Posted on 21 January 2009 by .
FOR RYAN OUT LOUD!
Chapter 3: Jan. 21, 2009
For
all those who watched the Presidential Inauguration on television
Tuesday, if you saw that tiny speck of tan and blue on the National
Mall, that was me.
It was a long, tiring day, filled with miles
of walking in the wrong direction, in the right direction and in any
direction where I could move more than a couple inches.
But it was also an emotional day that I’ll treasure forever.
My
day started at around 6 a.m., which, by a sports reporters’ measure, is
insanely early. (When I cover a game at night I typically get to bed,
after writing the story and posting the photos and videos, by about 3
a.m.) Anyway it was early, but I was pumped to see President Barack
Obama.
List of things in my jacket pockets: 2 newspapers, 1
bottle of water, 3 sandwiches, 1 glasses case, 3 trash bags we hoped to
sit on…yeah right, 1 deck of cards, chap stick, keys, wallet, cell
phone, 2 cameras, tape recorder, extra batteries, gloves.
With
my amazing/beautiful wife Kristin and her father (and my second dad)
John were in our group. This was a day after the same three of us
attended the free Aretha Franklin
concert at the Kennedy Center, where we waited in line for six hours,
were denied tickets, then snuck in anyway.
On Tuesday, we drove
to the Silver Spring metro and got on without any problems. The ride
was just fine, but as soon as we stepped off at Gallery Place Chinatown
it was a mad house.
At that point, we thought there were a TON of people. That was nothing compared to what we found at the Mall.
Our
goal was to get to the Mall so we could simply be amongst the excited
people and watch the inaugural address on a big screen television. Yes,
I could have done that at home (and part of me wished I had when my
knees and feet were aching by the end of the day) but it’s just not the
same.
We convinced ourselves that we had to do it after hearing
Dad’s story about passing up a Louis Armstrong concert a year before
the legend’s death. He was living in Montana and, improbably, Louis
Armstrong came to play nearby. Dad knew who Louis was but elected not
to go, not because he had something else going on, but because he just
didn’t feel like it. It still eats him up inside (sorry to bring it up
again, Dad). So we couldn’t let him or ourselves pass this chance up.
Back
to the streets. After asking about five people for the best way to get
around road blockages and to the Mall, and getting five different
directions, we finally found the I believe 4th street tunnel under the
parade route. After what I have to estimate (based on my soreness
today) was a hmmmmmm 300-mile walk, we finally arrived at the Mall.
There
were people as far as the eye could see, not a patch of grass showing.
There were people in the trees and standing on top of porta potties.
After probably an hour of jockeying for position (that means moving
about 10 feet and taking some elbows, forearms and several Stone Cold
stunners) we made it to a spot where we could watch the jumbo tron and
hear the speakers.
The speeches and prayers (minus the poem)
were amazing and inspiring, but the crowd’s reaction, with the cheers
and tears was what I came for and what I will tell my children about.
Anybody,
those in the sports world included, had to recognize the magnitude of
what happened yesterday and it was an honor to be a bystander in
history.
OKAY, ONTO SPORTS
I admit, hockey is
one of the few sports I have never covered in my lifetime, which is
strange because I truly appreciate and enjoy the sport.
I got an
email from a Blake student, Jordan Klemko, last week asking if
DigitalSports.com could start covering Montgomery County hockey. Since
it’s not a sanctioned county varsity sport, I hadn’t really thought
about hockey to be honest.
But it’s a fantastic idea and I
immediately told him that I’d love to start. I look forward to covering
the DeMatha vs Gonzaga game next Monday and a couple other
DigitalSports.com writers have already been there. Click below to check
out the coverage.
Wootton vs. Whitman
Magruder vs. Northwest
TONIGHT IS THE NIGHT!
A
brief statement about how excited I am for tonight’s basketball game
that I’m covering. It’s WCAC top-dog DeMatha vs. defending conference
champion Gonzaga. There may not be any rivalry better in the entire
Washington region.
Game is at Gonzaga at 7:30 tonight. It’s going to be rocking. I’m going to be VERY pumped.
Stags Notes: DeMatha’s backcourt is deep and filthy sick nasty – that’s about as good as my compliments get.
Gonzaga
Notes: Tyler Thornton is edging his way into the BBMITWCAC Award.
That’s right, the Best Big Man In The WCAC Award. Thornton, a Princeton
recruit, outplayed Bishop McNamara’s Talib Zanna (Pittsburgh) last week
and has a chance to dominate inside against DeMatha’s Mikael Hopkins
and Chris Frank.
DeMatha is currently ranked No. 2 in the DigitalSports Beltway Ballers and Gonzaga is No. 3.
LASTLY, THE RAVENS
1. Yes, my beloved Ravens lost in the AFC championship to the stinkin’ Steelers.
2. Don’t bring it up.
3. There’s always next year
CHECK OUT THE PREVIOUS BLOGS!
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
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