In the heart of Arkansas, amongst old dogwood and oak trees, lies the city of Conway. Murals line the quiet downtown streets, families walk their dogs to the farmer’s market, and roadies cruise the 60+ miles of wide bike lanes.
Despite the natural beauty and the mild weather, 5 years ago you might not have seen a single knobby tire in town. With all attention focused on the mountain bike destination of Northwest Arkansas, cyclists were passing right through Conway to get to their new favorite trails in Bentonville.
Terry Coddington, the founder of the Conway Bearcats Mountain Bike team, had lived there for over a decade. Where others saw just another stop on their way northwest, he saw a need for equality of access and an incredible opportunity to bring his community to life.
“Our kids wanted and needed trails,” said Terry.
“We were practicing in an open field on weekdays, then driving upwards of 3 or 4 hours on weekends to get to races. It wasn’t inclusive, and it wasn’t sustainable for our team. NICA and the outdoors can really change kids’ lives, but our impact was limited by our access to trails.”
What he really wanted was a true ‘NICA venue’ in central Arkansas. He dreamed of somewhere with wide open spaces for skills practices, as well as singletrack for students to put their new skills to the test. Terry was also the Associate League Director, so he knew the benefits of a central Arkansas venue would be felt by more than just the Bearcats.
He even had a spot in mind. He’d driven by hundreds of times and knew it had potential. Where others saw a small swath of land surrounding an office park, often vandalized by both teenagers and beavers, Terry saw a venue. It had plenty of parking, and all the facilities required not just for team practices, but everything it would need to host a full league event.
“I often pictured how great it would be as a trail system and how connected and centrally located it was in the community. There are neighborhoods nearby with bike lanes that lead all the way to the park. It had so much potential to serve a group that hadn’t yet been reached.”
There were just two teeny, tiny problems:
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- There were no trails, just empty fields and wooded drainages.
- The land wasn’t earmarked for public use.
Such problems had only one solution. Terry would need to convince the landowners to allow trail development, and then find a way to build the trails himself.
“I did some research and found out that the land was owned by the Conway Chamber of Commerce. They were open to the idea of trail development, and after a few meetings, I was granted permission to map a prospective trail. It took an entire year of collaboration, but the map was eventually approved.”
With a stamp of approval and a year’s worth of motivation...
it was time for the real work to begin.
Once permission was granted by the Chamber and all the necessary surveys were completed, construction on the future Meadows Tech Park began almost immediately.
“We started with volunteer workdays for the entire community. Everyone was invited to be a part of it, and lots of people took us up on that. But, the folks who came every time were the Bearcats kids and coaches. They were so excited and invested in bringing these trails to their backyard.”
The new Bearcats Team Director, Wesley Pruitt, knew his team would be excited for the opportunity.
“The team and our broader community was ready to put hundreds of hours into this trail. In the end, 80% of the clearing was done by Conway Cycling volunteers.”
All this effort added up to over 800 volunteer hours from the Bearcats student-athletes.
There was only so much that could be completed by hand, though. They would need the right tools, materials, and experts to get this project done, and none of those things came cheap. It didn’t take long to find a solution. With excitement growing about the new park, Conway’s community rallied around Terry and the Bearcats.
Local businesses and homeowners donated thousands of dollars worth of dirt, rocks, sand, and other resources. When Terry lamented that they needed heavy machinery to make real progress, the next week an excavator showed up on the property, free to use for as many months as it took. And, after the crew shared their vision with the local Advertising and Promotion commission, they donated a whopping $36,000 to hire a professional trail builder to take care of the three-quarters of a mile that was too advanced for volunteers to handle.
Even with all this support, progress was slow but steady. In 2023, Anya DerGarzarian got involved as Arkansas’ Coach Trainer and GRiT Coordinator. To make sure the trail was ready in time for an upcoming test event, Anya picked up a shovel (and some excavator keys) and joined the folks spending every weekend out in the muck.
“My highlight was learning to use the excavator. I had to repeat the instructions over and over to myself just to get the simplest hole dug. It was fun, and I definitely have a newfound respect for folks who operate those in tough places.”
- Anya DerGazarian
As work continued, Terry and his team wanted this trail to have it all. They planned berms, rock gardens, water crossings, and even a sandpit, all accessible to both beginners and more advanced riders.
“As we worked, I saw an opportunity to include intentionally progressive features that could be used safely during NICA events. Because we were able to build these features with NICA athletes in mind, now other trail builders are able to visit the location to see what an appropriate ‘NICA’ feature looks like. They create fun opportunities for experienced athletes while also being safe for newer ones. We also mapped the venue out with both passing zones and technical singletrack spread out, and incorporated elements from cyclocross and BMX racing out on the course.”
The Bearcat students had a huge voice in advocating for the features and details they wanted in their backyard. Among them was Brady White, one of the Bearcat’s most involved student-athletes. “The most fun part was getting to test ride the features! We have a lot of younger kids on the team compared to older kids, so it’s awesome to encourage and see them progress. That’s my favorite part of being on the Conway mountain bike team, having such an amazing community that strives for the best.”
“Before NICA, Brady and I only casually rode bicycles around the neighborhood,” said Brady’s dad, Stuart. “NICA has allowed both of us to really get into mountain biking while also being part of an awesome community of people. We've made tons of new friends in NICA, improved our fitness, and coaching on the team has given me something to share with Brady.”
After taking on a new role as the Arkansas League Director, and with hundreds of hours of work coming to an end, Terry finally had the chance to mark Conway down on his race schedule for the upcoming season. They would use it for the 2024 season opener time trial, and then again for a full-blown NICA race event weekend.
But, with all the time and resources invested into this land ahead of the event, the question of ownership and longevity arose. If the landowners sold this plot, or any of the surrounding ones, what would become of the trails?
In an act of generosity, the Chamber of Commerce banded together and granted the City of Conway a permanent easement for the trail. That meant that, no matter what the land might be used for in the future, the trails would always belong to the community.
“I was never expecting a permanent easement to be granted,” said Terry. “But I was 100% in agreement that we needed it to create a sustainable venue for years to come. I expected the City of Conway would be supportive, but the level of commitment here was far beyond my expectations.”
‘If you build it, they will come’ had been the guiding light of this project. The trail was ready, and the community was stoked. It was time to see if that mantra held true.
It didn’t take long.
As trucks, trailers, and campers rolled into the lot at Meadows Tech Park on the weekend of September 28th, the once sleepy office park turned into the base camp for the biggest party Conway had ever seen.
With generators rented and bistro lights strung above a beach volleyball court, the venue that Terry, Anya and the Bearcats had spent so much time developing came to life.
“The race weekend was beyond my wildest dreams,” said Terry. “We had 647 riders, plus countless parents, coaches, and siblings exploring the venue by bike. It all added up to over 2,500 attendees. Every inch of the parking lot and infield was full of families camping, kids playing football, and connection. People just connect at these events.”
It wasn’t only NICA families enjoying the weekend, either. Conway community members from across the city came to spectate, and Mayor Castleberry called a special session of the Conway City Council to take place at the venue. He wanted to demonstrate the city’s support of the project, and to see the scope of the event for himself.
“The City of Conway has had an excellent experience with Terry Coddington and his Arkansas NICA team,” said Castleberry. “Coddington has done an excellent job of promoting safe biking in Conway. As a result, people are starting to recognize Central Arkansas as another [mountain biking] destination... [and], the mountain bike trail at Meadows Tech Park has gone a long way to diversify Conway’s recreational offerings, particularly with school aged kids. Large mountain biking events like this clearly demonstrated their ability to attract hundreds of participants and spectators to Conway.”
Getting the chance to show off the NICA community was the most impactful part of the weekend for Anya. “We chatted about the long range impact of more places to recreate outdoors that families can participate in together.”
Wesley Pruitt had the chance to chat with Mayor Castleberry, too. “Seeing him so excited about what the NICA Bearcats team created and brought to Conway was pretty special. We couldn’t get any of this done without complete buy-in from city leadership…they want us to bring more of this to Conway.”
Having the council there was about more than just chatting— it was also a unique opportunity for the council members to see the impact that NICA was having on their community in real time.
“We were standing in the middle of the Pitzone, and I asked them to look around and see how many kids were on an electronic device,” said Anya. “There were none. Kids were playing football and walking around together, eating, playing tag and just enjoying human connection in the outdoors. One of the council members looked at me misty eyed and said, ‘I need to get my grandson involved in this.’ That was when I knew they really understood our mission here.”
The race weekend was emotional for Terry, too. It felt like the end of an era, but also like the beginning of a new one, marked by outdoor access and activity for Conway. “This started as just a passion project for me as a NICA coach, in an area that 8 years ago had essentially nothing for kids. This experience has utterly transformed our community. Every time I come by, I see folks riding, and lots of the time it is someone new to the sport because they feel safe progressing there. I see more women riding, more kids, more folks taking kids there to try the sport for the first time.
And it’s not just the NICA team, or even cyclists that are benefitting. The landowners adjacent to the course have started stocking a water station as a way to contribute to the park. Kids are fishing in the ponds, because it’s land they can now access. Families are picking blackberries on the side of the trail in the summertime. Other schools are calling us to see if they can book the trails for cross-country running events. They are planning a whole slate of summer programming for kids on the land. I absolutely never imagined all of the ways this park could make a difference.
“Being a kid is hard, especially these days, with screen time replacing quality time, and all that pressure to meet the standards set by social media,” added Anya.
“NICA is an antidote to all of that, getting kids outside, off their screens, and spending time with friends in real life. We need more of that in this world.”
But, the NICA Effect doesn't just stop there.
As Conway enjoys this new chapter, other communities are being inspired by NICA, the Bearcats, and their story.
The success of Meadows Tech Park and the Arkansas NICA crew spread far beyond Conway alone. After witnessing the impacts of the Bearcats' hard work on the entire community, other NICA teams and community activists in the state sought to follow the model.
“As of this writing, NICA teams are working with officials in the cities of Cabot and Monticello to build trails in their communities,” said Terry. “I have been working to bring NICA teams and events to other communities in Central Arkansas, including in Jonesboro, North Little Rock and Little Rock. Now that the area has seen an event first hand and realizes the impact, I’m hopeful that there will be many more to come.”
“I have been working to bring NICA teams and events to other communities in Central Arkansas, including in Jonesboro, North Little Rock and Little Rock. Now that the area has seen an event first hand and realizes the impact, I’m hopeful that there will be many more to come.”
Inspiration has struck far beyond central Arkansas, too.
Dave Weaver is a NICA Coach based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. With Arkansas being the closest NICA league, he’s been making the long drive across state lines with his student-athletes to participate in their events for three years. For Dave’s students, the drive was worth it to be a part of NICA’s programming. “NICA’s positive team environment and the fact that there is no ‘bench’ for participants makes it a great sport for kids to grow into at their own pace,” said Dave. “That attitude fosters growth.”
After seeing just how meaningful NICA programming was to his students, Dave is taking Terry’s lead. As NICA’s newest league director, he has been at the forefront of bringing the brand new Oklahoma NICA league to life. He hopes that his local community will embrace advocacy and the NICA Effect in the same ways that Arkansas has.
“Conway is such a great example for Oklahoma. We have communities that are wondering ‘How do we start?’ and ‘Where do we ride?’ We can point to Conway to show just how much can be built by your team. We can also give them data and the story of how it can positively impact their community to assist them with their advocacy and outreach.”
Dave’s goal with his league in their first year is to get the word out. He knows the impacts of NICA programs first hand, and the momentum that builds when just one more person starts a team or signs up to coach. “We graduated our first round of kids from the team this year. These kids took a chance and believed that they were building something for the future. I hope we can continue to grow the experience they had in Arkansas and provide that to students all across Oklahoma. There is a small group here that knows what NICA is. We want to make it a household name.”
As Terry, Anya, and the Bearcats enjoy their offseason and begin planning for next year, they are constantly reminded of the benefits their hard work reaped.
Terry wants people to know that they can do it too. “These local NICA teams are really changing their communities for the better. It starts small, but don’t let that fool you. When you get kids on bikes, you get families on bikes. When you get families on bikes, they become advocates for NICA and cycling and the outdoors in general because they see how positive and transformative those experiences are for their kids and their families... It’s all for the greater goal of developing good humans through the bicycle. It just gets bigger and bigger.”
“The truth is, when families and kids are advocating for what they believe in, it becomes really easy for community officials to say yes, and things start taking shape. I’m so proud of this project, and of the Bearcats, for so many reasons. Now that so many people have seen what's possible, even greater things are going to happen in Conway, and in Arkansas, and beyond.”
When you support NICA, you support life-changing moments, an inclusive community, and a re-imagined youth sports experience.
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