Gnargo Bikes: A Love Story

What happens when two artists fall in love over bikes, move to a trail town, and decide to build a better way to move families and elders? We sit down with Elysia Springer of Bentonville-based Gnargo Bike Co to share the story of a pandemic garage project that grew into a community-powered company.

Elysia unpacks how early prototypes and human-centered designs transformed into sustainable transportation, local manufacturing, and practical urban mobility. And then emerges the success of the trishaw. We dive into the design challenges of steering, curb handling, and wheelchair access, and how Gnargo brought an American-made option to communities sidelined by import delays and tariffs. Throughout, we explore Gnargo’s circular model: paying community bike shops for donor frames, turning scrap into cargo haulers, and funding local chapters through trishaw sales. Gnargo's ask is simple —use rebates to shop local and handmade, and help build a mobility ecosystem where joy is a design spec. Learn more at Gnargobike.co.

A New American Town is here to help you plan your trip to Bentonville, Arkansas. From guides, events, and restaurant highlights. Find all this and more at visitbentonville.com and subscribe to our newsletter. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, and LinkedIn.  

You can listen to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, CastBox, Podcast Casts, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and Podcast Addict.