Dirty Kanza founder apologizes for Rayshard Brooks shooting Facebook post
TOPEKA, Kan. (KSNT) – Jim Cummins, one of the founders of the Dirty Kanza bike race in Emporia has parted ways with the event after a controversial Facebook post about the shooting death of Rayshard Brooks.
KSNT News reached out and received this statement from Cummins:
I have dedicated the past fifteen years of my life to serving the cycling community. A strong community is a diverse community… made up of people from all walks of life, from all races, all religions, and holding a wide variety of views. I support them all.”
A recent social media post of mine had one singular purpose… to show support for our men and women in blue. Unfortunately, I chose my words poorly. As a result, my words caused division and pain. For that I am deeply sorry.
In light of this, I have agreed with the fine people at Life Time that the only proper course of action is for me to end my association with the company and with their events. I wish Life Time, and the entire cycling community well. And hope that, some day, I can help to heal the wounds that I have caused.”
Jim Cummins
In a post on Facebook, Dirty Kanza said “We commit to continuing to learn, listen & grow toward making our sport a more inclusive place where we all feel welcome and represented. We have an opportunity to do better and be better, and we plan on doing just that.”
The Dirty Kanza is one of the largest bike races in the nation, with the race’s organizers referring to it as the “World’s Premier Gravel Grinder.” The event usually takes place in June, but was postponed to the weekend of September 10th due to coronavirus.