Trail of Tears Riders
Cliff, BamBam, Beak, Elaine, Kojak
My First Trail Of Tears Ride - 2007
In
October, 1994, the first Trail Of Tears Ride took place with eight bikes
starting at Ross Landing in Chattanooga, TN and ending with around 100
bikes. This ride was to bring awareness to Hwy 72 and to recognize
it and mark it as a historic place. This is part of the route used
to move Native American Indians to Oklahoma, thanks to The Indian
Removal Act of 1830. It stands as a sad reminder of a tragic
chapter in American history. I won’t go into the history here, but when
you have a minute, follow the link below to look at the website
containing all the information regarding
the ride.
http//www.trailoftears-remembrance.org
Let me share some of the impressions and experiences that I gained from participating in this ride.
Beak, Bam Bam and I left my house Friday morning, September 14, 2007.
None of us had done this ride before and were very excited about being a
part of such a HUGE ride. Last year there were over 150,000 bikes
that started in Chattanooga, TN. I don’t know how many finished in
Waterloo, AL. There were also several hundred that continued on to
Oklahoma. Anyway, we headed up to Blairsville, GA for lunch and
the rain started. After lunch it was looking REALLY dark to the
west where we were heading, toward Murphy, NC. As we made our way
along Hwy 64 west of Murphy, through the pouring rain, it started to
hail. By this time we could hardly see, but there was no place to
pull off so we just took our time and continued west, toward
Chattanooga. Finally arrived and the sun greeted us as we pulled
into the hotel parking lot. After changing cloths, resting our
tushes and grabbing some dinner at a local diner, we headed downtown to
check out the events happening down there. Eric Bibb was down
there singin’ the blues and what a job he did. It was great.
Back to the hotel and to bed around midnight.
Saturday morning, the alarm clock woke us up at 4:30 so we could get
loaded back up and head toward downtown again to the staging area.
We stopped by IHOP for breakfast and was joined by Cliff, a friend that
wasn’t able to make the ride over on Friday with us. After some
much
needed coffee and food, we headed downtown.
We arrived at the staging area at 6:30 and was greeted by Kojak, another friend that was
not able to ride over on Friday. We were almost at the end of the
first group of riders. Kojak and I walked at least thirty minutes
up to the beginning of the first group of bikes. This line was two
and three bikes across, and there was no more than six inches between
tires. It was mind boggling. The bikes kept coming until we
took off at 8:00. I have never in my life imagined so many bikes
on one ride. I tried to take pics, but after seeing tens of
thousands of bikes, they all start to look alike.
The ride itself was amazing! We went through some very beautiful country
but every now and then it dawned on me that the occasion we were
commemorating was not beautiful at all. At one time this route was a
living nightmare and I just wanted to remember that and somehow pass on
my regret to the spirits that were indeed with us that day. The route
is also very important to the people that live in that area and they
lined the highways and roads to greet and cheer on the THOUSANDS of
bikes that were there to help bring awareness to the Trail. I was
honored to be a part of that ride.
We made a stop in Madison, AL
for food, fuel, rest and fellowship. When we pulled into the
shopping center parking lot it was already FULL of bikes and more kept
pouring in, even as we left an hour later. We made it to McFarland
Park in Florence, AL around 3:00 and it was a sea of bikes. I
still can’t fathom the number that was there. We hung around the
Park enjoying the Pow Wow, the sights and smells from the food cooking
for a couple hours, then headed toward Athens, AL and another hotel.
After such a long day and an amazing 200+ mile ride, we were beat. Kojak’s
mom lived a few miles from the hotel, so he went to spend the night with
her. Beak, Bam Bam and Cliff went next door to Applebee’s for beer
and football, I opted for a good, hot shower and bed. I didn’t
hear them when they came “home”.
Sunday morning came early, but not as early as Saturday. Kojak
made it back to have breakfast with us and get ready to ride back to GA.
The day started off with a very nice surprise. SANTA was having
breakfast when I walked in! Yep! I was like a kid at
Christmas and just HAD to talk to him. He had been on the ride the
previous day as well, so we had a lot to talk about. Finally, we
got on the road and headed east toward home. We took the scenic
route back (Kojak missed the road I had mapped out) but it was well
worth the extra couple hours it added to the ride. It was
absolutely breathtaking! I now have to plan a weekend over in that
part of Alabama and do some exploring. Got home around 7:30 Sunday
night, dog tired but I wouldn’t change a thing.
On the website, under Trail History, there is a statement that I will try to carry with me for the rest of my life: “Let us learn from this mistake, accept each other as we are, and walk together in peace.” That is what I’m taking from this ride and hopefully the impact it made on me will not fade from my memory.
Elaine Morris
Dacula, GA
September, 2007
Photos courtesy of Elaine and Kojak