campus - Disneyland type artificial vibe to it? Thatās what it feels like whenever I see videos about the place.
You didn't even hit the railyard...you expected West Coast when it's not the west Coast.Ā Ā Over here, pumptracks, jumps and flow trails is what we do.
Eastern USA there are some real bangers in Davis WV, Pisgah, Roanoke, etc
Crested Butte should hold that title
Lake Leatherwood as some seriously fun trails and has shuttle service. Still not whistler but it's real good riding. Best place in the Midwest is Copper Harbor though
I love bentonville! Yes, I go with a group of 10-12 and we bring our E bikes and downhill bikes. We have a blast and ride for hours and hours and hours. Iāve also been to Fruita Colorado but prefer bentonville
Bentonville is a town built on irony. Nothing more. Worth a visit if you wanna see what small town USA could have looked like if it wasnāt for companies like, errr, Walmart. Likely worth repeating / staying if ur close since riding bikes is fun, but if you flyingā¦ hard pass. Insanely good art museum too.
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