COVID-19 Postponements Strike the Bike Industry

With the World Health Organization officially declaring the novel coronavirus outbreak known as COVID-19 a global pandemic today, a slew of cycling-affiliated organizations have either postponed or cancelled events as a result.

The two big trade shows to announce postponements thus far are the North American Handmade Bike Show in Dallas, and the Sea Otter Classic in Monterrey, California. They have been re-scheduled to August, and October respectively.

On the racing circuit, the UCI has announced the postponement of their first round of DH racing to be held in Lousã, Portugal. Originally slated to take place on March 20th-21st, a new date has yet to be announced pending "consultation with the organising committee and the country’s health authorities, taking into account the overall calendar of the series and depending on the evolution of the spread of the coronavirus worldwide and in Portugal," according to a press release by the UCI

Similarly, the Enduro World Series has postponed the first two rounds of their 2020 race calendar, which were to be held in Manizales, Colombia and Farellones, Chile. Dates are now listed as the 7th and 8th of November for Manizales, and November 14th and 15th for Farellones.

Regarding the postponements, EWS Director Chris Ball said in a press release: "In order to best protect all staff, riders, fans and act in the most responsible way possible in the world’s current situation, we have made the decision to postpone our first two rounds. We hope the early decision of this date change helps to remove stress from a situation that is causing us all a great deal of difficulty. We look forward to getting our season started in May and thank all of our partners and staff for their support in these challenging times."

With no end in sight to the pandemic, there's no telling if more events will be pushed back, or outright cancellations at this point.