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Well, it’s really going to depend on the week. We had a 73-degree day a couple of weeks ago, in January—rode Slaughter Pen in Bentonville and it felt like early summer. March is generally warm enough to not have to worry about layering, and sure beats July/August, when it’s super hot and humid.
I honestly find high-50s to be just about right. Not much sweat, and a long-sleeve shirt is all I need.
Thanks, yeah, it’s been awesome being here! It’s what got me into the sport in the first place. It’s just so accessible and so exciting, with new trails opening all the time.
I would highly recommend northwest Arkansas (commonly thought of as Bentonville). March is a perfect time to ride here. There are tons of trails for all skill levels, ridable in all weather conditions. You can even rent a house in Bella Vista with the trails literally out your front/back door (The Back 40, Little Sugar), or find a hotel or rental in downtown Bentonville that lets you take a super short ride to the trails (Slaughter Pen). Rent from Phat Tire Bike Shop, they’re the best, and right next to the trails with locations in Bentonville, Springdale, Rogers, and Fayetteville.
If you venture out from Bentonville a bit there are great places like Hobbs State Park and its new Monument Trail (plus a great visitor’s center and hiking trails), the Jones Center in Springdale, which has the largest pump track in North America as well as a super-fun skills course, and Kessler Mountain in Fayetteville, which features great rugged singletrack just a few minutes from downtown. If you want downhill, Lake Leatherwood in Eureka Springs (less than an hour away) hosted a stop of the Enduro World Series last year. And then, of course, there’s the Razorback Greenway and the paved trails in the area, perfect for leisurely riding or getting somewhere by bike.
There are great restaurants in Bentonville and Fayetteville, and fun non-bike stuff as well like the Scott Family Amazeum and the Arkansas-Missouri Railroad. It’s a generally affordable area, and the airport is small and friendly, and a short drive to Bentonville.
I’m biased, because I live in NWA, but I think it’d be a great family MTB destination.
Kansas City is pretty close to northwest Arkansas, so if you have time, you should really come check out the trails here.
Some recommendations:
– Coler Mountain Bike Preserve (Hardcore)
– The Back 40 (Endless possibilities, great variety)
– Lake Leatherwood (Downhill trails, was one of the Enduro World Series stops this year)
– Fitzgerald Mountain (Best Trail Ever is a great one)
– Slaughter Pen (Bentonville trail system that kicked the recent MTB explosion into gear)
All of these and more can be found on the OZ Trails site: https://oztrailsnwa.com/trail-locations/
Have an awesome trip! Sounds like a blast!
– David
I’m just a home mechanic (with a stained copy of Zinn’s book), so my advice isn’t going to be too detailed. But it sounds like your derailleur needs to be adjusted. I had similar issues when I replaced my shifter cable; the new cable would sometimes cause the gear to suddenly switch on me, especially when climbing.
I would try, in this order:
– Tighten the shifter cable at the derailleur
– Adjust the derailleur limit screws
– Fine-tune with the shifter barrel adjuster
Hope that helps!
After enjoying a quick session on some fairly tame local downhill trails, I went for one last run before heading home to get ready for a business appointment. On that last run, I washed out, and my right shin slid across the bare outer chainring of my 3x drivetrain. I got up, saw the skin hanging off my shin, strapped a cloth around it, and started hobbling down the trail calling for help. Two other bikers happened to be there, and they helped me down the trail to the very conveniently-placed urgent care next door. Fifteen stitches later, I made it to my business appointment, in full MTB regalia and with a huge bandage around my leg.
I’ve worn knee pads (with integrated shin guards) ever since.
Recently, I took an easy ride up a large jump that is way out of my league. I thought I would just ride onto the top of the table. Turns out that the table had been dug out into a gap, and my front wheel went down and I was thrown over the bars. I landed hard, tore a hole in the palm of a glove, and skidded down the dirt and gravel of the jump on my knee pads. There’s now a deep cut in the hard plastic, but my knees were totally fine, with only some scrapes—ABOVE the knee pads.
I’m becoming a big believer in protection.
The Diamondback Atroz 3 has a really great spec for a full-suspension bike, especially priced at $1400. Only real compromise is that it’s a single-pivot design, which means there will be some pedal bob on the climbs. This is the reason it’s so affordable.
The Atroz 2 makes a lot of parts compromises, and is probably not such a great value for $900. A good hardtail like the Trek Roscoe line would serve you better.
I wouldn’t buy a full-suspension bike from BikesDirect. Look at used bikes on Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace for a great deal.
After washing out and getting 15 stitches on my right shin, I decided it was time for some knee/shin guards. I picked these up, because they were super cheap and offered good protection: Fox Launch Sport Knee Guard ($28). I also recently got the Fox Launch Pro D30 Elbow Guards ($100). I live and ride in Northwest Arkansas, and we have some pretty rocky trails here.
The knee guards do the job, but tend to slip down. I’m much happier with the elbow guards, which stay in place better and look better. Both are comfortable though, and I don’t notice them much—especially the elbow guards. No crashes in either yet!
