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Participants log more than 26 million steps

Lewes Steps Out program concludes 2012 season

James "Bear" McLean, left, and Garland Ayers, both of the Lewes Streets Department, celebrate the bonfire they built to mark the end of thje 2012 Lewes Steps Out For Fitness program. BY DENNIS FORNEY
September 28, 2012
Mayor Jim Ford thanks participants and supporters for involvement in the 2012 Lewes Steps Out For Fitness program.
Members of Lewes Fire Department bring fire safety exhibits to each Lewes Steps Out event.  On hand for the final program were (l-r) Wally Evans, fire chief; Kristin Miller, firefighter and emergency medical technician; Ashley Vansant, firefighter; Caddie Ann and Chubby Joseph, fire safety committee members; and Bob Nicholson, fire safety committee chairman.
Vicki Martin, with a pair of drunken driving simulator glasses on her eyes, gets a sense of what it's like to walk a straight line when you're impaired by alcohol.  She tries the exercise under the direction of Lewes police officers Katie Glass and Dillon Kashner.
Officer Katie Glass demonstrates the horizontal gaze nystagmus (HGN) test that is used by police officers to assess alcohol and other depressant impairment in drivers suspected of driving under the influence. By watching the movement of the eyes as they follow the pencil, officers can detect a jerking or bouncing if the driver is impaired.  Officer Dillon Kashner takes the test.
Officer Brent Layfield demonstrates his police dog Biko's talent at sniffing out a stash of marijuana in a car.  When the dog detects illegal substances, it starts scratching at the place where it smells them.
Biko also goes after offenders when summoned by his handler.  Here Officer Dillon Kashner, his arm protected by a jute shield, gets a taste of Biko's toothy persistence.
Officer Layfield intervenes to get Biko to release his target.
The magical colors of sunset provide an entertaining backdrop for the bonfire.

The Lewes Steps Out For Fitness walking program concluded its 2012 season Thursday, Sept. 20 with a final sign-in, bonfire on the beach, and police and fire department demonstrations.

Nancy Cummings of Beebe Medical Center said this year's participants logged a total of 26,039,379 steps.  "Translated into miles, that took us all the way from Lewes to Carson City, Nevada - almost to the California line.  That's not bad for a relatively small group."

James 'Bear" McLean and Garland Ayers of the Lewes Streets Department built a teepee bonfire on the beach to mark the end of the program and the beginning of autumn.  McLean said the fire included four truckloads of well-seasoned wood including poplar, maple, pine and oak.  The fire burned well into the night and as the sun broke over the Delaware breakwaters the next morning, there were still people warming themselves by the remains of the fire.

Lewes Mayor Jim Ford thanked all of the sponsoring organizations as well as the participants in this year's program.  Lewes Steps Out For Fitness is a program designed to encourage people to be outdoors and active for better health.  The program is sponsored by Beebe Medical Center, City of Lewes, Lewes Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Bureau, Nemours Health and Prevention Services, Lewes Fire Department, Quest Fitness and Cape Gazette.

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