A popular mountain bike ride was canceled.
The 2021 attack on Mount Mitchell and the attack on Marion scheduled for May 17, 2021 will no longer occur.
ASSAULT IN MT. MITCHELL PASS IN THE CITY; CYCLISTS MAY CAUSE TRAFFIC BACKUP
The 102.7-mile race starts in Spartanburg, South Carolina and continues to Marion, North Carolina and Mount Mitchell.
Organizers say the event is considered a major in-person event and currently does not comply with North Carolina’s COVID-19 guidelines.
“Current mandates in the state of North Carolina prohibit large face-to-face events, whether outdoors or closed,” the organizers wrote in an online post. “As we do not have a clear timetable for when these regulations will be lifted, the Freewheelers Cycling Association, the NC State Parks Department, the Blue Ridge Parkway leadership and the Mt. Mitchell State Park management are not comfortable with move forward with the event in 2021. “
It is said that the bicycle tour will return next year, on May 16, 2022.
CYCLISTS TREAT HEAT, ALTITUDE IN 102 MILES ‘ASSISTANCE AT MITCHELL ASSEMBLY’
If you have already signed up for the event, the organizers say that you will receive an email with more details.
The popular mountain bike tour attracts hundreds of people every year, including Jimmie Johnson, NASCAR pilot, in 2016.