American Discovery 250 Relay

 

The United States celebrated its 250th birthday last summer, and while at times it seemed we were too busy hating each other to notice, some imaginative commemorations have taken place. One such is the American Discovery 250 Relay, on which various runners, walkers, and cyclists are carrying a copy of the Declaration of Independence the length of the American Discovery Trail from the Golden Gate Bridge to Cape Henlopen in Delaware. This weekend, the effort passed through Cedar Rapids. They began Saturday, October 3, in Waterloo; Sunday, October 4, the relay went from Cedar Rapids to West Branch, and then to Davenport the following day, before a well-earned day of rest on Tuesday the 6th.

Remarkably, neither the website nor the news coverage I sampled described the origin story of this effort. Dave Whitson is the Relay Director. Numerous partner-sponsors along the way include the Linn County Trails Association and our neighbors to the north, the Cedar Valley Trails Partnership.

After a rainy September, flooding in Cedar Falls threatened to delay the relay's progress (McGough 2026), but bicycle riders arrived at Sag Wagon on Cedar Lake about 2:30 Saturday afternoon.

Local contact Julie Kraft, director of organizational development for Connect CR, took custody of the three batons.

The three are named Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. Here's a closeup of Life:

Each has a copy of the Declaration of Independence within.

After a short pause for refreshment...

...the riders, now including your humble blogger among them, went another mile down the trail to Greene Square in downtown Cedar Rapids. There, they were greeted by Mayor Tiffany O'Donnell.

Actors John Broda and Steve Ginsberg, who play Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin in Revival Theater Company's current production of 1776, executed flawless ceremonial baton handoffs.

John Broda hands Liberty to the mayor,
under the watchful eye of 1776 director Brian Glick

Mayor O'Donnell and the Pursuit of Happiness as well as
(L to R) John Broda, Brian Glick, Steve Ginsberg

The American Discovery Trail was created in 1990 as a concept which since has gradually become reality. The American Hiking Society hired a national coordinator to work with representatives of the states it crosses on trail routing and development. According to the official ADT website, it now "incorporates numerous local, state, and national trails, with most of them designed for walking, hiking, and running and for bicycle and equestrian use... Coast to coast is about 5,000 miles," if you take the southern route. The northern route, through Iowa and Illinois, is a mere 4,844 miles. though the relay will cover 6,850 ("The Route"). It passes through Cedar Rapids on the Cedar Valley Nature Trail, which goes from Solon to Waterloo.

Derek Stepanek of the Connect CR board at Greene Square

Walking and cycling across America is a great way to celebrate the country, particularly because you travel at a human pace and can appreciate your surroundings. The Trump administration has cut Forest Service staff, including those who maintain trails (Natanson 2025), and the Department of Transportation under Secretary Sean Duffy has reallocated funds to motor vehicle routes away from all other infrastructure (cf. Kahn 2025). This celebration is a good way to recall why those ideas were good ones, and worthy of attention once good sense returns to the federal government.

SEE ALSO: America 250 Relay — American Discovery Trail Society

Ethan Hewett, "American Discovery 250 Relay to Pass Through KMALand," kmaland.com, 3 April 2026

Dip your bike tires or your tired piggies:
The Atlantic Ocean at Cape Henlopen State Park,
terminus of American Discovery 250 Relay