Bike School Bentonville logo with orange and black.

School is in session – Bike School, that is! OZ Trails recently welcomed Bike School Bentonville to join Visit Bentonville’s “A New American Town Podcast” sponsored by OZ Trails to get the scoop on their 2023 programming. Whether you’re looking for an extracurricular activity for your younger student, your older student dreams of racing on the world stage, or you’re an adult who needs a few lessons or a trail guide, there’s something for everyone at Bike School Bentonville.

Kyla Templeton and Nat Ross started Bike School Bentonville in 2021 as a community that creates progressive year-round bike skills programming and coach education centered on long-term wellness and development of riders and coaches into athletes and confident individuals.

For kids ages 7-13, Bike School Bentonville offers group classes (Trail Kids), private lessons, spring break and summer camps.

Child riding a mountain bike on a skinny wooden feature

Photo courtesy of Bike School Bentonville

Students in the Trail Kids program will focus on having fun, meeting new friends, and building confidence on single track trails. There is mixed-gender coaching for these groups that meet twice per week. Students will experience significant progression throughout the course of Trail Kids and be itching to get back on the trails!

Spring Break and Summer Camps presented by OZ Trails

Bike School caters to many states’ varying spring breaks, ensuring there’s always a good time to come visit and have fun on your bike. Spring Break Camps are two days on the following dates and meet from from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.

  • March 13-14
  • March 20-21
  • March 22-23
  • March 27-28
  • April 3-4
  • April 10-11

Summer camps are the perfect way 5-day summer camps meet from from 9 a.m.-12 p.m.

  • June 5-9 
  • June 12-16
  • June 19-23
  • July 10-14
  • July 17-21
  • July 24-28

3 Day Summer Camps meet from from 9 a.m.-12 p.m.

  • May 31 – June 2
  • July 5 – 7

 

Group of teenagers stand in front of the "National Championship" banner at a bike race.

Photo courtesy of Bike School Bentonville

 

Group of student mountain bikers.

Bike School Bentonville Community Race Team. You don’t have to be a racer to enjoy this group! Photo courtesy of Bike School Bentonville.

For teens, Bike School Bentonville offers private lessons and coaching, a community race team, and The Academy race team.

  • The community race team is for kids aged 11-17 years old. This focuses on building a culture around riding and racing mountain bikes. Contrary to the name “race team,” participants are not required to race. Two sessions are offered: winter (December-February Saturdays) and spring (March-May Mondays and Thursdays). The spring session is more centered around cross-training, nutrition, goal-driven training, and racing.
  • The Academy is Bike School Bentonville’s coached performance development racing team. Its whole-person philosophy and focus is on long-term athlete development, education, developing good character, and avoiding burnout. Athletes in this program are expected to travel to races of varying disciplines throughout the region.

For adults, Bike School Bentonville offers a four-week beginner/intermediate class (beginning in March 2023), private lessons, coaching, and guide services. Don’t miss a weekly tour of Slaughter Pen trails on Saturdays at 10 a.m. presented by Visit Bentonville!

Collage of photos of bike racers

OZ Trails Town Series presented by Bike School Bentonville. If you don’t want to race, consider coming to spectate!

The OZ Trails Town Series presented by Bike School Bentonville returns to Bentonville this spring for their fourth season! This family-friendly event is a 5-week short track mountain bike race series starting on Thursday, March 30. Riders of all race experience are welcome and encouraged to participate – young kids with a strider or pedal bike, junior riders, NICA Student Athletes, Women’s A, B, C and Men’s A, B & C riders/racers. There will also be an E-bike category again this year! This event is open to all – not just for Bike School students. If you’re not feeling ready to race, you’ll want to still come and spectate alongside the Bentonville community on the sidelines! Learn more about this event here.

If you want to get involved with Bike School Bentonville as a student, coach, or volunteer, contact them on this page.

 

OZ Trails community,

When I think about where this started, trail builders like Dave Renko, Nathan Woodruff, and Don West from the early days come to mind. They strengthened my belief in the power of trails and in Arkansas becoming one of the great places in the world to ride. It started simply: a few hand-built trails, a lot of conviction, and a community willing to put in the effort to create something special.

OZ Trails was never just about bikes. It was about building a way of life around the outdoors — a place where families spend more time together, where people find clarity away from screens, and where visitors feel welcome. It proves that something world class can still feel local, personal, and rooted in the land.

For years, we dreamed about this park. We walked the land, studied what it could become, and kept coming back to the same idea: Northwest Arkansas deserved a bike park that matched the ambition of this community.

Now, we’ve built it.

OZ Trails Bike Park is where so much of that work comes together. It was created with trail builders who treat their work like a craft, supported by bike patrol so riders can feel confident, and shaped by a team that cares about the experience from the moment you arrive. I've been riding the park throughout development, and I finish every ride believing it will change how people progress and connect with each other.

Founding Membership is an invitation to the people who get it — the riders who know what time on trail does for you: clearing your head, building confidence, finding your people, and feeling a sense of pride in the place you ride. We want you here from day one. Membership is more than access. It helps set the tone for what this park becomes. The first members should be people who care about the culture, who welcome others in, and who believe this place can keep growing into something truly special.

As a father, I often think about watching my kids progress on these trails — starting on green, moving to blue, and then deciding they’re ready for black. It’s part of why we built this place the way we did — so families can show up, everyone has something to ride, and they can keep building the skills to take the next step.

Alongside Founding Membership, we’re also launching a Founding Family Membership for those who want to share this with the people they love.

Our Founding Memberships open today.

Come ride it. This place was built for you.

PURCHASE FOUNDING MEMBERSHIP

Upcoming Events

OZ, LOCAL, AND REGIONAL

Weekend Warm Up

March 7, 2025 - November 7, 2025

Level 2 Mountain Biking Fundamentals

11/1/2025, 11/22/2025

Mountain Biking: Intro to Drops

November 1, 2025

BVL Cyclocross Training Series

October 26, 2025 - November 16, 2025

Coler MTB Youth Class

September 10, 2025 - November 26, 2025

Purple Heart Gravel Ride

November 8, 2025

Arkansas Enduro Series presented by Monster Energy

November 21, 2025 - November 23, 2025

EXPLORE ALL EVENTS

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