I don't go to the Rose Parade every year. After all, I didn't even go at all until 2015. And I skipped 2019 and 2022.
But this year, on the first day of 2025, the pull to watch those floats, marching bands, and horses crawl down Colorado Boulevard was so strong...
...that I woke up with a start (and without an alarm) at 8:15 a.m. after just five hours of sleep and made a beeline to Pasadena.
I got there just in time to find a (free) parking spot and walk a few blocks to scope out a place to stand with a good view (this year, having learned my lesson from last year, on the side of the floats that face the TV cameras).
Some years I plan ahead, and get a media credential or a ticket to a viewing party. But this was not that kind of year.
This year's theme was "Best Day Ever!"—which I did not feel like I was having, as I was suffering from the effects of my New Year's Eve celebration from the night before.
But as I watched the Boys and Girls Clubs' "Kindness Is Free" and Lions International's "Celebrating a Day of Service" floats, I waffled from thinking "Why do I do this to myself?" to...
..."I'm so glad I did this."
In the process of trying to get good photos (and videos), I realize now that I get a bit of amnesia. I'm not really "in the moment," as it were; so I don't always remember what I'm shooting.
But being there on the day, on the morning of the new year, and seeing all the float animations as they were meant to be seen is still a better experience, to me, than going to the Floatfest afterwards.
But this year, since it feels like I missed a lot of details at the parade itself...
...I had to go to both.
There's also something a bit invigorating in so many people wishing a "Happy New Year!" as they wave and glide (or walk, or gallop) on past.
The Donate Life float dedicated to organ donors this year was the best one I'd seen of theirs...
...featuring Japanese Koi Nobori ("flying fish flags") along with Japanese garden staples like a lantern, a bridge, and a pagoda.
While the float designs change every year with the Rose Parade theme, some of the marching bands return over and over again—like the Los Angeles Unified School District marching band, which always brings some local spirit.
The Burbank Tournament of Roses parade float this year was "Having A-Lava Fun" and featured an exploding volcano with real flames.
They really outdo themselves every year—and this year they were (deservedly) awarded the trophy for Animation.
This is Erik C. Andersen's third design that's been chosen for the City of Burbank float committee to build (originally submitted with the title "Prehistoric Fun").
The Republic of Panamá was represented by Banda de Música Herberto López (known by the portmanteau "BAHERLO"), the marching band from José Daniel Crespo high school in Chitré.
And they made an absolute splash—both musically and visually, with a Diablico Sucio ("dirty devil") marching alongside folk dancers wearing polleras (the national dress of Panamá).
Mexico's traditions could be seen in the City of Sierra Madre's volunteer-built "¡Fiesta!" float, which featured Mariachi Divas playing live music while surrounded by folklórico dancers doing their choreography under piñatas.
Jackson State University brought their "Sonic Boom of the South" marching band to Pasadena this year, with both the musicians and the dancers (the "Prancing J-Settes") bringing the boogie for 5.5 miles along the parade route.
Music is always a big part of the Rose Parade—but this year, we got an Elvis impersonator helping spread the word about the "Gateway to the Blues" in Tunica, Mississippi.
Probably my favorite float this year was the volunteer-built "Rover Rendezvous" from La Cañada Flintridge, in celebration of NASA's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter and JPL's exploration of the "red planet."
It featured its own flying saucer—just one of the reasons it won the Crown City Innovator award for most outstanding use of imagination, innovation and technology.
Because while an astronaut rode a rover and weird aliens spun around (seemingly digging for water), 85% of the operation was powered by electricity—a greener alternative to the gas-powered floats in the parade.
I found the U.S. Army's float particularly striking, with its camouflage color scheme...
...and figures depicting heroes over its 250-year history.
And of course the Mini Therapy Horses are always an attention-grabber as they clip-clop down Colorado.
I didn't just choke up when I saw the Pasadena Humane Society's "Welcome Home" float, which presented the concept of "adoption day" being the Best Day Ever.
I started bawling. The judges must've loved it, too, because they gave it the Theme Award.
Fortunately, the Kyoto Tachibana Senior High School Green Band—the best high school marching band in Japan, according to the Los Angeles Times—soon followed to snap me out of it.
Every year there are some obviously commercial floats promoting some movie or product—which used to kind of bother me, but in retrospect I think their appearances at the Rose Parade provide a nice artifact of pop culture of the time.
This year it was a float for the Wicked movie, replete with its own Emerald City...
... Elphaba ("defying gravity" as the Wicked Witch of the West) and Glinda (the "Good Witch").
Glinda is considered a princess in some circles—but the only royalty that really matters on New Year's Day is the Rose Queen and her court.
The Rose Court's float helped commemorate the 100th anniversary of Pasadena Community College—and right behind them was the PCC Tournament of Roses Honor Band, which marches every year (although of course the student players change as some graduate out and new ones come in).
I'd been looking for the Budweiser Clydesdales at Equestfest this year and was disappointed not to see them there...
...so I was thrilled to watch them clippity cloppity on past (under the serene surveillance of the Budweiser Dalmation, of course).
Most of the floats are built by professional float-builders, so it's really incredible when you see what the self-built float associations can do...
...like the one in South Pasadena, the longest-standing team of volunteer float builders in Rose Parade history.
An absolute delight was to see the Go Bowling float, "A Perfect Game," with its Googie-style "neon" sign and spinning bowling pins. Those atomic starbursts! (More shots of this one coming in my Floatfest blog post.)
Explore Louisiana brought the bayou to Pasadena with a gumbo of a float...
...featuring an alligator as its main protagonist, the king of Mardi Gras...
...surrounded by dragonflies and tasty crabs, with a pelican (the Louisiana state bird) perched on his snoot.
The Rotary Club set off on an adorable barnyard road trip (which would definitely be my best day ever)...
...while the UPS Store and Junior Achievement had some pterodactyls on hand to help dreams take flight.
Some delightful lion dancers for Vietnamese Lunar New Year accompanied the first-ever float from Love 2 Yeu, which honored Vietnamese American immigrants...
...while a very good dog stood watch from the City of Alhambra's float (built by Phoenix Decorating Company).
Phoenix also built the float for Coding for Veterans, which highlighted military veterans who transitioned from fighting on the battlefield to providing security in cyberspace...
...and the "Cherished Memories" float from Elks USA, the Americana Award winner.
The Trader Joe's float is always a highlight for me—but it took me a long time to find the "Fearless Flyer" in this year's float.
Do you see him? (Personally I was distracted by the person pedaling the beaters!)
The energy and excitement is just always top-notch.
Floats like Cal Poly's "Nessie's Lakeside Laughs" are the reason I don't want to watch the parade too far down towards the end—because the taller ones have to pivot down to make their way under the freeway overpass! (I'll never make that mistake again.)
That being said, besides the Loch Ness Monster, there were lots of other great details on that float—including a small colony of puffins.
I think this was the first time I'd seen an actual live train running on a track on a float at the Rose Parade (although in 2019 a locomotive burst into flames right at the beginning).
Downey's "Our Garden Railroad" would've been impressive if it had been built by one of the pro float-building companies—but this one, astoundingly, was the handiwork of all volunteers.
By the time I saw Torrance's "What a Beautiful Day" float, I was losing steam and already heading back to my car.
But a pair of giant macaws set against the backdrop of the San Gabriel Mountains was enough to give me reason to pause and enjoy.
The last float I saw was Odd Fellows & Rebekahs' "Chasing Our Dreams," another interplanetary-themed float that depicted an astronaut in pursuit of Friendship, Love, and Truth (the watchwords of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows).
I stayed as long as I could, but I found out later I left before seeing a pretty stunning Charlie Chaplin-themed float—so that really sealed it. I'd have to go to Floatfest to make up for what I missed out on.
Stay tuned!
Related Posts:
No comments:
Post a Comment