A New American Town - Bentonville, Arkansas
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A New American Town - Bentonville, Arkansas
Revving up for Bentonville Outerbike 2023
Our host Allen Woody and Outerbike co-founder Ashley Korenblat give us the inside scoop on what to expect at the 2023 Outerbike event in Bentonville.
Outerbike gives cyclists the unique chance to test out cutting-edge bikes and bike gear on world-class trails throughout the country. In this episode, Ashley talks about why Bentonville is a great place to bring this event, touching on trail accessibility, the diverse culinary delights, and so much more that make this location truly exceptional for bike enthusiasts. Tune in and get ready to join us at Outerbike in Bentonville October 20–22.
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Welcome to Visit Bentonville's podcast, A New American Town. As always, we're coming to you from Hackston Road Studios off the bustling Bentonville Square, and I'm your host, Alan Woody, Joining me. Today. We have Ashley Corinblatt. Ashley, thank you so much for joining us. He's with Outer Bike. Tell us a little bit about Outer Bike, Ashley.
Speaker 2:Outer Bike is a consumer demo event where riders from around the country, cyclists from around the country, get to try the latest and greatest bikes on real trails.
Speaker 1:Cool, so I'd imagine there's a pretty good reason you guys chose Bentonville for this.
Speaker 2:Absolutely. We have been following Bentonville's progress for years and love it that there are so many trails and they're so easy to access, and it makes it a perfect place to test bikes.
Speaker 1:What a great concept too, because and it really like I love that it's cycling and with Bentonville, cycling makes a ton of sense. But in any context, with whatever you're interested in, whatever it is, if it's fishing or hunting or whatever it's so cool to have an opportunity to see all of these different you know tools and new technology and all that stuff, to actually have it applied. And I'm not aware of another place that really does that like this. How did that come about?
Speaker 2:Well, I have been in the bike industry since I was four years old and I ran a titanium bike factory and we made it.
Speaker 2:We put together a demo fleet every fall and I knew how hard that was to do that and when, at the time, bike demos were mostly for bike shops, it was very much a closed situation where only bike retailers were allowed to go to the trade show and and see the new bikes.
Speaker 2:And I at that time the trade show was in Las Vegas and we're we're in Moab, utah. So we invited all our friends that had semis full of bikes to bring them to Moab after the big trade show and open it to the public. So I just thought it'd be a great idea to let the people ride the bikes and they could determine. And right after we started out, or like, the sales channel started really changing and there were lots of different ways to buy bikes and the pandemic was a whole other moment for the bike industry. But but the main idea is that you really do need to try the bike and that way you can make a really good decision about what bike is best for you, instead of just buying whatever your buddies got, so whatever that's your neighborhood store just had in stock this really interesting and really smart.
Speaker 1:If you're a bike builder or a bike maker or company that manufacturers bicycles, wouldn't it be better to get feedback from people that actually ride bikes rather than feedback who from people who just sell bikes for a living? Not that their feedback isn't great, but right the actual rider, who may be inexperienced, maybe very experienced with all of these A variety of experience levels and knowledge levels of the sport, get in and can give you input as well. That's pretty handy.
Speaker 2:Yeah, the manufacturers get feedback directly from the consumers at the events and you know the bike shops play a critical role because we don't the bikes don't get sold it out of bike people go home and buy the bikes from their local dealers or if they order them, you know, online, they are still looking to service them through their local dealers and but what happens is people are more confident about buying a bike a little higher up the price scale. Then they might be if they didn't have that opportunity to go for a real two to three hour bike ride on that bike and make sure it was the right one for them.
Speaker 1:Right and for an inexperienced bicyclist it would be really well worth it. You know, rather than just spend the money on a hope, it would be well worth it to actually ride a more expensive bike or, you know, a more valuable bike and compare it to your Huffy or whatever you've got going on, you definitely will notice a difference, and it is.
Speaker 2:It is really. We work hard to be the welcome committee for the for the cycling industry and invite everyone who, no matter where you are on your journey as a cyclist, that we're able to help you figure out what is the next best thing for you. And it really does make a difference, even after all these years. I just rode one of the newest bikes for next year and was blown away by it and I thought, okay, I've seen everything. I you know I won't be shocked. And I was like, darn it, I kind of want that bike now.
Speaker 1:Can you shed a little light on that bike? I'm interested now, what about that?
Speaker 2:blew your mind. It was just really easy to negotiate. It was on a technical trail and it was really easy to move the bike around and have it do what you wanted to do, and partly because it was super light and it was very expensive bike too, but it the the change that they made. In a way, the suspension works made it so efficient, especially as someone who's not too big of a person. You know the if I'm dragging around this heavy linkage and suspension and it's not even always working for me, that's kind of taking away energy as opposed to adding it. So it just they just did a great job designing this bike. That's really interesting.
Speaker 1:Have you been to Bentonville before? Have you ridden the trails in Bentonville before? Oh, definitely.
Speaker 2:I've been coming to Bentonville for quite a while now. The first time was the the Inba Trail Summit that was held in Bentonville, and I think that was in 2017.
Speaker 1:Oh, that's been a while.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but I've been coming every year since then. I'm originally from Little Rock, so there you go. It used to be in Bentonville a lot.
Speaker 1:Do you have a favorite trail you like to ride?
Speaker 2:the newest one, but I'm going to put in a plug for hand cut hollow Because I think it's beautiful and fun and a little more remote and I think that's great. But they're all great. I always answer that question by saying the one I'm going to ride next.
Speaker 1:I hear that, and isn't that kind of? One of the neat part about the trail system that we have in the Bentonville area is the diversity of it. I mean, you've got everything from really challenging technical trails to just straight up easy trails to ride that are gorgeous.
Speaker 2:Exactly and really the magic of Bentonville is how accessible the trails are and what they've done with the terrain available. We are part of a nonprofit Western spirit that produces the outer bike is part of a nonprofit called Public Land Solutions, and we're helping communities across the country pivot towards outdoor recreation as an economic development strategy, especially those that have been dependent on a willing gas and coal and they're in transition and looking for new, new ways to attract folks to their communities, and so Bentonville has really been a great playbook for those communities, looking at how adding trails has become part of what every community wants to do.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's always been at the heart of what Bentonville is, you know, especially over the last decade or so, do you? Have when you come to town. Being somebody who comes to town every year, and quite a little bit, what are your favorite places to eat and what are your favorite things to do when you're not on a trail?
Speaker 2:Every place that they have. I mean, so many restaurants in Bentonville are really excellent, and that's something that has taken a real conscious effort, because there are other communities that I've go to that have built trails that haven't pulled off the food quite yet. So it's really impressive what's happening in the culinary scene on the culinary scene in Bentonville. It's great. So that's something to look forward to is checking out, whatever the newest place is.
Speaker 1:We really do have a really great restaurant scene and kind of foodie culture in Northwest Arkansas and especially Bentonville. Now you've been doing these kind of live events for about how long.
Speaker 2:This is the 13th year Right on.
Speaker 1:So you definitely know what you're doing, but you've been mostly entirely in other locations and you mentioned that that you've got some other locations with great trails but they don't have the quite foodie scene. How does Bentonville compare to some of the other locations that you've held these events at? What are you looking at these events at?
Speaker 2:Well, one of the key things that makes Bentonville so successful is how close the trails are to town and how they're integrated in the community. A lot of Western communities have trails, but oftentimes you have to drive to get to them. They're further away, and so that's a really big component. How great a job Gary Vernon has done, helping build trails in all the right places so that there's access from so many spots, and I see that improving every year. Every time we turn up, there's more bike trails. I mean, there's also more construction, so we look forward to that.
Speaker 1:Here's a given, a take.
Speaker 2:Yeah, getting a little quieter someday, but they're really. It's the accessibility and it makes it possible for everybody to be out on the trails. My favorite thing that happened in Bentonville last year.
Speaker 2:I was out riding by myself and I had I stopped to fix my shoe and I was bending down and my back was to the intersection of the trails and they heard this little voice behind me and this little girl said grandma, we should go ride the castle. And I thought, wow, grandma is going to ride the castle, which is, you know, a little bit of a. There's a beginner trail on the castle but it's also got some jumps and bank turns and things. And so I stood up and turned around to check out what grandma might be riding over to the castle and you know she had a sort of a hybrid paved trail bike that wasn't really appropriate for the castle. And she said to her little cute granddaughter she said, honey, I think I just want to stay on the paved trails today, which was great, but I mean just the fact that grandma is being invited to the castle is pretty amazing development.
Speaker 1:And kudos for grandma for knowing her limits.
Speaker 2:Yeah, exactly, no, kidding.
Speaker 1:As I get up in age, I realize knowing your limits is a thing and it needs to be a better thing.
Speaker 2:Well, just grandma just needs to come to Outerbike and upgrade her bike Absolutely.
Speaker 1:Well, since we're talking about Outerbike, we've talked a lot, but you haven't. I haven't asked you and I'm going to Tell me a little bit about the event and how it all works, because I'm assuming I can't just show up, take a brand new, expensive bike and let me go try it out. But there's a process, I'd imagine.
Speaker 2:Yes. So if you're really shopping, you want to sign up for the full demo, and that gives you three days of demo bikes, lunches, happy hour lots of swag.
Speaker 1:I love bicyclists with the happy hours.
Speaker 2:It's a. It's a great way to just really figure out what bike you want to ride, what you want to buy next, and you can ride a few bikes on the first day, ride some other bikes on the next day and then go back to you know, narrow it down and go back to your last two choices on Sunday. There's all kinds of things and it is really exciting because we're back up to full demo fleets now. The demo fleets were pretty small there for a minute during COVID, but we have plenty of bikes this year. It's really exciting. So the process is easier. Everyone will be able to ride whatever they're most interested in, and so you do a little ride in the morning and then we have lunch, and lunch goes from noon to 2.30 or three, and then we still have food later in the afternoon and you don't want to miss lunch because it's really good. We bring our chef from Moab that we've been working with to develop the Outer Bike menu.
Speaker 1:Yeah, he has a giant outer bike menu.
Speaker 2:Yeah because, it's like you want really good, really healthy food and you need to feed it. It has to be available for many hours and there has to be tons of it, because mountain bikers eat a lot of food, so the food is a big part of it. Everyone loves the food.
Speaker 1:Nice.
Speaker 2:And the other part that's really fun is you meet other people who have interest and you get to meet all the companies, folks, the different people from the manufacturing companies. There's also tons of accessories so that you can look at helmets or packs or whatever else you might need. So really what Outer Bike is about is inviting everyone to the party and making all this tech and new developments available to everyone so that you can make your own choices and people love it. I've had a hundred sweaty guys come up to me at the Outer Bike and give me a hug and say this was the greatest weekend ever and I'm like, wow, I would be happy with. We had a nice time and it was well organized.
Speaker 1:How about a fist bump?
Speaker 2:Maybe fist bumps would be better, but I think people are really passionate about riding and the chance to meet other people that are passionate about it and to really learn about what's going on in the industry and be an industry insider is a real opportunity that people really appreciate.
Speaker 1:It sounds like a terrific event and it really literally doesn't even matter your skill level, because for the expert that's in it all the time, they're getting a chance to put their hands on the brand newest stuff. For the intermediate, they're getting familiar with some things that might take them to the next level, and for the beginner, they're getting a crash course and everything and maybe getting to get on a bike. That will make this sport a lot more fun than they even thought of.
Speaker 2:That is exactly what's happening out there. That's a great description of it, and there is. We also have their tickets that you can get a ticket for. Just if you just bought a bike but you still want to stay in the know, you can buy a bring your own bike ticket. And we also have social passes. So if you aren't planning to ride at all this weekend but you just want to show up for lunch and beer, that's also an option.
Speaker 1:Lunch and beer. You had me.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you can just come to lunch and then come have beer, but the and then we also have. If you're just interested in walking through and checking it out, there's no cost. The area is open and we encourage everyone in Bentonville who's curious about Outerbike to come on by and walk through and check out the vendors and see what's going on and if you get inspired and really want to ride a bike, we'll. We'll get you signed up.
Speaker 1:Now, but if you just, how can you resist? Yeah, I love that. That's really cool. How do I get tickets, or can I just get them right?
Speaker 2:there. Just type right in Bentonville Outerbike and it will pop right up.
Speaker 1:Very nice, very, very nice, are you? Are you staying for any other Bentonville bike events after Outerbike? Anything you can tell us about?
Speaker 2:Yes, all kinds of things. Let's see my husband's going to ride in Little Sugar the weekend before.
Speaker 1:Very cool Great area over there. I'll be taking a shift conference.
Speaker 2:I've worked for a long time with people for bikes and always want to keep up with what they're up to. And then the big sugar is the same days as Outerbike, so we see some of those folks come by on Sunday and we are following how that race is going as well. And then there's a group of women in the bike industry and we're all getting together the weekend after Outerbike and staying in Bentonville.
Speaker 1:Nice Are you riding specific trails or will you decide that weekend?
Speaker 2:We're going to probably ride everything. That's a diverse group, so we'll. It'll be really fun to see everyone and to check in and and and. Yeah, there will have plenty of choices.
Speaker 1:Sounds like a ton of fun. Ashley, thank you so much for joining me today. I've really enjoyed our conversation.
Speaker 2:Thank you so much for your interest and we look forward to seeing everybody out there.
Speaker 1:All right. Thanks to everyone listening. Remember you can catch all of the new American Town podcast episodes on streaming channels, following our social platforms or going to visit Bentonvillecom. Don't forget to follow Visit Bentonville on Facebook, instagram, twitter, linkedin, youtube and TikTok. We have lots of exciting events coming to Bentonville in 2023. Check out our event calendar and plan your trip today. Thanks for tuning in. We'll see you next time.