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The beat moves the feet down the street in
Ashland
Festive atmosphere brightens overcast parade skies By Bill Kettler Heads, hands and feet followed the beat at Ashland’s Fourth of July parade. Ten bands entertained a crowd of at least 15,000 people on an unusually cool and cloudy Independence Day. Marching bands played patriotic airs; a marimba band pounded out African rhythms; and blues guitars wailed as the parade crept from Triangle Park to the downtown Plaza. The Ashland City Band set the tone at the head of the two-hour procession with John Philip Sousa’s "Semper Fidelis March." Organizers positioned the bands throughout the parade to give the crowd a fresh tempo every few minutes. Heads bobbed when a California drum and bugle corps passed by, and folks too young to know the Rogue Valley Eight’s Glenn Miller tunes applauded the band’s swing music. Between the bands, the crowd saw a steady procession of standard parade fare — old cars, pretty girls and little kids — and the zany offerings that lure people back to Ashland’s parade year after year. Louise Abel-Curtis sat in regal splendor as Queen Cleopatra atop a throne borne by young men naked to the waist. Around her, 70 men and women danced in costumes that evoked ancient Egypt. "We do this every other year," said Suzanne McQueen, resplendent in a headdress that transformed her into Horus, the Egyptian hawk god. "We’ve been working on this since February," added McQueen, the owner of The Phoenix day spa, which won top honors for best commercial parade entry. Other marchers didn’t need outrageous costumes to draw the crowd’s attention. Brent Schilling balanced atop a five-foot unicycle, juggling Indian clubs. And Dave Nourie turned heads when he turned somersaults on his BMX bike. Some spectators spread their blankets along the route Monday night to secure prime space. Rex and Jeri Bounds sat on the library lawn, the same place where they have watched Fourth of July parades for 20 years. "It’s better this year," Jeri Bounds said. "There’s not so many groups trying to make a statement. It’s just people having fun." Heidi Lawrence and her friends hauled a sofa to the sidewalk at two in the morning so they could watch the parade in comfort. Siskiyou Boulevard residents perched on their front porches and balconies to enjoy the show. "It isn’t commercial and that’s what makes it fun," said Sandy and Lloyd Erb, sitting on the porch at their bed and breakfast inn. Dogs drew plenty of applause. Perennial crowd-pleasers in the Wiener Dog Brigade marched for the eighth year, and a pair of rottweilers pulled two kids in a dog cart. Ashley, a 12-year-old dalmatian, kept her paws on the wheel of an Oregon Department of Forestry truck while she sat in Allen Walters’ lap. "This is her 11th year of driving," Walters said. "She missed one parade when she had a litter." Parade watchers needed a little extra patience this year as several long empty spaces opened in the procession. "Why are there all these gaps?" said Tim Dundas of Ashland. "It’s advertising," said his friend, Ken Casteel. "Advertising?" "Haven’t you ever heard of The Gap?" Casteel said, laughing. Everybody seemed to find the beat when Shamwari, the marimba band, passed by. Toddlers jumped up and down, grownup heads bobbed to the rhythm and teens gyrated to the beat, while Karen Caird, Inez Thompson and friends pounded out tunes. "It’s a real workout," Caird said, in a rare break. "We call it marimba-cize." With more than 125 entries in the parade, folks at the back of the line endured a long wait before their turn came. Among the last in line were the folks from U.S. Cellular. "Apparently we didn’t know who to call," said Linda Mounts, the company’s public relations person. "Next time we’ll have to get better connected." |
