Clog Wild Cloggers: Celebrating the National Day of Clogging in Alabama

The National Day of Clogging and International Day of Clog Dancing is quickly approaching on August 8, 2025, and with it, celebrations in multiple U.S. states as well as countries around the world. On July 20, 2024, one particular clogging club, The Clog Wild Cloggers, led by Kay Trimm Hyde, went the extra mile, traveling to the state capital in Montgomery, Alabama, to celebrate a state proclamation declaring the National Day of Clogging would be recognized as an official holiday in the state of Alabama annually. Today, we take a look back at that particular day, as well as the growing influence of the National and International Day of Clogging worldwide.

Origins of the National Day of Clogging/International Day of Clog Dancing

Simone Nichols Pace (the daughter of Bill Nichols, the modern clogging pioneer dubbed the “Grandfather of Clogging”) worked to have August 8, 2020, become the first annual National/International Day of Clogging. This date was chosen in remembrance of her father’s passing on August 8, 2018. 

Since the birth of this significant holiday, clogging leaders from multiple U.S. states have sought state proclamations recognizing the holiday, following Simone’s push to have it done in South Carolina in 2023 (North Carolina also recognized it in 2023). In 2024, other states in the Southeast obtained proclamations for the National Day of Clogging: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Tennessee, and West Virginia (the Midwest state of Michigan included). States that joined in 2025 so far include Maryland and Virginia, and in total, 25 states have applied in the last two years.

Regardless of official state proclamations, this holiday has quickly caught fire in states across the nation, as well as countries around the world, with dozens of promotional videos being released by clogging groups celebrating the holiday in its first year. Beyond the almost 20 U.S. states that celebrated in 2020, countries that also jumped on the clogging celebration bandwagon included Australia, France, Germany, Slovakia, Taiwan, and the UK. The holiday has exploded since then among clogging enthusiasts, and will undoubtedly expand in years to come.

Clog Dancing Defined

Clogging is a form of percussive tap dancing, executed wearing clogging shoes featuring jingle taps (sometimes called double taps or bell taps). These taps consist of a double layer of metal, with a smaller, loose piece secured to a larger plate, which creates a jingle sound when the dancer walks or dances. The clogger dances with rhythmic downbeats of the music, whereas tap dancers focus on the melody in their choreography. Cloggers perform solo routines, in couples formation, or in groups. The clog dance style can be performed in choreographed dances, in competitions, or freestyle, with similar traditional dance styles being flatfoot dancing and buck dancing. 

A Brief History of Clogging

North American settlers from countries like England, Scotland, Ireland, and Germany brought their folk music and dancing styles with them when they populated areas such as the Appalachian Mountains in the 1700s. Their styles, blended with Native American and African American styles, developed into a freeform dance for both private and community entertainment, usually performed to fiddling or bluegrass music. An early influencer in the 1920s was Bascom Lamar Lunsford, who popularized team clogging at the annual Mountain Dance and Folk Festival in Asheville, North Carolina.

As its impact grew, Bill Nichols, the “Grandfather of Modern Clogging,” embraced and mastered the dance style and was eventually recognized as the first American to give terminology, structure, and organization to clogging. He standardized the practice of “calling” steps so that dancers could learn and perform routines in unison, and helped develop competition rules. He was the first president of the National Clogging Hoedown Council and was a co-founder of the annual Possum Holler Clogging Workshop, as well as Fontana’s Universal Clogging Championships, which inspired the First National Clogging Convention. In his lifetime, Bill Nichols saw clogging reach international acclaim in competition form.

Today, clogging blends multiple styles like Irish hard shoe dancing, Canadian step dancing, tap dancing, and more. Workshops, conventions, competitions, and performances at festivals and other events keep this time-honored traditional dance style alive and thriving all over the world. Learn more about Bill Nichols in the following video:

Clog Wild Cloggers and The National Day of Clogging in Alabama

The official proclamation to have the National Day of Clogging recognized in the state of Alabama is due to the efforts of Kay Trimm Hyde, the leader of The Clog Wild Cloggers, a club of cloggers who meet weekly in Fultondale, Alabama. The 2-hour meetings include practice, rehearsal of routines for the performance team, and clogging lessons when the bi-yearly 8-week beginner classes are in session. The Clog Wild Cloggers perform at area events and festivals across Alabama, and were even invited to dance at the 2022 World Games in Birmingham, AL.

Kay’s first introduction to clogging was in 2003 when she witnessed a performance, and she was so taken with it that she enrolled in a class to learn it herself. “I was hooked immediately. I was at that class every week, and I knew, then, immediately, I said, ‘I’m going to teach this one day, and have my own group.’” On October 1, 2010, she formed The Clog Wild Cloggers with the help of co-leader Jan Hogan. To celebrate its 15-year anniversary coming up this October, Kay is planning an anniversary bash that will include a mini workshop and party to mark the momentous occasion. Kay is also the State Clogging Rep for the Alabama Square and Round Dance Associations.

When Kay had realized that a few states in the Southeast were obtaining state proclamations for the National Day of Clogging, she reached out to Simone Nichols Pace and told her that she would like to pursue that in the state of Alabama, too. She also contacted Jack Williams, her longtime friend who is a former Alabama State Representative. With his connections to the state capital, Williams helped get the proclamation pushed through. Whereas some of the states got a governor’s proclamation, the one in Alabama was secured via the Alabama State Legislature, which was more difficult to obtain because it had to be passed by a vote in the Alabama House of Representatives. She may pursue a proclamation through the state governor in the future, but for all intents and purposes, the National Day of Clogging has become a state holiday and was officially celebrated for its first year on August 8, 2024.

As several states were seeking the National Day of Clogging to be officiated last year, Simone Nichols Pace co-choreographed The Statehouse Dance with Britton Elliott to celebrate these special events. Clogging groups in states like Georgia, Tennessee, and Alabama learned the routine and performed it at their respective state capitol buildings. By open invitation, other cloggers were invited to take part in the event on July 20, 2024, at the Alabama State Capitol building in Montgomery, AL. Among those were The Clog Wild Cloggers, Beverly’s Dance (Gardendale, AL), and Shebang Dance (Troy, AL). 

Here’s the official video of the CWC and friends performing it at the Alabama Capitol:

The National/International Day of Clogging 2025

If your interest has been sparked regarding clogging or the holiday, there are many ways to find out more. You can visit the official National Day of Clogging/International Day of Clog Dancing Facebook Page managed by Simone Nichols Pace for highlights from celebrations of the coming day all over the world. If you are interested in taking up clogging, visit iClog for a list of clubs in your state. Alabama residents in search of lessons, connection, or booking The Clog Wild Cloggers can visit the official site here for more information. For a more up-close demo of their dancing skills, check out their Statehouse Dance promo video below: