Triangle students bike across the south making stops at Civil Rights sites

DURHAM, N.C. (WTVD) -- 12 students from the Triangle are trading books for bikes rolling down the road of educational empowerment.

The group is traveling from state to state across the southeast making stops at civil rights sites along the way.

Thursday night, we caught up with the group from their hotel pit stop in Atlanta, Georgia.

Days earlier they took off from North Carolina making a trip to Selma, Alabama where they start pedaling back in time. "The black history there is very good," said Taj Harrell, from Durham. "There's a lot of Black history in Selma that I didn't know about," he continued.

Students like Harrell learned firsthand about the fight for the right to vote and the 1965 Selma to Montgomery March to register Black voters in the South. The trip fueled 17-year-old Monica Green's desire to do more in the Bull City.

"What stood out to me was the role that high school students played. And as someone who just graduated high school, for me, it seemed as if I could make some of the changes that they were able to make during the voting rights movement."

The students are biking 50 to 77 miles a day starting each morning dark and early at 5:30. Student Kahaan Khatri from Durham explained how they get their day going. "Just setting out the road as early as possible to kind of avoid the heat. And then the day kind of just goes into where you bike, take some breaks, eat lunch."

"When you get to the campsite, or the hotel, in this case, you get your stuff. If you're on a campsite, you pitch your tent, and you have the rest of the day to relax and some other like small things," explained Khatri.

The trip is sponsored by the nonprofit Triangle Bikeworks. The organization hopes to engage kids of color and expose them to cycling, a not-so-popular sport in the Black community.

"Although I would say 99% of the youth of color, have ridden the bike and enjoy riding their bike. But the cost of a bike currently has been placed out of reach of the disposable income of most families," explained Executive Director Kevin Hicks.

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He started cycling seriously in his 20s before the nonprofit was born. This program is free and through donations, Hicks has been able to do this 12 times for students in the Triangle. Each summer trip centers on Black and American history with an environmental touch.

"We bring about untold history," said Hicks. "And then the physicality of biking across the country that builds confidence in themselves so that they can be stronger and productive adults," he continued.

On Friday the students will start their day by visiting the King Center and Ebenezer Baptist Church, the home church of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., then hitting their bikes and pedaling through Georgia.

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The students will travel through South Carolina before making their way back to Carrboro on July 16. Each night the students rest at local hotels or campsites.

"They do not have to bring anything but a positive attitude, and a smile and, and grit," said Hicks.

If you would like to help sponsor a trip or volunteer click here.