BENTONVILLE, Ark. — The International Police Mountain Bike Association (IPMBA) hosted its 31st annual conference in Bentonville this week.
The conference was based at Thaden School June 24-29. It saw over 200 officers represent public safety departments from across North America.
"The annual IPMBA conference allows cyclist who are first responders to expand their personal and professional horizons and develop environmentally-friendly patrol procedures that will keep our beloved communities clean and safe,” CEO and president of Visit Bentonville Kalene Griffith said in a press release. “This conference is eagerly awaited each year, and we look forward to welcoming conference guests to Bentonville for the week.”
Northwest Arkansas Community College's Bicycle Technician program provided essential public safety training courses for instructors, maintenance offices, police cyclists, EMS cyclists, security cyclists and police-EMS-security cyclists. The conference also offered bicycle response team, E-bike and IPMBA instructor development training.
"Our focus is to kind of expose Bentonville, expose all the people that are coming from everywhere to hopefully bring their families back and get to enjoy the natural state," Bentonville Police Spokesperson Cpl Melissa Fox said.
Many of the classes were held in Thaden classrooms, NWACC's campus, and the Fire Department's parking lot for a cycling course using cones. However, the Arkansas heat brought challenges for the conference.
"We've got crews that are going around making sure they're bringing ice and water to all of our participants when they're out there. And we've changed our schedule a little bit so that we're doing more of our riding in the morning when it's cooler, and then doing our classroom things in the afternoon so they can kind of get out of the extreme heat," Bouchard said.
IPMBA also held a series of clinics conducted by mountain bike coaches with Bentonville’s The Ride Series, which they say is the country’s premier rider training program.
"The opportunity to just to meet my colleagues from across North America, and for all of us to meet our colleagues and learn from their collective experiences. I think that's the biggest benefit of having an international conference," said Elizabeth Bouchard, the vice president of IPMBA.
In addition to the courses and clinics, the weeklong event included a product showcase, social activities, and recreational rides. Cpl. Fox explained they'd end the conference with a graduation ceremony and awards dinner on June 29.
For more information about the conference, visit the IPMBA website.
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