By Blake Deshazo

The Selma Times-Journal

Fifty years ago marchers set off from Selma on a 54-mile journey to Montgomery to fight for the right to vote.

To pay homage to those who marched in 1965, more than 350 cyclists rode across the famed Edmund Pettus Bridge and on to the state capitol Saturday.

“Just the idea of riding the same route that the marchers took almost 50 years ago is amazing, and I just want to be able to see and experience that,” said Knoxie Hall, a cyclist from Little Rock, Ark.

“It’s going to help me to appreciate the struggles and the sacrifices that they made to make it possible for us to even be here and be able to do this today.”

More than 25 states were represented in the 50th anniversary Selma to Montgomery Ride, which was organized by the Montgomery Bicycle Club.

“Cycling as a whole is good activity,” said William Fitzgerald with the Metro Atlanta Cycling Club. “So the fact that you can have this many people from over 25 different states come together, not only for this occasion but to promote cycling in the communities, I think it’s just a beautiful thing.”

The number of riders that signed up to participate amazed Bruce Herbitter, who helped organize the commemorative ride.

“We didn’t think we’d have more than a dozen or so riders because who wants to ride in February?” Herbitter said. “We were just stunned and amazed that we had 350, and we could have had more if we wanted to.”

While some cyclists were riding to see what it was like for marchers in 1965, others participated to honor family members that put their lives on the line in the marches 50 years ago.

“It means a lot because I am able to relive the moments of history and also show appreciation for my ancestors and let them know that their struggle wasn’t for nothing,” said Tomiya Melvin, a cyclist with the Houston Ladies Cycling Club in Houston, Texas.

Most riders wore jerseys with numbers on their backs, but Melvin proudly displayed two pieces of paper with the names of her family members that participated in Bloody Sunday and the Voting Rights Movement in Selma.

“I’m going to be thinking about their pain. I’m going to be thinking about what maybe they were thinking,” Melvin said. “But I’m also going to be appreciating the freedom that I have now, and that I don’t have to look back and wonder if I’m going to be killed or beaten for voting.”

Pedaling the 54-miles of highway is much easier than walking it, but some cyclists will use the motivation of what foot soldiers endured to help them make it to Montgomery.

“Although I’m going to want to whine the whole 50 miles, I’m not going to because I know that this was made by people who went through a lot of bad times,” said Sara Romano. “I’m going to do the 50 miles and be proud of it.”

For Kenneth Smith, another cyclist from Houston, the ride from Selma to Montgomery was an opportunity he wouldn’t miss for anything.

“I get goose bumps just thinking about [the marches]. I really do,” Smith said.