Rodeo Parade rollin' around again
The annual Rodeo Parade, a distinctly Tucson event if ever there was one, clip-clops through the South Side a week from today.
The long (some say the world's longest) nonmotorized parade has been a fixture in these parts every February since 1925. The lineup hasn't changed much over the years: lots of horses, of course, along with marching bands, folklorico dancers and umpteen wagons carrying bigwigs, beauty queens and regular folks in their best Western duds.
All children are hard-wired to love parades, but Tucson kids especially love the old-timey sights, sounds and smell of the Rodeo Parade. It means, among other things, a day off from school.
Grown-ups get an annual excuse to wear a cowboy hat and say 'Howdy!' to strangers.
The grand marshal this year is Richard Carmona, the pioneering Tucson trauma doctor who made headlines here long before President Bush yanked him to the national stage. Carmona's four-year term as U.S. surgeon general ended last year.
The 82nd annual Fiesta de los Vaqueros parade starts at 9 a.m. next Thursday. It will be televised live on KOLD, Channel 13.
Grandstands for viewing are on East Irvington Road at South Sixth Avenue. Grandstand tickets are $6 adults and $4 kids age 12 or younger. Call 741-2233. Viewing along both sides of the route is available at no charge. Shuttles from and to area malls are available through Sun Tran.
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