Jackson Free Press

Leigh Laney, a Madison resident who has been cycling for 30 years, founded the NunChuck Bunnies cycling team with her friend Gigi Carter to promote women's cycling.

Laney and Carter started the group in January 2016 and held their first race in Ridgeland, Race at the Renaissance, on July 30. More than 250 people competed for a $20,000 cash prize in it.

"We were pleased with the turnout at the event," Laney says. "People from as far away as Michigan, Georgia and Texas ended up showing up for it. We're looking forward to an even bigger turnout at an event we're planning for next year." They will announce details as soon as they get the event permit.

Laney says the team is working on sponsorships for the 2017 event.

She received a bachelor's degree in economics and international trade from the University of Southern Mississippi in 1984. Shortly after her graduation, Laney competed in her first triathalon in Shreveport, La.

Laney later attended Mississippi State University for a master's degree in agriculture and information sciences, receiving it in 2015. She is the owner and operator of K and K Export Management Services LLC, a Madison-based export management company that specializes in exporting vitamins for pets.

The NunChuck Bunnies currently has six members on its roster. Laney said that five to seven members is the typical size for a cycling team. The team currently consists of Laney, Carter, Denise Mills, Alison Carey, Tiffany Landry and Heather Nelson. The team's sponsors include Indian Cycle, Inclusion Innovates and Dog Wood Farms.

In addition to the to-be-announced event for next year, Nunchuck Bunnies is also supporting and riding in the Koz and Back, a ride from Jackson to Kosciusko, Miss., and back on Nov. 12. The event is a fundraiser for the Gary Holdiness Cycling Foundation, an organization that promotes cycling safety on the Natchez Trace in honor of Gary Holdiness, a doctor and cycling enthusiast who died while cycling on 
the trace.

Laney has two sons, Blake Kirtley, 25, and Brock Kirtley, 21.

For more information on NunChuck Bunnies, visit the website at nunchuckbunnies.com or find the team on Facebook.