A 3,000-mile event that includes the same single American flag carried across the nation by many different runners will conclude July 4 in the nation’s capital as part of the country’s 250th birthday celebration.
The Relay for America relay began at Rodeo Beach near San Francisco June 14. The 20-day trek continues east around the clock across the U.S. through at least 15 states before finishing on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
The plan is to have a finish-line event near the U.S. Capitol around 10:45 a.m. on July 4, followed by a second ceremony nearby.
The relay’s goal, according to event director of operations Alex Romano, is to unite Americans one mile at a time.
Nicole Boyea is one of the event’s coordinators. She said hundreds of runners of all ages from nearly all 50 states are signing up to run a portion of the route with the flag.
Only one person carries the flag at a time, but individual flag-bearers often are joined by groups of runners.
“So many different people already have enjoyed this relay in the states we have been through,” Boyea told RunWashington. “It has been a success.”
Those interested can still sign up to run on the Relay for America website.
With police escorts, the relay travels on many main roads, but also crosses through communities of all sizes. Runners hand off the flag person to person. Some 250-plus runners are expected to carry the flag during its journey.
Each mile is dedicated to a veteran who served the nation. Their names are included on the event’s website.
This week, the relay, which covers an average of 160 miles in each 24-hour period, already is more than halfway home. The states already crossed have been Utah, Nevada and Colorado, with Kansas next and entering into Missouri on Friday evening, June 26.
Still to come, the relay will cross through portions of Illinois, Indiana and Ohio.
The trek’s next part traverses a small portion of West Virginia at Wheeling, then crosses a lower part of western Pennsylvania. Then it’s into Maryland in the Frostburg and Cumberland areas.
The relay then continues into Virginia through Winchester, Berryville, Leesburg, Ashburn, Sterling and Reston, then a 9-hour stop in Arlington from midnight until 9 a.m. July 4 for an event at the Washington-Liberty High School track, which will include music, food and refreshments.
Then the relay makes its final push into D.C.
A live tracker of the relay can be found at relayforamerica.org/live.
Endurance athletes and marathon runners Joe Nail and Wyatt Moss organized the relay. Their goal was to create an epic, unifying event to celebrate America’s 250th birthday.
Nail and Moss have already carried the flag multiple times each, and will run with the flag other times as needed.
“Everything is going well and on schedule,” said Nail, a Kansas native. “The weather has worked out, with no big issues so far, and there has been a lot of fun and excitement.”
Instead of holding a solo transcontinental run, the two wanted to open the relay journey to the public.
The single flag used in the relay was purchased by Nail when he was running a marathon near a border town in Texas. He bought it from U.S. Army veteran Bryce Kinnaird, who will be has been asked to participate in the relay.
