Welcoming 2000 with a rose

Paul M. Anderson

GLENDALE -- Some local residents at the 111th annual Tournament of

Roses parade weren’t sure if Glendale’s basset hound was having fun yet

when it passed by.

Some folks thought the giant artificial pooch perched on Glendale’s

float looked like he stayed up late to welcome Y2K and wasn’t too happy

about the early start Saturday.

“I thought it looked a little perplexed,” said 12-year-old Bethany

Layport of Glendale.

Lilliana Rubi, 27, of Burbank said, “I didn’t like that one much. It

was too plain compared to the other floats.”

Ramon Gutierrez of Arcadia said, “From far away it looked mean, but as

it got closer it changed and it looked friendlier. When I saw the tail

wagging at the end I thought that was a nice touch.”

The basset hound had its fans, too.

“I thought it had beautiful eyes, great eyes,” said Ramon’s wife Ana

Guiterrez.

Phil Stapleton of Glendale agreed, “The big dog was a lot of fun.”

Fun was the order of the day as a generally well-behaved crowd --

perhaps smaller than usual because of the brisk temperatures -- enjoyed a

silent flyover by a B-2 Stealth bomber that could have qualified as the

X-Files or Batman float.

Unfortunately, a formation of U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds were

grounded by the overcast sky, parade spokesman Ken Veronda said.

But the sun finally came out of hiding and one of the planes buzzed

over the Rose Bowl later to kick off the game between Stanford and

Wisconsin, Veronda said.

There was no official crowd estimate. Whatever the number was, it

was clear to longtime parade-goers and organizers that less people than

usual braved the overnight camp-out to get seats.

“If anything, the weather kept some of the people who sleep overnight

away, but the attendance was as great as it’s ever been,” said Jeff

Throop, a Tournament of Roses Assn. board member.

Police arrested 86 people overnight, mostly for public drunkenness,

Pasadena Police Lt. Rick Aversano said.

But only two were arrested during the parade. One on suspicion of

assault for using a stun gun and another for jumping on a float, Aversano

said.

Other than that, the parade went off without a hitch, Throop said.

“This is what we consider a perfect parade. No floats had to be towed

while on TV, and we finished right on time,” Throop said.

What made the 111th parade special were the 250 bicyclists who led the

parade on their way to a yearlong world tour of 45 countries covering

more than 20,000 miles, Throop said. If any of them finish the grueling

tour, they get to kick off next year’s parade, he added.

There was plenty for local residents and float builders to be proud

of, too.

While Glendale’s $90,000 float didn’t win any prizes at Saturday’s

parade, the La Canada Flintridge float took the Founders Award for “most

beautiful float built and decorated by volunteers from a community or

organization.”

And Burbank’s float won the Mayor’s Award for “most outstanding city

entry -- national or international.”

The La Canada Flintridge float won accolades all around. The float,

which was titled “Tee Time 2000,” featured Jetson-like robot golfers.

“In the 21st century we’ll be too busy to play golf so we’ll send

robots out to play the game and download the score card,” said Dustin

Crumb, who helped build the float and drove it in Saturday’s parade.

It featured a vast array of flowers from roses, of course, to irises,

orchids, tulips, mums and “lots of carnations,” Crumb said.

Phil Stapleton, who lives near the border of La Canada, said the float

and it’s award made him feel proud.

“La Canada always has a real community effort,” Stapleton said. “It’s

real hands-on, and it’s always fun to see it because you feel a part of

it.”

“It’s always nice to see the hometown win. It was well done,” said

Stapleton’s son Andrew.

Bob Layport and his daughter Bethany spent time working on the Burbank

float this year.

“I wanted to give her that experience,” Bob Layport said.

“I put some flowers on the oasis to create the clouds,” Bethany said.

“It was fun and interesting to see how so many people worked so hard

together to create something beautiful.”

Rubi, who watched the parade from her employer’s office at Cal Fed

Bank on Colorado, was disappointed she missed the Burbank float, which

also featured a fun-loving canine blasting off in a rocket ship sometimes

to the tune of Van Halen.

“I wish I had seen that. I’m a Van Halen fan,” she said, laughing.