OK gang - forgive the blog headline. A guy's head can turn to mush after 150 miles of walking!
The Blue Ridge Mountains in April were beautiful alright, but nothing like the beautiful oasis the skyline of Charlotte provided. It was good to finally arrive Wednesday at our first major city since leaving Asheville over two weeks ago. And the crowd on The Green Uptown could not have greeted us better. There is a real momentum in the air these days. The Charlotte media came out to cover Kathy and me arriving – WSOC-TV, KATT Radio, and 96.1 FM among them. The video with this post captures our day quite well.
On stage, an eclectic mix of community leaders, sports personalities, Charlotte Bobcats cheerleaders, local Charlotte types, you name it, greeted us warmly and asked for stories from the road. Our rally was a fun-spirited event.
That night we all went to the final Bobcats game of the season, our campaign video was played on the big screen, and Kathy and I were introduced at center court, all while basketball legend Michael Jordan sat just feet away. Now all this was pretty cool... but you know me. My sights are already on the lights of Winston-Salem, just four to five walking days to the north.
That's how you do it here on a 600+ mile walk. You don't think about the distance. You take it a week at a time and a major city at a time. You do the math: 12-mile days times 6 days per week of walking equals more than 70 miles a week. It adds up, doesn't it? And with any luck we'll see you in Winston-Salem on Tuesday for another rally!
Through our Share Your Story feature, Leslee tells us she's accustomed to healthy living, and on top of it, she benefits from the activity of keeping up with kids:
"For many years (and I am now a grandmother) I have run, walked, eaten well, drank plenty of water and viewed my life as "full". I also believe that, although tiring, working with young children keeps me physically active and fit. I know that physical activity helps keep the body and mind active. Those endorphins are happy in my body!"
Janene in Charlotte has submitted her story on the importance of her morning walk, plus other activities that have improved her health:
"I have asthma. I am 4 feet 11 inches tall and I was weighing in at 165 pounds. I started doing aerobics and got the weight down. I started walking every morning (two miles) about a year ago. It feels so good that if I miss a morning walk my day does not go good. I have a 16 and 17 year old and we hit the gym about three times a week, but nothing is better than my morning walk."
The Million Step March pulled into Charlotte today, and we have some early photos to share from the huge event at The Green Uptown.
First up is Kathy Higgins, joined by Fred Whitfield (left), president and chief operating officer of the Charlotte Bobcats, and Mark Richardson (right), president of the Carolina Panthers.
Then we have Gary Marino taking a culinary lesson in fruit juice drinks from Heather Tidwell. Heather is a chef-in-training in the culinary arts program at the Charlotte campus of Johnson & Wales University.
We'll have much more to share from the Charlotte events.
