Local runners carry flag in Relay for America
Local runners help carry flag in Relay for America
Red, white and blue raced through the roads of Greene, Fayette and Washington counties Thursday morning, and waved from the sidewalks and shoulders.
The counties made up the overnight and morning legs of Relay for America, a nationwide relay carrying the American flag cross-country to commemorate America’s semiquincentennial. Runners set off June 14 from San Francisco. As of Thursday morning, the flag was expected to reach its final destination of the National Mall in Washington, D.C., at 4:18 a.m. July 4.
It’ll be the culmination of a plan hatched two years ago by marathoners Joe Nail and Wyatt Ross as a communal way to celebrate America. According to the Relay for America website, they saw it as a contrast to the solo nature of most cross-country treks, requiring “not one hero, but 250-plus Americans.”
The “ragtag squad” of 17 core members has been augmented by hundreds of local runners. The 3,000-mile relay is broken up into 12.5-mile increments, about half a marathon. But people can sign up for any length.
The flag reached Washington County near West Finley, reaching the Greene County line in Graysville around 12:30 a.m. Runners carried the flag through Greene until 6 a.m., when they crossed into Fayette County near Masontown, eventually reaching the National Pike before passing into Maryland.
Greene County Board Chairman Jared Edgreen ran the first leg between Graysville and Waynesburg. When he saw the relay online, he thought it would be a great way to honor a symbol of America’s freedom. When he found out the route ran through Greene County, he mobilized resources to bring runners aboard and lined up people to assist in the run.
“The fact that that flag has not stopped since June 14, it just sends chills down your spine,” he said.
Olympians have joined in, and veterans have been a consistent presence, including on Thursday’s run.
“I love when we come together, and we do something like this, and everybody shows up to run at 2 o’clock in the morning in this heat and humidity,” Edgreen said. “It’s unbelievable.”
More than 30 runners signed up for Greene County’s portion. They were met by a crowd of close to 100 people from Graysville and surrounding areas.
The crew making their way down Route 21 included marathoners from New York, North Carolina and Connecticut, Edgreen said.
“It wasn’t coming through their state, so they wanted to be a part of it,” he said. “So we all met there. It was unbelievable.”
Beyond those who signed up for a shift, some jumped in on their own.
As runners neared downtown Waynesburg Thursday morning, Carson Teagarden of Waynesburg stood ready, carrying an American flag. He planned to join the group for several miles of the run on the way back to his house.
“I think it’s a super cool thing, and I love to run and do fitness, and that’s what I do online,” he said. “So I want to participate and share it to everybody.”
About 50 people watched from near the Greene County Courthouse to cheer on the runners, waving American flags and in some cases, donning red, white and blue themselves.
Commissioner Betsy McClure said she couldn’t miss the memorable combination of America 250 celebration and a national flag relay “running through right down Waynesburg, the streets of Greene County, and through the heart of our county.”
It was a communal patriotic moment that had onlookers reaching back decades for an apt comparison.
America’s birthday is also Mark McCullough’s, making him “the most patriotic” person alive, he joked. Thursday’s run reminded him of going to see the bicentennial parade in Pittsburgh when he was 4.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime thing,” he said, echoing a sentiment from Commissioner Betsy McClure.
Aaron Ketchum, president of the Patriot’s Dream Riding Association, sported an Uncle Sam top hat. Seeing the relay brought back memories of sitting along the roadway as a child and seeing the Olympics torch relay pass by his house north of Waynesburg.
“This July Fourth is one of the neatest July Fourths I’ve seen in a long time,” he said. “Everybody’s on board for something because of the 250th anniversary. I wouldn’t have missed this for nothing. We’ll just be a little more tired tomorrow.”
To follow the relay’s progress, go to relayforamerica.org/live.