TAHLEQUAH, Okla. — High school and college students who are Cherokee citizens and want to reconnect with their roots, get in shape and travel the route along the Trail of Tears this summer can now apply for the 2013 Remember the Removal Bike Ride.
Applications must be submitted by March 22.
“Today students read in history books a brief section about the removal, but by participating in the ride they are able to experience firsthand the trials and tribulations of the Trail of Tears,” said coordinator Taylor Alsenay. “The Remember the Removal Bike Ride is a great lifetime experience.”
Remember the Removal bike riders from 2012 traveled the Trail of Tears route through Missouri. Applications for 2013 riders are now available for the three-week ride in June.
The 2013 ride will commemorate the 175th anniversary of the removal, commonly known as the Trail of Tears. The students will start a 950-mile journey on bicycles in New Echota, Ga., and follow the trail’s northern route through Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri and Arkansas, ending in Oklahoma.
Riders are able to visit historic sites along the trail and record daily updates throughout the journey via blogs, social media and video.
Applicants must be a Cherokee Nation citizen and a student in high school or college between the ages of 16 and 24. They must provide background and health information and submit a personal essay.
Riders, selected by a panel, must provide their own clothing, bedding, toiletries and spending money. Cherokee Nation will provide meals, bicycles, biking gear and lodging. For more information or to download an application, visit http://remembertheremoval.cherokee.org.
