I guess it has all the charms of a fairy tale ending. I made it to DC in time to attend the inauguration, and even got a ticket (a seated one at that!).
I not only secured tickets for myself, but was able to give away 6 more tickets to members of the Biking for Obama team. Josh, Eleni, Albert, Julian, Kenjus and Jamie all reaped the benefits of the hard work they dedicated to helping film, coordinate logistics and support me ever since I came up with this idea. It was great to be able to pay-it-forward and get them tickets to experience yesterday’s historic events. (Its too bad we hadn’t gotten them earlier, they coulda paid off all my college loans!)
Anyways, my thoughts are fairly sporadic at this time, I haven’t had a chance to put it all together or even sit and be satisfied that I made it to DC. The hoopla and media blitz that has gone on this week really tired me out (so much that I was too tired to get up @ 4:30AM on Tuesday to make it to a live interview on the mall–sorry “Fox & Friends”).
Getting into the inauguration was an amazing experience. If I had to describe it in one word, I’d have to say: People. There were people for miles and miles. Riding the metro was like joining an enormous mosh pit, and walking two blocks around the mall took me an hour and a half!
Well, I’ll be sure to get on in the next day and update everyone with more of the experience, but for now enjoy the photos from this weekend in DC.
Departing December 2, 2008
Arrival: January 20, 2009
on Jan 22nd, 2009 at 10:42 am
Ryan, Elini, Albert and Josh I´m so very proud of your team. Embrace the victory. I will forever be touched by the sybol of your epic journey and happy to be a small part.
Please come back when you can visit.
John Ingraham
PS. Now we all have to go to work!
on Jan 22nd, 2009 at 10:51 am
Hi Ryan! Glad you all were able to get through security and get to your seats! A lot of people weren’t able to.
Hope you enjoyed the Inauguration as much as we did! 
What an experience, huh?!!!
Glad I could offer you some Virginia hospitality when you were in town! Hope your trip back to LA will go smoothly! Think of us here freezing the rest of winter!
Take care and keep on biking! 
on Jan 22nd, 2009 at 11:31 am
Congratulations on making the journey an epic one. I hope you learned many things about yourself, the nation through the people you’ve encountered, and what possibliities exist for you to enact some of the change President Obama has called us to make our goal.
on Jan 22nd, 2009 at 1:02 pm
Congrats, everyone. Let’s do this again in four.
on Jan 22nd, 2009 at 1:56 pm
Congratulations to all. This was one of the greatest individual, entrepreneurial efforts I have ever seen. You are an inspiration and please keep in touch with your followers.
on Jan 22nd, 2009 at 2:41 pm
Wow! That was really something to watch on TV, AND YOU Were There! It’s Really Incredible, in more ways than one! Wow some more!
By the way, I was watching Fox when they announced that they were gonna be talking with you in the next hour, but I couldn’t watch then and was aggravated. Now I feel better, to know that you never made it and I didn’t miss it! ♥
on Jan 22nd, 2009 at 5:03 pm
Congrats, man! I’m proud of you and the rest of the team. It’s amazing to think that someone could come up with a plan like this and see it through to the end.
It was amazing to see the events unfold this week. I wonder if there will ever be another Presidential campaign, election, and inauguration that creates this kind of excitement throughout the country.
Now that the journey to the Presidency is over, I hope President Obama can get the country back on a prosperous path. He’s got lots of work to do.
on Jan 22nd, 2009 at 5:54 pm
Ryan,
I’m glad that you were able to secure tickets for your entire team! What a blessing. It was also a blessing that I was able to share in your journey and ride with you on Sunday..AWESOME! Keep up the great work and I’m looking forward to the documentary.
on Jan 23rd, 2009 at 12:17 am
Hey Ryan! I’m glad to hear that you made it and you got the ticket. I am very proud of you for being outspoken and being up on game whenever the task calls. I urge you to push forward in these times and find how this work can push you towards further goals/ career/ life calling. Will you be involved in politics, community organizing, or something along the lines of Barack?
Stay steadfast and continue to think big.
HS
on Jan 25th, 2009 at 4:14 am
CONGRATS, RYAN and Team! Ahhhh I LOVE the D.C. Metro pic!!!!!! “I left my heart in Washington, D.C.”
So tell us, Ryan Bowen: What do you do after you’ve biked across the country to witness a moment in history??? Disneyland?????????