Wednesday, May 05, 2021 Austin San Souci rides in the Tennessee National Enduro March 14 in Windrock, Tennessee. Ryan Little photo
Austin San Souci was just 2 years old the first time he rode a bike.
“He never had training wheels. He just took off,” said his father, Tyler San Souci. “We sort of supported that all along.”
Now 16, Austin has expanded his aspirations far beyond the backyard of his parents’ Bryson City home. The Swain County High School student spends much of his time on the road, working toward his ultimate goal of becoming a professional mountain bike rider.
Last year was Austin’s first racing downhill, his chosen genre within the mountain biking family. The results were encouraging, to say the least. In 2020, during the four-part Downhill Southeast Series, he posted first, second, third and seven-place finishes, delivering an overall first place ranking based on total points earned during the series.
Molly Rawn, CEO of Experience Fayetteville (Beth Hall)
A major bike race organizer’s pullout from next year’s world cyclocross championships in Fayetteville made headlines as an example of the backlash Arkansas faces because of new legislation on transgender minors. (See Transgender Laws Draw a Hot Spotlight).
The race director, Brooks Watts, who also withdrew from another Fayetteville race, this year’s UCI World Cup, prominently denounced the legislation on social media. He aimed particular outrage at Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s signing of a bill outlawing certain health treatments for transgender youth.
But Molly Rawn, CEO of Experience Fayetteville, the city’s regional tourism bureau that’s putting on the cyclocross championships, said local issues predating the legislation had contributed to a decision to cut ties with Watts’ company, Parkven Productions, before his April 21 state
Federation Focus: Offshore Sailing Quandary, Sport Climbing Election 04/28/21
Sailing Weighs Offshore Boats for Paris 2024
World Sailing faces a June 8 decision deadline by the IOC on whether double-handed offshore event will be contested in the 2024 Olympics.
The international federation had decided in 2018 on a 10-event program for Paris that includes the offshore event. But the IOC has since raised questions, concerned about the complexity of TV coverage and logistical concerns.
The IOC has asked the federation to come up with an alternative to consider that would keep the number of sailing medal events at 10.
Union Cycliste Internationale and Zwift announced its partnership to participate in the IOC’s Olympic Virtual Series.
Federation Focus: Offshore Sailing Quandary, Sport Climbing Election 04/28/21
Sailing Weighs Offshore Boats for Paris 2024
World Sailing faces a June 8 decision deadline by the IOC on whether double-handed offshore event will be contested in the 2024 Olympics.
The international federation had decided in 2018 on a 10-event program for Paris that includes the offshore event. But the IOC has since raised questions, concerned about the complexity of TV coverage and logistical concerns.
The IOC has asked the federation to come up with an alternative to consider that would keep the number of sailing medal events at 10.
Union Cycliste Internationale and Zwift announced its partnership to participate in the IOC’s Olympic Virtual Series.