Mike Burr

Our first exposure to the heartland of America came as we rushed to make our Early Show interview in Lexington, Oklahoma. We were elated to have Texas in the rear view mirror, as we realized we were beyond the half way mark. We rejoined the Flag south of Lexington and had the pleasure to meet Dave Kennedy and Susan Weaver, two of our Oklahoma State Coordinators. It is always a pleasure to finally meet the state coordinators in person. Most of these folks became their state leaders by being the first ones to register via email. If anyone even expressed the slightest bit of enthusiasm early on, we put him or her in charge. You cannot find nicer folks than this group of coordinators. Not once did I hear a complaint, even when they became sleep deprived. We are very grateful.

We entered a beautiful Veterans park and found nearly the entire town of Lexington waiting for us. This was a staging area for our first national live broadcast since leaving Boston on the 11th. The Early Show was nice enough to catch up to us for an update. The rest of the national media would rather assist the terrorists and scare the American public than report on the thousands of Patriotic Americans carrying the Flag across the country. A bit of opining, but hey it's my diary. Begging national media for coverage has been the single most frustrating part of this journey. Todd Wissing and I have spent many hours begging for coverage. I just don't understand.

Back to the park. The town of Lexington had a beautiful program for us with students performing patriotic songs and precision choreographed dance steps. A state senator got a bit long winded and took a cheap shot at our Commander in Chief, but I straightened him out when it was my turn. We had to practically yank the mike from his hands... I guess he thought we were staging a pep rally for his next re-election. Once the focus was back on the Flag, the event continued without a hitch. Some school children were present and I kidded them about playing hooky.

Frank LaCorte ran the Flag and the children back to their school. It has been very rewarding watching Frank teach the school children about the Flag and its importance. He has a real gift with kids. This is something none of us realized about Frank before we started. I don't think Frank realized it either.

The interview with Bryant Gumbel went smoothly from my perspective. I got a chuckle out of their comment about my looking better than in Boston. Maybe the reason was because the National Team didn't keep me up the entire night before with pre-run strategy meetings. Yeah... that sounds like a good excuse.

We shuttled ahead and rejoined the run south of Ardmore. The group was fairly large and extremely motivated. We learned that we were running with a lad named Patrick McGuire who just happened to be the four-time High School State cross-country champion. Fortunately for we old guys, Patrick was not setting the pace. This kid was humble, polite, and not breathing very hard. I asked him where he was going to college and someone in the crowd remarked, "Anywhere he wants." That's the truth.

We took a slight detour at the Ardmore Veteran's home. This establishment had been around over 60 years and we were told used to have some Civil War Veterans residing there. The Veterans and staff were all assembled proudly along the driveway. We stopped and let them all touch the Flag. They rendered crisp salutes and we thanked them for their service to our country. I wondered if anyone had ever thanked them before. Hopefully they will be honored and thanked many more times in the future.

We proceeded north through town with our next stop planned at a high school football stadium. These folks take their football seriously out here in the heartland. Just a few more miles to the stadium... I wish I had a nickel for every time someone told me, "It's just one more mile." We entered the stadium and found it filled with fans. We thought they were there for a game. We later learned they were there for the Flag. Amazing. 11 PM and these folks are waiting to see the Flag. We were led around the track by some of our airline employees. On the second lap, I decided to challenge Patrick McGuire. I surprised him and blew by him... for about a millisecond. I forgot that he was also the state champion in the mile. He went by me like I wasn't moving. Maybe I wasn't.

After Ardmore we departed and headed north toward Oklahoma City. This would prove to be another emotional roller coaster ride. We now realize what is meant by the term "heartland of America." These folks could write the book on Patriotism.

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