Race News 

The 11th Arkansas NICA season kicks off Aug. 22-23 in Conway with the annual race clinic and time trial weekend. The time trials help set the start order for the league’s first races in September.

NICA is the National Interscholastic Cycling Association. It sponsors middle and high school mountain biking across the country, with the goal of getting more kids on bikes in a supportive and inclusive community.

Arkansas’s league is split up into two regions: the Plateau Region, which encompasses the Northwest portion of the state; and the Plains Region, which covers Central, Southern and Northeast Arkansas.

The first race weekend will be Sept. 5-6 at John Brown University in Siloam Springs (Plateau Region) and the Camp Robinson Air National Guard Base in North Little Rock (Plains Region). Conway will host the entire league at the Mid-Season Classic on Sept. 19-20 at its Meadows Tech Park. Race 3 will be in Jonesboro (Plains) and Bentonville (Plateau) on Oct. 3-4. The annual Champions Weekend will take place for the whole league at Centennial Park in Fayetteville on Oct. 31-Nov. 1.

For the second year, Arkansas will also host the NICA Central Regional Championship at Centennial Park the following week. That race brings riders in from 11 surrounding states.

 “NICA sponsors middle and high school mountain biking across the country, with the goal of getting more kids on bikes in a supportive and inclusive community.”