REEN BAY, Wis. - Bill Bradley came here yesterday to praise the man who buried him in the Democratic primary, offering a polite endorsement of Vice President Al Gore in the name of party unity.
''I had a remarkable experience'' running for president, Bradley, looking rested, told about 600 people gathered in the sweltering heat of Bay Beach Park, a waterfront amusement park.
''Though someone once told me ... `experience' is what you get when you don't get what you really wanted. Indeed, the Democratic voters spoke and selected the vice president as our party's nominee,'' the former senator from New Jersey added wistfully.
''Our party is strongest when we're unified, when we speak with one voice, when we work together to guarantee a Democratic Congress and a Democratic president,'' Bradley continued.
Bradley withdrew from the Democratic primary, winless, four months ago. While he said in March that he would support Gore as the presumptive nominee, Bradley did not formally endorse Gore until yesterday.
Gore, who accused Bradley during the primaries of being a quitter because he did not ''stay and fight'' for the party after the Republicans took control of Congress in 1995, called his former foe ''a good Democrat.''
The two men raised their clasped hands in a victory salute, but otherwise, there appeared to be little warmth between the former opponents.
Bradley was well into his speech before he even mentioned Gore by name, and only did so after first mentioning the Democratic Party and President Clinton.
''I believe that under [Gore's] leadership, we will come closer to solving the problems I mentioned earlier than under the leadership of Governor George W. Bush,'' Bradley said, his words nearly drowned out at times by anti-Gore demonstrators.
Gore also has ''a deep understanding of technology that will change America's future,'' Bradley said.
After speaking, the 6-foot-5-inch Bradley stepped aside and sat on a barstool, so he did not tower over Gore while the vice president delivered his remarks.
Gore, highly critical of Bradley during the primary fight, was effusive yesterday about Bradley, describing him as an eloquent advocate for racial equality.
''There is no more passionate voice for justice and equality in all of America,'' Gore said. ''I look forward to working with Bill Bradley in the years ahead, to break down the barriers of intolerance and discrimination.''
Gore quoted Bradley several times and added, ''I treasure Bill Bradley's support. He is a good Democrat who speaks and stands for principles we all believe in. And Bill Bradley will be an important part of the campaign and an important part of our country's future.''
It was not clear yesterday how involved Bradley would be in the Gore campaign. But Bradley will be in the public eye when he launches a book tour Sept. 26 that will take him to 15 cities through the end of October. The book, ''The Journey from Here,'' is a collection of eight essays.
The two men met one-on-one for about 40 minutes at the airport in Green Bay. It was the first time the one-time Senate colleagues have been together since March 1, the last Democratic debate in Los Angeles. Until yesterday, Gore and Bradley had spoken only twice since then: first when Bradley withdrew and second to set up the joint appearance.
Bradley, who did not win any states during the contentious primary season, doesn't bring much to the campaign table for Gore, said political analyst Stuart Rothenberg.
Unlike Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona and a former candidate for president, Bradley does not have a hard-core group of supporters he can galvanize for the nominee, Rothenberg said.
And Bradley's lack of success in the primaries isn't promising in terms of transferring votes for Gore, he said.
''He wasn't a combatant in his own campaign,'' Rothenberg said. ''So how can he be a combatant in somebody else's campaign?''
Even Gore campaign officials played down the significance of Bradley's endorsement. ''We're now in the preconvention stage of the campaign,'' so the two camps decided to arrange the joint appearance, Gore campaign spokesman Chris Lehane said.
Bradley, it seemed yesterday, has come to terms with his loss. ''I'm here in Green Bay today because I believe what Vince Lombardi once said is true: ` Winning is a team sport,''' Bradley said, quoting the late former coach of the Green Bay Packers.
It was a marked switch from March 7, when Bradley also quoted Lombardi.
''Winning isn't everything,'' Bradley said after losing the Super Tuesday primaries. ''It's the only thing.''
