Chicago’s Major Taylor bike trail celebrates a trailblazing American cyclist

Major Taylor was both a world champion American cyclist who once held seven world sprint records and an activist who demanded equal treatment in the face of racist competitors and race organizers. Brenda Dixon, the president of the board for the Major Taylor Trail Keepers, puts Major Taylor on par with Jesse Owens, Arthur Ashe and other trailblazing American sports heroes who “stand on his shoulders without even realizing it.”“He was an activist before his time,” Dixon said of Taylor, who competed around the turn of the 20th century. “Everyone should know who he is.” A cycling and walking trail through Chicago’s South Side bears Major Taylor’s name, and this year’s annual celebration ride in his honor is scheduled for Sept. 7. In this episode, Dixon is joined by Keith Holt, a founding member of the Major Taylor Cycling Club Chicago and a pivotal part of the establishment of the Major Taylor Trail, to tell us Major Taylor’s story and the story of the community through which his trail passes. This episode was originally published on Aug. 16, 2023.