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CNN Live Today

Interview with Mitch Morrison

Aired September 02, 2002 - 11:39   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Well, "let's roll" will be heard a lot over the next few days, along with the thunder of hundreds of motorcycle pipes. Bikers will depart today from San Diego for a cross-country memorial ride to arrive into New York City on September 11.
Mitch Morrison is the director of this event. He joins us from San Diego with Catherine Weldon (ph) and Vinnie Forest (ph). Both are making the trip with them -- good morning.

MITCH MORRISON, DIRECTOR, AMERICA'S RIDE: Good morning.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good morning.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good morning.

COSTELLO: Whose idea was this?

MORRISON: Well, it pretty much my idea. I decided I liked the ride, and we set up a Web site several months ago, AmericasRide2002.com. People started signing up. Now we have got thousands of riders joining us all over America at our host cities.

COSTELLO: Wow, so you will join up with other riders in other cities. And you are not only going to ride to New York, but you are going to ride to Washington too?

MORRISON: That's correct. And also on the 10th, we will be in Shanksville, Pennsylvania at the Stony Brook school where the fourth plane went down for a memorial service as well.

COSTELLO: Are you surprised that so many people wanted to take part in this?

MORRISON: Not really. I think most motorcycle riders, like all Americans, want to show that this is a free country, and we are here about enduring freedom, and also they realize that there still are a lot of people falling through the cracks that we wanted to help with our foundation from a fund-raising effort, so I think we are a pretty large group right now.

COSTELLO: Tell us about your fund-raising efforts, and the people falling through the cracks. What do you mean by that?

MORRISON: Well, our foundation, World Trade Center Miracles Foundation, which was started shortly after 9/11, found certain family members that couldn't fill out the forms with other agencies, didn't know how to get aid and help, so we put them totally integrated and interactive with our Web site, and our people work with them, and we got all of the information and people can designate contributions right to them through our Web site. They can see who the family members are. That Web site is WTCMF.org.

COSTELLO: That is a wonderful effort. So tell me a little bit more about the route you are taking, and what events are planned at each stop.

MORRISON: Well, the first destination is actually Las Vegas after we leave out of here from San Diego, and we have got several thousand people waiting for us at the Harley dealership there. Then we go on to Grand Junction, Denver, Colorado. We are at the Pepsi Center. On to Wichita, Kansas; St. Louis, Missouri; Lima, Ohio for a two-day festival where we expect about 45,000 people, and on to Columbus, Pittsburgh, and Philadelphia. Then to Washington, D.C. and Ground Zero.

COSTELLO: Forty-five thousand people in Lima, Ohio?

MORRISON: That's correct. That's their "Let's Roll" festival. It has all been set up for this ride. It is a huge organizing committee, and they have been at it for about six months.

COSTELLO: I think that's more people than are in the town of Lima, Ohio normally.

MORRISON: Much more. Much more. Most of the people -- they are getting a lot of people from northern Ohio to come down.

COSTELLO: All right. We are going to put up the Web site one more time in case people want to donate. And good luck to youm and I hope you all arrive there safely.

MORRISON: Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you very much.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.

COSTELLO: Thanks, guys.

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