‘I did that’: Thousands of volunteers create Rose Bowl floats
PASADENA, Calif. (WOOD) — In just three days, thousands of fans will pack into the Rose Bowl stands to watch the parade and millions more will tune in worldwide. But they may not think about just exactly how much work goes into the parade itself.
Behind the towering creations millions of people tune in to see during the rose parade are thousands of hands.
“Every one of these buildings are filled with people like me who come and volunteer and love to do this,” said one helper.
“By this time at this hour today, at 10 o’clock, we probably have over 1,000 volunteers here helping to decorate all of our floats,” said organizer Heidi Hoff, who watches the floats get built from scratch. “We need about a minimum of four months to design, construct, and decorate and get this float finished,” she explained.
The first step to get a float ready for the Rose Bowl parade is in the name — roses are used to decorate.
“Taking the roses and stripping the leaves off and making sure they fit into the vial. So we cut them at angle, which all rose growers know you cut roses on an angle,” said one volunteer.
“There are over 200,000 roses being applied to all of these floats over the next 48 hours,” Hoff explained.
Then, the roses are placed.
“You come and poke a hole in this, you make the hole big enough that the whole stem and green part of the flower goes into the ball, and you spread it out so that it covers the space,” a volunteer explained.
But it’s not just roses. Anything that’s organic and looks good makes its way to a float, from split pea to dried Kumquat halves, used for their color and texture.
Take a few thousand volunteers, thousands more flowers, food, and you’ve got a parade that entertains the nation.
“People fly in from all over the country and then on parade day they can say whether they’re in the stand or watching T.V. and be able to say, ‘I did that!’”
The parade comes through Pasadena Monday at 11 a.m. Eastern Standard Time.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com.
