Adventure racing company moves to Bentonville

BENTONVILLE — The Adventure Racing World Series, which will host an event in Northwest Arkansas in April, has moved its operations to Bentonville.

The company is under new ownership after it was purchased from Geocentric Outdoors of Australia by a consortium of investors led by Heidi Muller, according to a Jan. 23 news release from the Adventure Racing World Series.

Muller, a South African businesswoman, had been chief executive officer of the business for the past year. The three investors — Jason Wilford, Philip Sigsworth and Michael Bond — live and work in Northwest Arkansas, according to GearJunkie. GearJunkie covers the outdoor industry in news and product reviews in the active-lifestyle world, according to its website.

“Given the investors live in the area, Bentonville is the obvious location for a future office for the ARWS,” said Rob Howard, series media manager. The Walton family and Walton Foundation have no involvement in the series, he added.

Muller is chief executive officer and primary shareholder for Adventure Racing World Series LLC, according to her LinkedIn page. The head office is listed as being in Bentonville on her profile.

As part of the transaction, the company re-registered as a U.S. company, now called “The Adventure Racing World Series.”

The three investors have business backgrounds and will assist in running the new company and with sponsorship acquisition, according to the release.

“To bring the financial, legal and commercial expertise of our new investors into the ARWS team is so important,” Muller said. “They will be there to advise me as we build the company and having their support means I can concentrate 100% on the operational decisions and strong relationships needed to guide a company with races in more than 50 countries.”

Wilford works in the nonprofit area and is a former

corporate CEO who worked across multiple industries with global reach, according to the release.

Sigsworth is chief financial officer of Art and Wellness Enterprises, a professional services organization supporting nonprofit groups founded by Alice Walton. He also serves as the corporate secretary of the Ozark Outdoor Foundation, according to the release.

Bond is an attorney and investor. He also is an adviser to small and mid-size businesses, according to the release.

The new company will introduce an advisory board, including senior and new race directors, athletes and referees, for “collective brainstorming and discussions on the ARWS and the future,” Muller said.

Michael Spivey, president and chief executive officer of Ozark Outdoor Foundation, announced in June the foundation and Adventure Racing World Series will cohost the Expedition Ozark Race on April 3-8.

“We believe this event, Expedition Ozark, will showcase the rugged beauty of the Ozark region and further cement Northwest Arkansas as a premier outdoor recreation destination,” Spivey said in June.

The association of the city with outdoor sports and the fact the city will host the first Expedition Ozark are advantages, Howard said.

Adventure Racing World Series organizes adventure racing events that feature mixed- gender, four-person teams that hike, bike, paddle, climb and run courses across hundreds of miles over five days. Each season culminates with the world championships, which will be held in South Africa this year.

The local race will showcase the most rugged areas in the region through different activities such as trekking, climbing and rappelling, but also includes use of the area’s lakes and rivers, said Danny Collins, race director for Ozark Expedition, in June. The races test competitors physically and mentally, Collins said.

The race route will remain a secret until a day before the race, Collins said.

Mueller will be at Expedition Ozark and will have meetings with her partners, when future decisions about the world series will be discussed, Howard said.

Teams must have a navigator who understands a map. They may not use smartphones or other technology to assist them, he said. Each team will be given a radio or safety phone for emergencies only, Wilford said in June.

The plan is for the race to become a yearly event, but each year the route will change, he said.

The race is a significant addition to the sporting calendar in town with racers from 10 nationalities planning to attend, including some of the world’s best endurance athletes, Howard said.

The Ozark Outdoor Foundation is a charitable organization focused on creating fun and enriching outdoor experiences in Northwest Arkansas that elevate the region as a better place to work, live and play, according to the mission statement on its website.