“You could say, ‘Do you really need a lift for 1,000 vert? Or do you really need a lift for 2,000 vert?’ There’s someone out there somewhere who’s going to climb all day long, and this may not be for them.”
That’s J. Scott King, Chief Experience Officer for the Runway Group in Northwest Arkansas, speaking about the new Oz Trails Bike Park coming to the hills between Bentonville and Bella Vista. When we first covered the press release announcement about the bike park, many readers asked, “Why do you need a bike park for less than 300 vertical feet?” Well, King was ready with an answer.
Many mountain bikers won’t want to ride a chairlift regardless of how tall the bike park is. Oz Trails Bike Park isn’t for them. Instead, it’s for the downhillers who want to ride chairs to the top and rip back down over big jumps, through flowing berms, and gnarly tech trails.
Making the most of 300 vertical feet
I verified the planned vertical footage with King: the descents will be just over 300 vertical feet, give or take, depending on how much the respective trail undulates.
To make the most of this limited elevation, the Runway Group hired “the best bike park builders in the world”: Gravity Logic.
“[Gravity Logic] looked at it during the summer when the leaves were on, and it’s really hard to see the property. And they said, ‘Yeah, this has definitely got potential,'” said Gary Vernon, Director of Outdoor Recreation and Trail Innovation for the Runway Group. “It’s a really interesting piece of property—it’s got rock bluffs, it’s got all kinds of creative terrain to make something on.
“What’s really been exciting over this past winter is that when the Gravity Logic team has been on the ground several times for several weeks, they get more excited every time they come and look at it. So that’s really validated that we’re doing something that’s going to be successful.”
Most downhill riders don’t rip thousands of feet of descent in one shot anyway
“If you look at a bike park — let’s just take Whistler as an example, or Trestle — you end up with these 300- to 500-foot chunks, where you stop and you catch your breath,” said King. “I heard a term when we were at Killington recently where the manager said, ‘Yeah, we build these eddy out zones.’ So it’s like you’re in a kayak, and you eddy out for a minute before you get back into whitewater.
“They intentionally build these little spots where you take a break before you do another 300 feet. So you’re kind of naturally doing the bike park in a similar chunk anyway. For us, the difference is, there won’t be an eddy out zone. You just get back on the lift and do another lap.”
King is correct that most downhillers ride this way — but definitely not all. Plenty of riders will rip 2,000 or 3,000 vert top-to-bottom in one shot, but it takes serious fitness to do so.
Focusing on high-quality trail building
“We believe [our bike park] is going to be best-in-class because of the fact that we’re working with the world’s best bike park designer and builder, Gravity Logic, to make sure every foot of vert and every foot linear is going to be tuned and maximized for its purposes,” said King.
Gravity Logic is working with Rock Solid Trail Contracting to build about 20 miles of trails in the Oz Trails Bike Park. The mileage will include about 17-20 distinct trails, depending on how many connectors are built between the main runs.
The trails will be 75% beginner and intermediate (green and blue), and 25% advanced and expert (black and double black). “The park will be built with progression in mind, just like the whole area of Bentonville is built around progression,” said King. “So the idea would be, some friends could go out and ride a blue jump trail, and somebody who’s on a blue jump trail [for the first time] would feel comfortable and safe and able to progress and learn, but an expert could ride it with them as well and also have a good time.”
The first trail under construction is a black jump trail with 22 features ranging from tabletops to shark fins, hips, drops, and more. While riders can expect plenty of big A-Line-style jumps, they’re also planning to build downhill trails of all varieties, including “a bunch of rake-and-ride raw,” according to Vernon.
“We’re just not cutting singletrack everywhere. We’re not just doing a bunch of flow trail. We’re doing […] all types of tread surfaces.”
Not skimping on the lift
Runway debated whether or not to buy a slow, fixed-grip chairlift or a highspeed detachable lift, and they opted to purchase a highspeed detachable quad from Leitner-Poma. The lift will transport riders to the top in about three minutes.
The lift will be equipped with tray-style bike racks, which are much easier to load than hanging-style racks. They’re also compatible with e-bikes.
Runway did not disclose the cost of the lift or the bike park development. However, modern detachable chairlifts cost millions to build. Exactly how many millions depends on the length of the lift. A 20-mile bike park from builders like Gravity Logic and Rock Solid likely also costs millions of dollars.
When asked about funding, King clarified that “Oz Trails Bike Park is a private investment of Runway Group.” They did not receive any grant funds from any outside entities.
It has to be a viable business
Unlike some investments the Waltons have made in mountain bike infrastructure in Northwest Arkansas through their various non-profits and business entities, King said that the Oz Trails Bike Park would have to “be a business that actually sustains itself.”
“Trail on the ground is not the same as a bike park that can run as a business, pay for itself, sustain itself in a community, and do all of those things as well,” he continued.
To ensure the Park’s success, Runway did their due diligence to determine the total addressable market, how much the operations would cost, and more. They spent many months validating the numbers and decided that, yes, the multi-million dollar investment would result in a viable long-term business.
The Oz Trails Bike Park will be embedded in the southern end of the Little Sugar Trail System, just northwest of the junction of I-94 and US-71. While mountain bikers will be able to ride to the bike park on singletrack if they so choose, all riders accessing the bike park trails will need to pay for a ticket, whether or not they’re riding the lift. According to King and Vernon, they’re still working out the details surrounding the self-shuttle option (aka pedaling to the top), but there will likely be a discounted ticket option available for those who want to pedal instead of ride a lift.
Projected opening in 2026
The Oz Trails Bike Park is projected to open in 2026 with the completed chairlift, bike park trails, and Oz Trails HQ building, which will provide full-service dining facilities. A comprehensive bike shop and rental center and a community plaza with gathering spaces are also planned for the base area.
As for whether or not a chairlift is worth it for 300 vertical feet?
“At the end of the day, we’re making the argument [that it’s worth it], and we’re never going to win the argument rhetorically,” said King. “The way [we’re] going to win the argument? You come and ride it.”
3 Comments
23 minutes ago
0 minutes ago
Also, I'd say that we give Minnesota its fair shake here on Singletracks. In fact, Dreamland in Duluth was awarderd the "best lift-served trail" of 2024: https://www.singletracks.com/mtb-trails/9-of-the-best-mountain-bike-trails-that-opened-in-the-usa-in-2024/
28 minutes ago
In a podcast conversation with Sean Leader, the founder of Windrock bike park, last year, he said, "There's room for bike parks in every town, and you put a shuttle trail up somewhere, people are going to ride it, whether it's a one minute shuttle or a 10 minute shuttle. If somebody has opportunity to not pedal up a hill, they're going to take it." I seem to remember him saying they set up a shuttle service for an event at a trail that only had like 200ft vert, and people were lining up for it all day long. And a chairlift has the potential to be much faster than a vehicle-based shuttle with little to no waiting to go back up!