Eight hours after his coronation at the Democratic convention, US presidential candidate Mr John Kerry hit the campaign trail today on a cross-country road trip through battleground states to tell voters "help is on the way."
Mr John Kerry; 'reporting for duty'
With running mate Mr John Edwards by his side, the Massachusetts senator at an early morning rally thanked Boston, the city that nurtured his political career, for "a great show" and lamented his lack of sleep.
"Wasn't I just standing up in front of you a few minutes ago," he said.
Both candidates reprised the themes of their convention speeches with Mr Kerry promising to "restore trust and credibility" to the White House and champion the middle class.
"Americans are playing by the rules while a whole group of people are writing rules for themselves and leaving the rest of America out of it," Mr Kerry said. "We're going to change that around. Help is on the way."
With an optimistic "Believe in America" message and riding a wave of energy from four days in the spotlight, the Democratic ticket that will face President George W. Bush and vice-president Mr Dick Cheney in the November 2nd election set off in a fleet of behemoth blue buses for Pennsylvania on a 3,500-mile (5,600 km), 21-state marathon by road, rail and boat.
The two-week journey, which will take the pair coast-to-coast, was reminiscent of President Harry Truman's legendary whistle-stop tour across America and a nod to Bill Clinton whose wildly successful post-convention bus trip in 1992 helped propel the Democrat to the White House.
But the road out of the convention has some potential potholes.
Mr Bush, who remained out of sight for the past week at his ranch in Crawford, Texas, also set out on the campaign trail today, visiting some of the same states - Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio and Missouri - on his own "Heart and Soul of America" tour.
And, when Mr Kerry accepted the nomination, he also accepted $75 million in public funds to spend for the general election. Mr Bush receives his $75 million when he accepts the Republican nomination on September 2nd, giving him an extra five weeks to keep raising and spending money.