Get caught up with the first 6 parts of our #ThrowbackThursday #tbt series. Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6 In today's installment, the Arkansas State Bicycle Tour Map from 1978 continues taking us across the northern part of the state. First, we visit the foothills of the Ozark Mountains near Lake Charles. Today this area is known for three wonderful state parks. The starting … [Read more...]
Across the Natural
April 16, 2019 By Leave a Comment
Updated 4/17/19 Watch this space for updates by Brannon Pack (Executive Director of Ozark Off-Road Cyclists and all around cool guy) as he and a group of friends travel across the state West to East through the Ozarks, Delta and on to Memphis. We will be adding updates as he sends them. Here are the first four: Pre-ride - April 3-10 Fun Fact: Crossing Arkansas takes about 16 pages of the … [Read more...]
Bicycling in Arkansas – 40 Years Ago – Part 6
April 11, 2019 By Leave a Comment
It's time to turn the page, or should we say guide. In the first 5 installments, we covered one side of the 1979 Arkansas State Bike Tours Map. Today, we get to the meat of the guide, maps, and information about various rides throughout the state. At the end of each article going forward will be a map of the state showing what part of the state the rides are in. The rest shows a small map with a … [Read more...]
The Top Ten Mountain Bike Trails in Arkansas – 2019
April 9, 2019 By 2 Comments
Wow, that title is a heck of a thing. It's only fair that we tell you how we came up with such a list. To start, let's tell you what this list is not. It's not scientific. It's not based on the number of people riding the trail. It's not our favorites list. It's not a list of all the trails in the state. It's not broken out by trail types (cross country, enduro, flow, downhill, … [Read more...]
Bicycling in Arkansas – 40 Years Ago – Part 5
April 4, 2019 By 2 Comments
(Part 5 of our #ThrowbackThursday Series on the 1978 Arkansas State Bike Tours Map. Links to parts 1-4 are at the end of the article.) References, places to get a bike and places to enjoy them. Bicycle Dealers and Repair Shops Before the growth of local bike shops here and around the country, cyclists often got their bikes at early big box stores, auto part stores, and toy stores. As a kid, I … [Read more...]
The Arkansas Stop – Bicycle Friendly Legislation is Signed into Law
April 2, 2019 By 1 Comment
Governor Asa Hutchinson signed Arkansas Act 650 of 2019 making Arkansas the second state to make it legal for people traveling by bicycle through the state to treat stop signs as yields and red lights as stop signs. The Governor’s Advisory Council on Cycling, a group representing local businesses, bicycle advocates, and various government agencies, recommended the law. The law does not change any … [Read more...]
Building Trails from the Ground Up in De Queen, Arkansas | IMBA
March 29, 2019 By Leave a Comment
De Queen Lake has 32 miles of shoreline, more than 100 campsites, 8700 acres of surrounding public land, and until recently, zero bike trails. But that’s changing. The community will soon have its first four-mile trail at the lake, and with the help of an IMBA Trail Accelerator grant, they’ve expanded their vision to become the premier mountain bike destination in Southwest Arkansas. The Trail … [Read more...]
Bicycling in Arkansas – 40 Years Ago – Part 4
March 28, 2019 By Leave a Comment
The saying goes, "the more things change, the more they stay the same." You can certainly see that in our 41-year-old bicycle map. Later this Spring, Arkansas will be opening a new bicycle route that will travel well over 1000 miles through the Ozark and Ouachita Mountains. The route will include paved roads, gravel roads, and options for singletrack riding. Going through large and small towns … [Read more...]
Come for a Job, Stay for the Trails. Using Mountain Biking to Lure Great Employees – Singletracks Mountain Bike News
March 25, 2019 By Leave a Comment
It’s no secret that mountain bikers will travel far to ride great trails. We’ve covered this thoroughly. Towns build trails, mountain bikers travel to towns, ride trails, buy lots of beer and pizza after the ride, businesses make money, and the story goes on. This isn’t exactly a sustainable way of living for most of us though, and the majority of a mountain biker’s riding takes place close to … [Read more...]
Bicycling in Arkansas – 40 Years Ago – Part 3
March 21, 2019 By 1 Comment
Week three of our trip down memory lane to 1978 includes the first day of Spring. We couldn't think of a better time to introduce you to weather averages in Arkansas from over 40 years ago. We checked the US Climate Data website and found some slight changes. The maximum average is up almost a full degree from back then while the minimum average is down only 1/10 of a degree. The mean average … [Read more...]
