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Despite months of controversy, Trail of Tears comes and goes without incident

By Ty West
Staff Writer 

 By the thousands, they passed under Mitchell Boulevard and made the turn onto Savannah Highway.

Onlookers and other riders waved from the roadside, as the bikers passed Funland and headed down the road with a mighty collective roar.

In a just a few seconds, months worth of questions were answered, as most of the estimated 45,000 riders in the 13th Annual Trail of Tears Commemorative Motorcycle Ride initially pulled into the ride’s official final stop in McFarland Park, while hundreds of others continued straight on to the ride’s traditional final stop in Waterloo.

Despite months of controversy surrounding the official final stop of the ride being moved to Florence from Waterloo, the huge event came with its traditional roar, but without incident.

“We brought the biggest crowd out of Tennessee that we have ever had,” said Bill Cason, one of the founders of the ride. “Everything worked perfect today.”

Cason said this year’s ride was one of the largest ever, with 35 miles of riders starting out in Chattanooga, Tenn., and an estimated 45,000 total riders.

Despite the large size, Cason also said this year’s ride was one of the smoothest ever, with only a few minor accidents and no serious injuries.

Cason said all of the riders he had spoken with were pleased with bringing the entire ride and holding the Pow-Wow in McFarland Park for the first time. He hinted that the park could become a permanent home for the final stop.

“They said ‘this is where we need to be,’ ” Cason said. “I know our event is going to grow and we have found a good home for it.”

Many of the riders who stopped in McFarland Park, like Huntsville’s Sam McNeal, said they stopped in the park simply because that’s where the main pack went.

For McNeal and many of the riders, the controversy that surrounded the weeks preceding the ride didn’t dampen the experience.

“We had heard about (the ride) for a while and the history behind it,” McNeal said. “It was a good ride.”

McNeal said he was unsure if he would proceed to Waterloo from the park, but several others riders who stopped in McFarland said they intended to.

That includes Tom Wood, who recently moved to the Shoals. Wood said he was impressed by the sheer magnitude of the ride.

“I’ve never been to a bigger meet than this,” Wood said.

Some riders who did stop in Waterloo, including Gary Bellanti, from Memphis, Tenn., who joined the ride in Madison, said they believe the Trail of Tears board made a mistake by not making Waterloo the final stop.

“That’s where we have always ridden, and that’s where the Indians stopped,” Bellanti, said. “I think they made a mistake.”

Wood said he always came to Waterloo when he rides in the event, which he has done seven times.

One of the reasons Wood said he comes to Waterloo is the vendors, and despite the fact that Waterloo was not the official stop, the vendors, selling both American Indian and biker merchandise, still came out in droves to the small town.

Organizers of the event in Waterloo said they were extremely pleased with the crowd, including the number of riders who showed up on Friday.

“We have a big crowd,” McIntyre said. “You can’t tell bikers where to go or how to go.”

McIntyre said the town would continue to hold an event in conjunction with the Trail of Tears Commemorative Ride, even if it is not the official last stop.

“All of the bikers want to come to the end of the trail, and this is the end of the trail,” McIntyre said.

Although the crowd of riders in Waterloo was not as big as in years past when it was the official stop, Waterloo Mayor Jerry McIntyre said the number of vendors stayed the same, and the town sold out of its official T-shirts commemorating the event.

Another founder of the ride, Jerry Davis, who helped facilitate the ride from McFarland to Waterloo, said he thought the whole ride went extremely well.

Davis said he thought it was important to go to Waterloo, since it is on the original route of both the historic trail and the commemorative ride.

“The ride (from McFarland to Waterloo) went real well and we had a big turnout,” Davis said.

Waterloo residents said they were proud to host an event like they did on Saturday, saying that this year’s event in the town was more about honoring the American
Indians than it was about motorcycles.

As she sold T-shirts during the Pow-Wow event at Waterloo, Amanda McIntyre said it always means a lot to her town’s residents to wake up and hear the beating of the drums and smell the burning sage from the festival.

“This year’s event means a lot to us,” McIntyre said, with a beating drum and authentic American Indian dancers in the background. “I’ve never been more proud.”

Ty West can be reached at 740-5720 or at ty.west@timesdaily.com.