Several hundred people gathered at the Civil War site on a hot, sunny day for a glimpse of the woman who supporters hope will inject some life into a sluggish race for the Republican nomination to challenge President Barack Obama next year.

Some of those assembled there were puzzled by goal of the tour, which seemed designed to attract public attention despite a lack of information.

“In a way it’s cool. In a way it’s, ‘Whaa?'” said John Hower, a baker who drove for three hours from Berwick, Pennsylvania, with two friends to see Palin. “She’s trying to avoid the media. But I’d like to see the bus. We’re, like, where’s this bus?”…

“I think she’d kick the mix up,” said Janita Carlton of Green Forest, Arkansas. “I think she’s a smart lady and she has backbone.”