Saturday, June 6 is National Trails Day. The Oregon-California Trails Association (OCTA) has cancelled its events that would require public gatherings. In its place, OCTA will promote the Oregon, California, and Santa Fe Trail’s shared corridor through the Greater Kansas City metro area by holding the “You Have Died of Dysentery” 40K run (with its name an obvious nod to the world-famous “Oregon Trail” video game in which players frequently die of dysentery). However, the run will feature OCTA’s Association Manager, Travis Boley, running (mostly) solo for four separate 10Ks during the course of the day. He may have one other person join him for some or all of the runs, but due to safety and logistical reasons, we need keep the event small.
He will run in the historic trail corridor through the cities of Sugar Creek, Independence, Raytown, and Kansas City, Missouri, from the Missouri River to south Kansas City to raise awareness for the Mid-America Regional Plan’s Historic Trail Retracement project. Each run will be live-streamed here, with runs at 8 AM, 11:30 AM, 3 PM, and 6:30 PM (all times Central). He will keep an even 8 minute per mile pace, meaning each 10K should take less than 50 minutes. As you follow along with the live stream, you will see many of the historic trail sites as he passes them and you’ll learn about OCTA’s shared endeavor to help facilitate the building of a hiking/biking trail connecting each of these historic sites.
In addition to OCTA canceling its National Trails Day events across the country, OCTA has also announced that it is postponing its 2020 convention in Elko, Nevada until September 2021. The “You Have Died of Dysentery” 40K is one of several fundraisers OCTA is holding this year to make up for the income lost from postponing its Elko Convention. Forty kilometers is roughly equivalent to 25 miles, so we’re asking for sponsors for every mile he completes. Whether its a dollar a mile, $5/mile, $10/mile, $20/mile or more, your sponsorship will go a significant way toward helping OCTA fill its budget gap this year. Simply add your sponsorship commitment by emailing kconway@indepmo.org or make a direct donation now at OCTA’s online donation portal. Each donor at the $1 or more per mile rate will receive a “You Have Died of Dysentery” t-shirt. In the coming days, we will publish a full list of thank you gifts for each level of donation.
We will be posting the routes in a few days as well as the approximate times that he will pass each site. We would love to see small crowds of people (with proper social distancing, of course) cheering him on at each site, some of which will include:
-Wayne City Landing and Gilpin Town in Sugar Creek
-Independence sites such as Mill Creek Park, McCoy Park, the Truman Courthouse, the National Frontier Trails Museum, the Bingham-Waggoner Mansion, the Vaile Mansion, and Santa Fe Trail Park
-The site of the Ray Blacksmith Shop, the Raytown Historical Society, the Rice-Tremonti Home, and Cave Spring in Raytown
-Hickman Mills School District, Schumacher Park, Powder Mill Bridge, Hart Grove Creek Campground, and Minor Park/Red Bridge in Kansas City
Please share this event with your friend’s and follow this page to receive updates. If you are subscribed to OCTA’s E-News, you will also receive frequent updates in your email inbox. Thanks for all you do to protect and promote America’s unique Western Historic Trails!
