Arkansas High Country Race 2020

The Arkansas High Country Race follows the perimeter of the Arkansas High Country Route. Published in 2019 by the Adventure Cycling Association with support from the Arkansas Parks and Recreation Foundation, the route connects several of the State’s natural divisions in Central and Northwest Arkansas through a series of three gravel and paved road loops.

Starting from Fayetteville, cyclists will traverse the Ozark Mountains east to the Buffalo National River Corridor, and then south into the Arkansas River Valley. From the River Valley, riders dip west through the Ouachita Mountains with sizeable climbs and rollercoaster ridges before climbing back north through the Ozark Mountains to the finish line in Fayetteville. Ultra-endurance athletes from across the country will gather at the Fayetteville Town Center on the Historic Downtown Square on October 30th, 2020, for mandatory pre-race meetings, media sessions and more.

Follow along live below:

The Arkansas High Country Race is scheduled to officially start from the Experience Fayetteville Visitors Center the morning of Saturday, October 31st, with a community roll out event — an opportunity for local cyclists to ride with some of the country’s top endurance racers as they make their way out of Fayetteville along the Razorback Regional Greenway.

At the inaugural Arkansas High Country Race in June of 2019, winner Mike Dicken of Wyoming (and Arkansas native) averaged 158 miles a day to set the fastest known time (or FKT) with an official time of 6 days, 10 hours and 5 minutes. Ally Mabry won the women’s race with a time of 8 days, 15 hours and 9 minutes.

All racers will be equipped with SPOT personal trackers, a GPS tracking device that uses the Globalstar satellite network, allowing fans to follow their favorite riders along the route in real time (a practice commonly referred to as “dot following”). Fans will also enjoy the ‘Virtual Checkpoint’ photos the racers are required to post at www.facebook.com/ArHCrace.

Event proceeds benefit the River Valley Ozark Off Road Cyclists, a branch of the Ozark Off Road Cyclists – a nonprofit focused on growing trail advocacy across the Arkansas Ozarks and the Arkansas River Valley.

Complete details, including schedule, registration and hotel information, are available here.

For race information, contact Race Director Chuck Campbell at (501) 725-1377 or arhcrace@gmail.com.

For local information, contact Brannon Pack, Cycling Coordinator for Experience Fayetteville, at (479) 521-5776 or bpack@experiencefayetteville.com.