Board of Directors
If you need to contact any board member, email staff for their contact information.
Acting Chair: Rip Sanders, Columbia
Rip is a practicing lawyer, representing and advising clients in commercial real estate and other business transactions and contracts as well as litigation matters or lawsuits. Rip has a BS in History from Clemson and a JD from USC Columbia.
Treasurer: Brian Curran, Columbia
Originally from Pittsburgh, Brian made Columbia his home since 1984. He is a graduate of U of SC with a degree in Finance, and he is married with three adult children. Brian is an avid cyclist, mountain, road and gravel. This will be his second time serving on the PCC board.
Lanneau Lide, Columbia
Lanneau is a retired cardiologist, and he spent years leading the Assault on Little Mountain ride, annually north of Columbia. He currently volunteers with Festivelo, held annually as a fundraiser for PCC in Walterboro, SC.
Kyle Draganov, Charleston
Kyle has 20+ years of experience in geographic information systems application development. Currently, he works in application security for The Baldwin Group, on contract with the NOAA Office for Coastal Management. Kyle’s passion for cycling began in his teens while competing in road races and triathlons. Later in life, realizing the environmental and health benefits of cycling, he sought out opportunities to advance the cycling movement. Kyle is an active volunteer in local cycling organizations, including Charleston Moves. He annually participates in charity and group rides such as Ride to Remember for Alzheimer’s, Cycle for Life Cystic Fibrosis, and Hell Hole Gravel Grind. He also co-founded a work cycling club that has grown to 20+ members. Kyle resides in James Island with his wife Kelly and daughter Bella.
Mary McGowan, Greenville
Mary McGowan is a Speech-Language Pathologist for Greenville County Schools and a full time bike commuter in Greenville, SC. She currently serves as the board chair of Bike Walk Greenville and is passionate about building safer and more accessible infrastructure for active transportation.
Eshana Young-Pierre, Lexington
Eshana has been in the creative industry for 14 years as a Graphic Designer and Marketing professional. She is proficient in generating revenue by implementing cutting-edge branding campaigns, visual marketing, and branding design. Her creative journey has allowed her to change the narrative of many businesses in South Carolina, outside of South Carolina, as well as outside of the United States. Eshana takes a hands-on approach with her clients, which she believes unlocks opportunities for success, growth, and abundance.
Brittany Jones, Bennettsville
Brittany is the Business Development and Community Engagement Manager for the City of Bennettsville, SC, in Marlboro county. She previously served as the Communications and Equity Manager for the national organization, Safe Routes to School Partnership. She currently serves as the Secretary of the Lake Paul A. Wallace Authority working to improve trail access and recreational offerings. She serves on several boards and organizations in her community and is passionate about improving the quality of life and health of residents through safe and connected routes.
Linda Davis, Lexington
Linda Davis, President of the Major Taylor Cycling Club South Carolina (MTCCSC), was introduced to the sport by her husband, the visionary James Tracey Davis. Linda partnered with James to make his vision and dream a reality, to have the largest cycling club in the state of South Carolina that will promote the legacy of Major Taylor, support good health, influence positive social culture and fun, and close the gap of differences in our segregated world using cycling as the bridge.
Linda is a corporate liaison and holds dual master’s degrees MPA and MBA. Linda has a strong Christian background and loves the church. Linda loves to inspire and encourage others.
Linda lost her husband when he was hit by a car while riding his bike in June 2023.
Lewis McWhite, Greenville
I was born and raised in Greenville and left SC after my wife and I finished both undergraduate and graduate school at the University of SC in Columbia. We ended up in the Dallas, TX area where our girls were born, and we lived there for 15 years. We returned to SC in December of 1999 and have been here since. My wife and I are both retired (I was an IT professional, and my wife worked in higher education), but I do work three days a week as a driver for Meals on Wheels Greenville County.
Like many, I have been riding a bicycle all my life, but only started serious road cycling in 2009 after traveling for years and was out of shape. My teenage daughter and I trained for the Wheels for Meals 25 mile course that year and I was hooked after that. I started riding at SCTAC/Donaldson Center with the Greenville Spinners Bicycle Club in 2010. Over the last 15 years, my cycling efforts include many charity rides and some exciting and challenging adventures including at least 10 Greenville Wheels for Meals, Safe Harbor, MS Breakaway to the Beach, Flight of the Dove, 5 Hincapie Gran Fondos, 3 times Assault on Mt. Mitchell, and 5 years of the cross-state Ride to Remember/Ride to End Alzheimers rides. Most recently I have run SAG for both the Hincapie Gran Fondos and Ride to End Alzheimers rides.
I am now in my sixth year of serving on the board of the Greenville Spinners Bicycle Club where I oversee our weekly group rides from SCTAC from April-September and various events throughout the year. I am passionate about cycling safety for individual and group riders and advocating for safe and
appropriate cycling infrastructure in our community. I have always been passionate about serving the cycling community and making it a safer sport and leisure activity.
Brad Cantrell, Greenville
Carlsen Huey, Sullivan's Island
My wife Kathy and I live on Sullivan’s Island, near Charleston. She is a labor and delivery nurse, and I do independent finance and accounting work for 4 nonprofit foundations. I have an MBA and BBA in accounting from Georgia State University in Atlanta, GA. In a prior life, I worked for 25 years at what is now Bank of America, in accounting, compliance, funding and investments, and mergers and acquisitions.
At the foundations, I do a range of activities, depending on the client – from full bookkeeping, to audit assistance, to special projects. My largest client is MUSC Foundation; others are Preservation Society of Charleston, USS Yorktown Foundation, and WestEdge Foundation.
My outside interests include riding my bicycle, skiing, cooking, history, and singing.
Advisory Board Members
Kelly Mezzapelle, Myrtle Beach
Kelly has been a planner for the City of Myrtle Beach for over 20 years. Kelly has developed transportation plans, roadway design plans, mixed-use pedestrian-friendly zoning districts, and currently staffs the city’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee. Kelly is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners, and has her BS in Marketing and Real Estate from USC-Coastal and her MBA from Winthrop University. Kelly and her husband have been cycling on the Grand Strand for almost 30 years.
Leigh Deforth, Columbia
Leigh has worked in the planning field since 2005, and has enjoyed becoming more involved with bike and pedestrian planning while working as a comprehensive planner for the City of Columbia, a role she's held since 2015. An avid road runner, cyclist, neighborhood walker, amatuer potter and jam maker in Columbia, she also enjoys hiking, mountain biking, trail running, and skiing.
Kyle Kelly, Sumter
Kyle is a Senior Planner with the Sumter City-County Planning Commission, where he serves as the lead transportation planner for the City of Sumter, Sumter County, and the Sumter Area Transportation Study (SUATS) MPO. He is a proud graduate of Clemson University, and an Eagle Scout. When he’s not thinking about Clemson football or city planning, he’s struggling to keep up with his 4-year old daughter and 2-year old son.
Stacey Owens, Greenville
Stacey Owens is a retired police captain from the Greenville Police Department in S.C. after 28 years of service, where he served over 19 years primarily in investigatory and supervisory roles. Stacey holds a Master’s in Criminal Justice from Anderson University and is now employed by the SPINX Company, LLC and is the Director of Community Engagement. Stacey is married with 3 children & 2 grandsons. After semi-retiring, he is now back to being an avid mountain biker and enjoys spending time with family.
Sylvie Baele, North Charleston
Sylvie is the executive director of Charleston's nonprofit bicycle shop, Second Chance Bikes, which works to make bikes accessible to all so everyone can enjoy the benefits of bike ownership. A recent graduate of the College of Charleston's dual masters program in Environmental and Sustainability Studies and Public Administration, she is dedicated to helping others develop a deeper appreciation of bicycles as tools of social justice, strengthening and empowering users and communities in a myriad of meaningful and intersectional ways. When she isn't turning wrenching, delivering bikes, or sending emails, she loves spending time in nature and is most likely bikepacking, surfing, foraging, or weaving baskets out of invasive vines.