Cyclists challenged to recall hardships

Eight young Cherokees set forth Wednesday morning to retrace their ancestors’ steps on the Trail of Tears.

By BETTY RIDGE

Eight young Oklahoma Cherokees will be guided by the spirits of their ancestors as they retrace the route of the Trail of Tears on a journey that began Wednesday morning at the Cherokee Nation Tribal Complex.

Those who gave them their sendoff, including four who made a similar ride 25 years ago, encouraged them to remember, to learn, and to bring back and pass along the knowledge they have gained.

The trip, of more than 900 miles, will take about 19 days.

It will follow a northern route, one of three paths taken by Cherokees as they were forced from their eastern homeland to Indian Territory in 1838 and 1839.

During that harsh winter, more than 4,000 of the approximately 16,000 Cherokees on the march died before reaching their destination.

The ride is designed to raise awareness of the Trail of Tears and its impact as the riders visit places where the journey occurred.

The participants will learn more about tribal history and help promote the achievements of today’s Cherokees, individually and tribally.

“Always remember our people came on the Trail of Tears. They weren’t riding bikes; they were walking in the wintertime,” said Charlie Soap, who prayed in Cherokee and English at the riders’ departure ceremony. “I’ve been cold and it hurts. You’ll be doing it in the extreme heat.”

He told them to keep the Great Spirit with them for help in getting through the difficult times, and to work together to make the ride a success.

“You can do it because you’re Cherokee,” he said.

Several speakers encouraged the group to imagine their ancestors following and blessing their journey.

“I think about the people who come over, not just the people who were lost,” said Melanie Knight, Cherokee secretary of state.

Those who survived the trip rebuilt a nation and created a home here in the Cherokee Nation. Knight believes those people would be proud of their descendants making the ride.

Sherry Holcomb made the ride 25 years ago, and her daughter, Sarah, is the only girl in this year’s group.

“You’re representing not only yourselves but your family and the Cherokee Nation,” she told the riders. “You have this option. This is your choice to go on this trip. Your ancestors didn’t have the choice. They were forced.”

Holcomb isn’t worried about Sarah.

“She can do it. She’s strong,” she said.

Her group left from Cherokee, N.C., and started their trip riding across the Blue Ridge Mountains. This year’s riders will start out on more level terrain, hitting mountains during the latter stage of their journey in Missouri.

Will Chavez also was part of that ride.

“The hills are going to be pretty long sometimes, and the heat’s going to be unbearable, but we made it because we supported each other,” he told the group, urging them to work together as well.

Sandy Long was one of the Cherokee Nation employees giving the group its sendoff.

She was part of an advance team for the cyclists a quarter century ago, riding in a van to scout out possible camping sites and stops.

“I think it’s great. I think they should do it more than every 25 years. It’s good for them to see what their ancestors had to do,” she said.

Long said the participants on that ride came back healthier and stronger as a result of the experience.

Children from the Cherokee language immersion class sang a song their ancestors sang to ease their burden along the trail.

The riders include Wyatt Collins, Holcomb, Kolton Holmes, Gary Walker, Dallas Smith, Johnny Christie, Jerrod Dry and Baron O’Field. Their chaperones will include group leader Todd Enlow and Sharon Wright, director of the Cherokee Nation Marshals Service.

They will camp out at sites along the trail most nights, punctuated by a few nights at motels.

Riders visited with family members and friends before assembling for their departure ceremony.

“I want to learn more about my ancestors and see what they went through,” Smith said.

Collins wants to learn more about history.

“It’s good to retrace it and to learn culture and heritage, get a sense of the places they went through and get an idea of the history,” he said.

He’s been training by riding up and down Route 66; he lives in Chelsea, one stop along that famous highway.

“When he comes in from riding, he’s just dripping,” said his mother, Teresa Collins, recalling her son’s training trips, which included going to the Sonic, where he ordered a large Route 44 drink.

The riders burned many calories during the training process and will need to eat several thousand calories daily along the way.

“They told him if you want a Snickers, eat it, you’ll need it,” she said.

Christie also wants to learn more about his heritage. He has trained by riding on a road under construction, so he didn’t have to dodge traffic.

“It’s an awful long way to let my teenage son go by himself,” said his mother, Tina Christie.

So she’s making the trip, too, driving one of the vans accompanying the cyclists.

Another mother gave Christie a charge of her own as she readied for departure.

“You take care of my baby, now,” that mother said.

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