For the fifth consecutive year, the road to the 2026 UCI Gravel World Championships will run directly through Fayetteville, Arkansas! The fifth annual Highlands Gravel Classic returns to Fayetteville on Saturday, April 25th, 2026, and registration is open to gravel cyclists of all levels.

The spring edition of the bi-annual Square 2 Square Bike Ride is taking off up the Razorback Regional Greenway from Bentonville to Fayetteville on Saturday, May 2nd, 2026!

When MTB Champ Jeremiah Bishop heard about our Bikepacking Routes Network, he called us with a crazy idea. Along with another champion cyclist, Alex Hawes, and an inexperienced college kid (just for the fun of it), Jeremiah Bishop took the longest route, a route we recommend you explore over 5-8 days, and attacked it in 40 hours. The resulting film is like candy for adventure junkies, along with stunning scenes of the Ozarks, Buffalo River, and country backroads along the way. You’ll see and hear Kelly and Donna Mulhollan of the Ozark Ball Museum and hear Gar Hole Records’ Austin Cash in the soundtrack. And of course Fayetteville plays a starring role.

Just east of Fayetteville, Arkansas lies Madison County: a largely untouched area of the Boston Mountain range of the Ozark Mountains. For cyclists, the region is a hidden treasure waiting to be explored, rich with opportunities for remote gravel road riding!

The Drew Crew, a family of adventurers from nearby Bentonville, spent a weekend exploring the 120 miles of trail within Fayetteville city limits. They stayed at The Stonebreaker Hotel and rolled out from there through the Markham Hill Nature Trails, under the interstate (using a cattle tunnel!) and through Centennial Park trails. From there, they rode the hand-built singletrack of Mount Kessler and back through town, stopping at the MTB skills park and for a great lunch at Rice Forest before riding singletrack through the University of Arkansas campus and back to the hotel. The family spent 8 hours exploring on bikes! The next day, they dodged the rain with a feast of pancakes at Prelude and a morning of indoor climbing at Boulders & Brews. Check out their video for inspiration for your next family adventure!

Fayetteville is a haven for competitive cycling and mountain biking, and casual bike rides around the city are one of the most popular things to do. Cycling is a great way to experience everything the city has to offer — restaurants, shopping, nightlife — while still enjoying the beautiful outdoors Northwest Arkansas and the Ozarks are known for. One local cycling team, the Fayetteville Wheelmen, hosts many local group rides and represent our city by racing and riding all over the world, sporting their Experience Fayetteville jerseys. We recently caught up with the team to see what they think makes Fayetteville such a perfect place to cycle every day.