Relay for life starts

Bobbi May, left, of the Harley Davidson team, and Michael Caldare, of Carson, race to finish their slice of watermelon in this seed spitting contest at Carson High School Saturday.

Bobbi May, left, of the Harley Davidson team, and Michael Caldare, of Carson, race to finish their slice of watermelon in this seed spitting contest at Carson High School Saturday.

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Bill Pierz, 14, was taking a break under a canopy from the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life and laying low from a bratty girl with a squirt gun Saturday.

"I think it's a good cause," Pierz said. "I've walked, I will walk again."

Although Pierz sounds like a seasoned veteran, he means he has already walked today.

"This is the first time I've done it." Pierz confessed.

The Cancer Society's relay began at noon Saturday at the Carson High School Track and continues until 9 this morning.

The annual walk raises funds for the American Cancer Society.

The society will have another relay at Lampe Park in Gardnerville on July 19, and another Aug. 15 in Incline Village.

Relay For Life is an event designed to celebrate cancer survivors and raise money for research and programs.

During the event, teams of people gather at schools, fairgrounds, or parks and take turns walking or running laps.

Each team tries to keep at least one team member on the track at all times.

The relay is the Cancer Society's main event and offers everyone in a community a chance to participate in the fight against cancer.

Teams form from businesses, clubs, families, friends, hospitals, churches, schools, and service organizations.

Everyone seemed tranquil, or tranquilized -- depending on your point of view -- as they recovered from the effects of a watermelon eating contest in the hot afternoon sun.

Women with watermelon-stained shirts staggered away bleary-eyed from the table to find solace in the waiting shade of nearby tents.

Not just an event for the kids.

Law enforcement patrolled on horseback, and announcements were made periodically from the announcer's box.

The Survivors' Welcome, Victory Lap, Honoring and Reception began at 5:30 p.m.

Teams took to the track for a lap en masse at 7:30 p.m.

Luminaries were lit at 8:30 p.m. joining a full moon. Both shone over the memories of those lost to cancer and lit the way for walkers who marched on through the night.

IF YOU GO

What: Relay for Life fund-raiser for the American Cancer Society

When: until 9 a.m. today

Where: Carson High School track, 1111 N. Saliman Road

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