Crankworx Whistler Cancelled for Second Year
The festival is on hold until 2022 due to continued restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic
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Following much consideration and discussion, the Crankworx team is announcing the cancellation of its Whistler festival in 2021. The festival will return in August 2022.
“To our riders, core media, festival partners, and fans, we know it’s been tough. Mountain biking is both a career and a passion for many, so to lose an event that I know means so much to so many people … it’s been tough for everyone,” says Darren Kinnaird, Managing Director of the Crankworx World Tour. “We have been exploring our options for Crankworx Whistler 2021 since last summer. We held on to the possibility for as long as we could, while working on alternatives. The province of British Columbia is on a good track and is in the process of lifting restrictions, but unfortunately there’s not enough certainty or lead time to pull off the festival for this year. That said, we’re hard at work on some exciting things to get riders and fans excited this summer, so watch this space.”
B.C. is currently at Step One of a four-step reopening plan. Travel within the province is restricted, and Canada’s borders remain closed to non-essential travel.
Crankworx Whistler was also cancelled in 2020 due to the restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, the team pivoted to create the CLIF Crankworx Summer Series (CCSS) bringing together B.C. athletes to compete in a series of made-for-TV events at some of the province’s top resorts.
As for the future of the iconic Whistler festival: mountain bike fans need not fear. Crankworx Whistler is already on the calendar for next year for August 5-15. The 10-day celebration of all things mountain biking will include the Whistler stop of the Enduro World Series, and the 10th anniversary of Red Bull Joyride, one of slopestyle’s biggest competitions, and a huge spectator draw for Crankworx Whistler.
In the meantime, the other stops of the 2021 Crankworx World Tour are continuing as planned, including Crankwro Innsbruck this month and Crankworx Rotorua in November.
Stay up to date with all things Crankworx: crankworx.com