Tranquility Trail System Project Update: Introducing the Design Team
We’re excited to announce the expert partners helping reimagine the future of the Tranquility Park Trail System. Trails Have Our Respect (THOR) is pleased to have built a design “dream-team” with Erin Rushing of OZTB Consulting—one of the key leaders behind Bentonville’s rise as a premier mountain biking destination in the country—and the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA), the national authority in sustainable trail design. Together, this design team brings decades of proven experience, community-driven vision, and trail-building innovation to guide the redevelopment of Tranquility into a modern, accessible, and environmentally resilient outdoor destination for all users.
Meet the Trail Design Team
Erin Rushing, OZTB Consulting: Bringing Visionary Trail Design to Omaha
Erin Rushing is the founder of OZTB Consulting and one of the nation’s leading voices in modern trail design. A distinguished Landscape Architect and longtime advocate for sustainable outdoor recreation, he played a central role in transforming Northwest Arkansas into today’s premier mountain biking destination.
With more than 30 years of experience, Erin’s career spans work with CEI Engineering Associates, Alta Planning + Design, and, most notably, his tenure as CEO of the NWA Trailblazers—where he helped lead the development of nearly 400 miles of world-class trails and greenways, including Slaughter Pen, Coler, Back 40, Centennial Park, and Little Sugar.
Today, through OZTB Consulting, Erin continues his mission to create accessible, inspiring, and environmentally responsible trail systems across the country. His collaborative approach, deep community focus, and innovative vision make him an invaluable design partner for the Tranquility Park Trails project.
IMBA: National Leaders in Sustainable Trail Design
Founded in 1988, the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) is the leading nonprofit dedicated to creating, enhancing, and protecting great places to ride. Based in Boulder, Colorado, and operating through a global network of 150+ Chapter orgs and 30+ Affiliate orgs, IMBA champions accessible, sustainable trail systems through community-driven planning, professional design, and on-the-ground stewardship.
IMBA is known for setting industry standards in trail development—including the widely adopted mountain bike trail difficulty rating system—and for its expertise in trail construction, conservation, and education. Through partnerships, grants, and grassroots advocacy, IMBA empowers communities with the tools, training, and support needed to build high-quality, environmentally responsible trails.
As a design partner for the Tranquility Park Trails project, IMBA brings decades of national leadership and proven trail-building expertise to help create a modern trail system for riders, runners, hikers, and families across Omaha.
Project Goals
Based on community feedback and what the community loves in the trail system today, below are the high-level trail design elements we have the design team working on for the west side of the park:
NICA Race Loops
Middle School
High School
Traditional Trails
Maximum traditional trail mileage for running, walking, hiking, and family-friendly riding without overcrowded trail density - keep as much of the "backcountry" feel in the woods as possible.
Family & Program Friendly Skills Development
Beginner loops close to a trail access point or points that support skill progression and youth skills programs. This could be an integration of traditional trails and optional features constructed of earth, stone, or pre-engineered structures.
Skills Zone
Beginner Drop Skills
Beginner Flow/Jump
Beginner Jumps (Constructed to IMBA/THOR typicals.)
Intermediate Drop Skills
Intermediate Flow/Jump
Intermediate Jumps (Constructed to IMBA/THOR typicals - similar to jumps in the current southwest jump line.)
In the lower areas near the creekside, here are the current design goals:
Race Start/Finish/Staging/Pit Zone for NICA, NOS, GOATZ, and Other Trail Event Organizers
Meeting at least NICA Minimums: Currently, ~300 NICA student athletes
Clear and safe connections between trail zones on the east and west sides of the park, and north of Fort St.
How does this area support other recreational opportunities on the ~350+ days per year when large-scale trail events are not being held?
Critical Trail Connections Between Zones, Including Suggested Big Papio Paved Trail Connections (East, West, North, South)
Pump Track / Bicycle Skills Zone
Will the site’s soils and water management requirements be fit for this type of infrastructure?
Parking/Auto Flows
Park Entry-Road Landscaping/Beautification
What’s Next for Tranquility?
With OZTB Consulting and IMBA supporting the design process, THOR is working to ensure that Tranquility’s future reflects the community’s priorities and the park’s long-standing identity. Drawing from your feedback, the design team is now advancing a range of high-level concepts—expanding traditional singletrack, strengthening NICA-compatible race loops, enhancing beginner-friendly skills development zones, improving critical trail connections, and exploring opportunities for a pump track, event staging, beautified park entries, and year-round recreation. These elements represent the foundation for a modernized Tranquility Park Trail System: one that supports youth programs, trail events, everyday riders, runners, and hikers, while preserving the legacy that generations of users have come to love.
For more information or to share your feedback about the Tranquility Park Improvement Project and our mission, please visit the Tranquility Park Project or contact Trails Have Our Respect’s Executive Director, Jason Brummels, at jason@thortrails.org.
