Watching the 2007 Rose Parade... from the end of the route By Robert Niles
Sure, you could watch the Rose Parade on TV with millions of other viewers around the world, and see the floats, bands and equestrian units of the world-famous parade when they are fresh for the cameras.Published: January 1, 2007 at 1:57 PM But where's the fun in that? Instead, let's head five and a half miles down Colorado and Sierra Madre Boulevards, to the end of the Rose Parade route, where Theme Park Insider watches the parade every year. This is where the band members are tired, the horses are peeing freely and some floats are busted, retracted or just shut down. (Rose Parade floats over a certain height must retract to get under the I-210 overpass near the end of the route.) Kudos to all those parade participants who don't let that killer distance bother them, and still manage to give us folks at the back of the route a good show. The Oklahoma Centennial Honor Band, for example, broke ranks to greet the crowd with much enthusiasm. So we treated them to chocolate doughnuts, which they scarfed like, well, a bunch of teen-agers who'd just hiked five miles lugging band instruments.  Chewbacca greets the crowd on the Endor float, leading the "Star Wars Spectacular" unit in the 2007 Rose Parade. Despite the "spectacular" name, both floats in the unit kept their animation elements lowered and shut down after going under the I-210 bridge.  "Star Wars" fans dressed in stormtrooper gear mass for the 2007 Rose Parade. What makes this picture though is a friend wearing a cap for "Carrie Fisher's Wishful Drinking," now playing at the Geffen in L.A. and much inspired by life with the folks above.  Okay, we're stretching for a theme park connection here, but American Honda's float in the 2007 Rose Parade featured these... dueling dragons.  Disney did not have a float in the 2007 Rose Parade, but the City of Anaheim celebrated its 150th birthday.  The Notary Association float was one of the few to raise its animation elements after lowering them to get under the I-210 bridge in the 2007 Rose Parade. Happy New Year from Pasadena, California, to everyone on TPI! (For more pictures, see Robert's wife's account on Violinist.com.)
Readers' OpinionsFrom rick stevens on January 1, 2007 at 8:15 PM
The times I have attended were also at the end of the parade. I think it is the best place. I agree with Robert, it is inspiring to see the members of the parade that make it that far. You never see the poop-out vans on TV or the strategically placed tow trucks along the route. I always liked to go home and rewatch the parade to see what I might have missed. This article has been archived and is no longer accepting comments. More Theme Park NewsPrevious article: A photo tour of float decorating for the 2007 Rose Parade
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