BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Editor's Note: The video attached is from the 2021 Bike Fest in Bentonville.
Bentonville Bike Fest has announced the 2022 festival, which will feature an expanded expo, events, workshops, and a world record attempt by one of the world's best trials cyclists.
The 2022 Bentonville Bike Fest will take place June 17-19 at the Mama Bear Pump Track in Bentonville.
This year's festival will feature an expanded roster of exhibitors where attendees can test some of the newest bikes on the market and buy cycling gear. All entertainment and venue access to the events is free.
This year's competitions and events include:
- Enduro
- BMX Flatland Competition
- All American Sprint Race
- A Gravel Event
- A new Hill Climb Challenge
- Kid's Enduro
- Women Shred
- Strider Cup
- Style it Up Workshops, where riders can learn from Red Bull Rampage athletes at Coler Mountain Bike Preserve.
"A highlight of this year's festival will be an effort to break a world record, something I'd like to feature every year," said Kenny Belaey, multiple trials UCI World Champion and founder of Bentonville Bike Fest. "Bentonville is already the Mountain Biking Capital of the World, so breaking a cycling record here just makes sense."
The world record attempt will feature one of the world's best trials bikers attempting the "highest bicycle forward step up." This record is based on height and achieved by pedaling a short distance forward, jumping and using the front tire to hook onto the top of an obstacle, and then jumping the back tire to the top. This event will not feature ramps, and the tires' rubber is the only thing that can touch the obstacle in the process.
An athlete will break the record if they can jump higher than the current record, about 5.87 feet tall, or 1.79 meters, and was established in London in 2017.
Cycling enthusiasts will also experience a Road Bike Workshop & Fondo, a long-distance group ride through the Ozark hills.
Additionally, the UCI will sanction the trials competition for the first-ever UCI C1 competition.
As the bike scene in Northwest Arkansas has grown, so has cycling-related tourism, which brings visitors from across the country and increasingly from across the globe.
"Tourism and the biking economy have been a gift to Bentonville, and the Bentonville Bike Fest is a part of that," said Kalene Griffith, President of Visit Bentonville. "This annual event, which Visit Bentonville has been a proud sponsor of from day one, continues to help elevate our city as the Mountain Biking Capital of the World and one of the best places to travel to for cycling. We will work hard to see it continue for years to come."
For more information about Bentonville Bike Fest, click here.
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