Riding on a float

What a dream come true! I rode on a Rose Parade float! Saturday morning I got down to the Memorial Coliseum, and promptly went the wrong way. I found the rest of my group by accident or luck, you be the judge. However, due to going the wrong way, I saw some of the equestrian units so it wasn't a total loss. We waited in this room with other float riders until an employee of Studio Concepts (Gene, this time) came in, said time to go, and we went out to our float, got on, and rode. All roads behind the colisuem are closed and each "unit" has it's own area so horses are in one spot, floats in another, bands in a seperate area, and then just like a stoplight, some one gives your "unit" area the right to merge. So we started outside, went through the colisuem, and out the other side. Being on the float and looking out at the crowd is not the experience I thought it would be. I thought I would feel like a rock star. I didn't. And riding in the rain saps your enthusiasm. Even the parade watchers looked a little dim. But I was surprised at how much I felt like a a part of the community. Portland is no New York City, but we are big enough NOT to know everyone. Crusing through town, having everyone stare at me, you realize that all of us, parade rider and parade watcher are participating on making the Rose Festival a community event that is special for us all. It would have been more special had it been sunny but that is how Oregon is and we all knew it. My other complaint wsa the damn flag I had to hold. It was tall enough that we had to watch ALL wires above, traffic lights and signs, and the branches of trees. A couple times I would have been knocked off had I not been belted in, and Christine's flag got caught on a construction sign and ripped. But all in all, it was worth it and I feel extremely fortunate that I had this small dream come true. If I get another opportunity to be in the parade, I will be there!