Moments in Pioneers' History: Blazing a Trail to the Olympic Games

Re-creating the spirit and challenge of their namesake forebears, members of the Pioneers blazed a trail westward across the country to help carry the Olympic flame from New York City to Los Angeles for the 1984 Summer Games.

Nearly 5,000 Pioneers worked with AT&T and the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee to physically survey and map every inch of the 8,700-mile route that took the flame through 33 states and the District of Columbia.  Pioneers also obtained all necessary permits and clearances along the way, serving as a liaison with local and state authorities and law enforcement officials, and identified service and emergency facilities for the Olympic Torch Relay support caravan.

During the relay itself, which began on May 8 and took 82 days, 250 lucky Pioneers got to carry the torch on behalf of AT&T. Other Pioneers served as drivers for the 34-vehicle caravan, living onboard for the weeklong stints. Still others were responsible for marking off Youth Legacy Kilometers along the route, briefing and escorting the designated torchbearers, assisting handicapped runners, storing and distributing the propane-fueled Olympic

torches the runners carried, and helping to stage torch-arrival celebrations in communities along the route.