For 1990 Boat Parade Winner, It Wasn’t How Many Lights but How He Wore Them

Tom Herren did not expect to win the Shoreline Village Christmas boat parade last year.

His small sloop was competing against behemoths--”30-, 40-, 50-footers, big powerboats with enough energy to practically light up a city,” he recalled. It also was the first time the La Mirada resident and his family had ever entered a boat parade.

Instead of spending a lot of money to try to outgun the big guys, Herren decided to get “really silly.”

The family started by modestly decorating their 28-foot sailboat with colored lights in the shape of a huge Christmas tree, powered by a small generator.

Herren bought four red sweat suits and decorated them with hundreds of colored lights, stowing battery packs in waistbands and beneath oversized hats. Family members donned the outfits and right before the parade, Herren switched on the juice. His family lit up like the Main Street Electrical Parade.

The crowd cheered and clapped all along the parade route, Herren said. “People even took our picture. They said they’d never seen Santa Claus lit up.”

The result: first place for most unusual entry.

The Herrens are planning a similar stunt this year but are keeping the details as secret as the contents of a carefully wrapped gift under the Christmas tree.

They will join 40 to 50 other boat owners at 7 p.m. Saturday in the Parade of a Thousand Lights, featuring some of Long Beach’s finest floating pleasure palaces passing around the perimeter of Shoreline Village. Prizes will be awarded in categories such as best spirit of Christmas and best use of music. Free viewing spots are near Parker’s Lighthouse restaurant or along the outer drive of the Downtown Long Beach Marina.

Other boat parades along the coast:

* Huntington Beach--The parade will begin at 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday inside Huntington Harbour at Huntington Beach. Parking is nearly impossible, parade officials say, so arrive at least an hour early. The Cruise of Lights ($8.50 for adults, $5 for children), a boat trip around the harbor to view the decorated houses, runs from Dec. 13 through 21. For tickets and information, call (714) 840-7542.

* Long Beach--The parade will begin at 7 p.m. Dec. 14 in Alamitos Bay around Naples, at the southeastern end of Long Beach. The best place to view it is on Alamitos Beach, since the parade is short and winds through a canal into the bay. Parking is “a nightmare,” said one official, and the local residents tend to discourage outsiders from coming. For more information, call the Long Beach Area Convention and Visitors Council at 436-3645.

* San Pedro--The 28th annual Christmas Afloat parade will begin at 7 p.m. Dec. 14 along the main channel of Los Angeles Harbor. There are many viewing spots, but perhaps the best is at or near Ports O’ Call Village in San Pedro. Exit the southbound Harbor Freeway (110) at Harbor Boulevard and go right (south) to 6th Street. Then jog left over the railroad tracks and right again to the village. For more information, call (310) 831-0287.

* Newport Beach--The Christmas Parade of Lights will begin at 6:30 p.m. nightly Dec. 17 through 23 and travel throughout Newport Harbor. Grandstand seating is available ($6 for adults, $4 for children); the price includes parking and shuttle service. Grandstand tickets can be purchased at Ticketmaster or by calling (714) 740-2000. For more information about the parade, call the Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce at (714) 729-4400.

* Long Beach--Boat cruises will leave Belmont Pier in Long Beach at 7 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and at 5:30 and 8 p.m. Fridays through Sundays for tours of the decorated houses in Huntington Harbour. The cruise schedule will begin Saturday and run through Dec. 22. Admission is $15 for adults, $10 for children and senior citizens. For reservations, call (310) 434-6781.