CARRYING FLAME A THRILL FOR RUNNERS

Thousands of people cheered when the 1996 Olympic flame arrived in downtown Cape Girardeau Monday. But Kevin Leathers couldn't begin to describe how he felt.

Leathers started the relay as the first local person to light a torch with the flame. Thirty-two runners selected by either the United Way or Coca-Cola carried the flame in Southeast Missouri.

"It's an unbelievable feeling," Leathers said. "It was a surreal feeling. I was nervous beforehand, with the spectacle and the train."

While Leathers waited for the flame to arrive from Memphis, he was treated like a celebrity -- people asked for photographs, autographs and to touch the torch.

"It was my 30 minutes of fame," he said. "People asked for my autograph and took pictures with the torch. I was not expecting that."

Charlie Clippard doesn't expect another chance to carry the Olympic torch during his lifetime. Clippard, 70, a two-time war veteran, carried the flame past Memorial Park Cemetery.

"I hesitate to dwell on the symbolic, but they refer to it as a sacred flame, and a lot of what we do is symbolism," Clippard said. "I might possibly never have another opportunity like that in my lifetime.

Heavy clouds and thunderstorms threatened to dampen the festivities earlier in the day. Yet the crowds still lined the route Monday afternoon to see torch-bearers.

"I don't remember the faces," Leathers said. "I don't think my feet ever touched the ground."

During their one-kilometer segment, each runner had a different pace -- some walked while others jogged -- but they all said the relay was too short.

"It was too fast," said Pedro Dimaguila of Sikeston. "I should have walked to make it go farther."

Many of the runners said they could hear the crowds cheering them on during the relay. "It was very inspiring," Dimaguila said. "There was a group singing the national anthem when I went by."

Just having an escort runner was a motivation for Jeff Krantz. "She was an inspiration," he said of his escort, Emily Hall. "It's a real honor to run," Krantz said, adding that he was proud to be part of the relay.

Hall, a senior at Cape Girardeau Central High School, ran with six Olympic torchbearers Monday afternoon.

"It was neat to run with all the different people and to be the first up the steps," she said. Hall escorted Leathers from the train up the steps at the Common Pleas Courthouse.

Hall didn't complain of being tired, but said she had a hard time keeping up with some of the runners. "He ran pretty fast," she said of Krantz.

Although it seemed light at first, the 3.5-pound torch got heavier along the route, some runners said.

"It was pretty exhilarating," Rod Nobis said of his run. "I tried to wave and hold up the torch. It was over before you knew it."

Charlie Herbst said seeing people along the route kept him going. "I noticed my arm was tired from waving and holding the torch," he said.

The torchbearers were instructed to hold the torch high and to tilt the flame back so that no smoke blew into their faces.

Each torch is designed to burn continuously for about 40 to 50 minutes and holds about five ounces of propylene fuel. Depending on whether there is heat and wind during a relay, the amount of fuel burned varies. Each torch costs $275.