With plenty of water on-hand, the several thousand participants were well hydrated. The walk was only 1.7 miles with no hills of any consequence, but it did get pretty hot out there. I forgot my suntan lotion so I made a makeshift hat you normally see in the desert...it's sort of viewable in the shadow picture.
There were lots of security personnel along the route with many undercover "agents" among the crowd to keep things under control (or at least I'd like to think that). It was great seeing those I could tell were in uniform making sure everyone behaved.
At the turn onto the Memorial Bridge, there were lots of black SUVs and Secret Service agents so our group figured it was some high profile person. As it turns out, it was Donald Rumsfeld saying hi the press and taking pictures with any walkers willing to wait their turn. After we got over the bridge, we walked by some protesters on the way to the mall. Having no desire to see Clint Black (and listen to the incredibly loud speakers) we decided to make it a solid walk by returning to Rosslyn over the Roosevelt Bridge. The Freedom Walk was a nice event, as I got a free t-shirt, felt patriotic, and at least took some time out of my day to remember those fighting overseas and those we lost on 9/11. I hope events like the Freedom Walk occur for many years, or else 9/11 will be lose its overwhelming significance in our history (as suggested in this Post article a few days ago) like other somber dates such as Memorial Day and Veteran's Day.
No comments:
Post a Comment