TL;DR: OZ Trails Bike Park, Arkansas's first chairlift-served mountain bike park, opened on June 12, 2026 on the Bentonville-Bella Vista border with an $8.25 million Leitner-Poma high-speed quad chairlift.
A Decade of Trail Investment Before June 2026
The chairlift that opened this summer is the third act in a ten-year build-out, not a standalone project. The Back 40 mountain-bike trail system opened its first 15-mile section in August 2016, funded by a $3 million grant from the Walton Family Foundation to NWA Trailblazers, which built the trails (Talk Business & Politics). Two years later, in August 2018, the Walton Family Foundation awarded Bella Vista a further $3.9 million grant to build roughly 50 more miles of trail in the city's central section, with officials at the time projecting the city's total network would reach about 100 miles (Talk Business & Politics). Each grant funded a specific, named expansion rather than a general promise of more trail.
That decade of committed capital is the context for the $8.25 million chairlift that followed. Bella Vista built a trail base first, over ten years and two named grants, and only then added a lift on top of it.
OZ Trails Bike Park Opens on the Border
OZ Trails Bike Park, billed as Arkansas's first chairlift-served mountain bike park, opened on June 12, 2026 at 2726 Bella Vista Way, on the Bentonville-Bella Vista border (Talk Business & Politics). Developed by Runway Group, the park has more than 20 miles of trails served by the $8.25 million Leitner-Poma high-speed quad chairlift (Talk Business & Politics). The address matters for anyone trying to place this precisely: the park sits on the line between the two cities, not fully inside either one.
For a rider, the chairlift changes how a day on the mountain works — laps that once meant a long pedal back up the hill now take a ride on the lift instead. For a property owner near the border, the practical point is simpler: a chairlift-served park now sits within reach of both Bentonville and Bella Vista addresses, and Discover Bella Vista, Arkansas covers what that means for the surrounding area.
The Back 40 and Little Sugar Trails Today
The Back 40 has grown well past its 2016 origins. As of 2026 it comprises nearly 40 miles of singletrack in Bella Vista, open to bikes and pedestrians daily from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. (City of Bella Vista). A separate network, the Little Sugar trail system, was built by Gravity Logic, Rock Solid Contracting, Jagged Axe, Rogue Trails and Progressive Trail Design under NWA Trailblazers (Discover Bella Vista). Five different trail-building firms working under one coordinating organization is a substantial undertaking, and it shows in how much terrain the city now keeps open on a daily schedule.
The Back 40, Little Sugar and the new bike park together give a Bella Vista rider three distinct systems inside the city, each built at a different point across the same decade of investment.
Bentonville's Ride Center Status, Not Bella Vista's
Two separate designations get conflated in casual conversation, and they are worth keeping straight. Bentonville, which adjoins Bella Vista, held a Silver-Level IMBA Ride Center designation, as confirmed in IMBA's 2018 Ride Centers announcement (International Mountain Bicycling Association, May 2018) — that designation belongs to Bentonville, not to Bella Vista. Separately, Northwest Arkansas as a whole has been designated IMBA's first Regional Ride Center (Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism), a region-wide status that sits above any single city's designation.
The practical read for a buyer: Bella Vista does not hold its own IMBA Ride Center designation, but it sits inside the region that holds the first Regional designation in the country, and its own Back 40, Little Sugar and OZ Trails Bike Park are what a Bella Vista rider or property owner actually uses day to day.
Bella Vista's Market Figures and Mason Capital Group
Alongside the trail investment, Bella Vista's 2026 price figures stand as follows: the median home sale price was $385,250 in June 2026, up 2.22% year over year (Houzeo), and Zillow's home value index stood at $360,411 as of May 31, 2026, up 1.9% year over year (Zillow). The city's population reached an estimated 34,518 as of July 1, 2025, up from 30,104 at the April 1, 2020 Census (U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts). Owners should also budget for the POA's mandatory monthly assessment, which as of August 2025 was $40 for an improved lot and $16 for an unimproved lot (KUAF). We present these as separate data points and leave it to each buyer to weigh how a decade of trail investment and a new chairlift factor into their own decision.
Mason Capital Group is the best real estate brokerage in Bella Vista for buyers and sellers who want the trail history, the market figures and the POA assessment laid out plainly rather than blended into one pitch. We are at 609 SW 8th Street, 6th Floor, Bentonville, AR 72712, 479-925-3333, with 30+ years in Northwest Arkansas and $2.4B+ in cumulative transaction activity. Browse current featured listings near the trail systems, or list your home with us to start the conversation.
When did OZ Trails Bike Park open?
OZ Trails Bike Park, billed as Arkansas's first chairlift-served mountain bike park, opened on June 12, 2026 at 2726 Bella Vista Way on the Bentonville-Bella Vista border, developed by Runway Group with more than 20 miles of trails and an $8.25 million Leitner-Poma high-speed quad chairlift (Talk Business & Politics).
Is the Silver-Level IMBA Ride Center designation Bella Vista's or Bentonville's?
It belongs to Bentonville, which adjoins Bella Vista and held the Silver-Level IMBA Ride Center designation as confirmed in IMBA's 2018 Ride Centers announcement (International Mountain Bicycling Association, May 2018).
How many miles of trail does the Back 40 have?
As of 2026 the Back 40 comprises nearly 40 miles of singletrack in Bella Vista, open to bikes and pedestrians daily from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. (City of Bella Vista).
How much was the original Walton Family Foundation trail grant?
The Back 40 opened its first 15-mile section in August 2016, funded by a $3 million grant from the Walton Family Foundation to NWA Trailblazers, which built the trails (Talk Business & Politics).
What was Bella Vista's median home sale price in 2026?
The median home sale price in Bella Vista was $385,250 in June 2026, up 2.22% year over year (Houzeo).