Bentonville, Arkansas, will host the 2025 USARA National Adventure Racing Championships on September 12-13. The 30-hour race will crown champions in three divisions: mixed-gender (premier category), all-women, and all-men.
What is Adventure Racing?
Adventure racing is a multidisciplinary endurance sport that combines navigation, trail running, mountain biking, paddling, and often additional challenges like rappelling or rope courses. Teams race against the clock across rugged, often remote terrain, using maps and compasses to navigate between checkpoints. Success in adventure racing requires a blend of physical endurance, mental resilience, and teamwork. Participants must be skilled in orienteering, adaptable to unpredictable conditions, and proficient in multiple disciplines. Strong communication and problem-solving abilities are essential, as teams must strategize on the fly and support each other through physical and mental fatigue. Adventure racing is as much about camaraderie and perseverance as it is about athleticism, making it a thrilling test of both body and mind.
Details on the USARA National Adventure Racing Championships
The event will feature a unique course designed to showcase the region’s diverse terrain while challenging competitors.
“Expedition Ozark was outstanding, but we understand racers want to explore new places,” said USARA Executive Director Michael Garrison. “We also want to preserve the integrity of the National Championships by ensuring teams don’t have an unfair advantage for having raced here before.”
Priority registration will be given to winning mixed-gender teams from 15 Regional Qualifiers and top-ranking teams in all divisions, followed by public registration in the spring of 2025. The USARA is partnering with the Ozark Foundation to produce the event, with support from Visit Bentonville and local sponsors.
“We were excited to welcome adventure racing to Northwest Arkansas with Expedition Ozark, and look forward to showcasing more of the 400-mile award-winning trail systems and beautiful bluffs that make our part of the Ozarks a world-class adventure destination,” said Mike Spivey, Ozark Foundation President and CEO.
Beyond the race, Bentonville offers a wealth of attractions for competitors and their families.
“In addition to our renowned singletrack mountain biking, we also have a variety of locally-owned shops and boutiques, public art installations, live music venues hosting nationally acclaimed artists, and a vibrant night scene,” said Alison Nation, Vice President of Communications & Marketing for Visit Bentonville. “We’re also a kid-friendly city, with an award-winning children’s museum, a bike playground, watersports at Lake Bentonville, and hundreds of acres of parks.”
For more information about the race, visit www.usara.com. For more information about Bentonville, go to www.visitbentonville.com. For information about the Ozark Foundation, visit www.ozarkfoundation.org.
This article was originally published on ArkansasOutside.com, your trusted source for outdoor news and updates in The Natural State. Unless otherwise credited, all photos included in this piece are the property of Arkansas Outside, LLC. We take pride in sharing the beauty and adventures of Arkansas through our lens—thank you for supporting our work!
