Cyclists of the Cherokee Nation Ride the Trail of Tears

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Like many new cyclists, Sky Wildcat has spent time collecting road rash and bruises as she learns to master clipless pedals. She’s also getting used to the pain and discomfort that comes with covering increasingly higher mileage in the saddle. Things like heat and dehydration on long climbs are all new experiences for the 22-year-old master’s degree candidate.

But she welcomes it all, because she’s training for the ride of her life.

On June 1, Wildcat will join nine fellow members of her Cherokee Nation tribe and eight others from the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians to bike nearly 1,000 miles from New Echota, Georgia, to Tahlequah, Oklahoma. Together, they will follow in the footsteps of their ancestors—footsteps that walked the Trail of Tears during the federal government’s forced removal of Native Americans from the Southeastern United States in the 1830s. The ride, called “Remember the Removal,” is meant to honor those ancestors, some 4,000 of whom died during the march.

This is the ninth consecutive year Cherokee Nation members have participated in the ride. (The tribe founded the event back in 1984, and revived it in 2009.) The Eastern Band joined their western counterparts in 2011. Since then, it has become an integral part of historical, cultural, and physical education for the Cherokee people.

“When you experience adversity as a young person, you learn what you’re capable of,” Eastern Band Chief Richard Sneed, himself an alumnus of the ride, told Bicycling. “Everyone has a transformative moment out there.”

Like Wildcat, many participants come into the ride with little to no cycling experience. After applying to make the team, each rider follows a six-month training program with both physical and educational components. “I grew up around the language and history, but the lessons have made it all the more real to me,” Wildcat said. “It’s at the core of what we do.”

The route follows the northern removal path—one of several making up the Trail of Tears, which affected at least five different tribes. It stops at important historical landmarks, such as Mantle Rock and Blythe Ferry, as well as the gravesites of those who died on the march.

https://www.bicycling.com/news/a20883673/remember-removal-trail-tears-bike-ride/

[mountain grammy]

1. Thank you for posting this.

I never knew about it and it deserves attention. Would love to see more media coverage of it. Good for our American Indians keeping this history alive.

I'll be following it.

[Marie Marie]

2. Yes, this needs more attention.

I know that this was something that was never mentioned in any of my history classes in school.

[plimsoll]

3. The Trail of Tears wasn't mentioned?

That seems odd I think it was mentioned in our 8th grade US history class. Granted, that was 40 years ago, but there was plenty of white washing (ouch) of history then. I think "states rights" were mentioned as a cause for the civil war.

[rwsanders]

5. Check out the book "Lies My Teacher Told Me" By James Loewen. He covers this quite well.

http://a.co/fxoRbvh

[Marie Marie]

6. Not that I can remember and I think I would have remembered this.

But, my memory could be wrong.

[rwsanders]

4. This is so overwhelming, I want to acknowledge it, but have nothing to say. I can only add...

that it also included other tribes https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trail_of_Tears

the Chickasaw:
http://a.co/b70sSPe (I have this book and sadly have not read it yet)

The Choctaw:
http://a.co/55gn4YV


As well as the Creek and Seminole


A song to accompany the sadness:

[brer cat]

7. I'm glad they are doing this.

Remember the Removal.