Rose Parade kicks off 2025 with petals and pageantry

[ad_1] The 136th Rose Parade has begun and is rolling alongside 5.5 miles of Pasadena streets earlier than an anticipated New Yr’s Day crowd of a whole bunch of 1000's.

The parade is being televised by networks together with ABC, NBC, KTLA and Univision, and streamed on platforms together with YouTube, Fubo and Pluto TV.

Celebrating this yr’s parade theme of “Greatest Day Ever,” dozens of floats, marching bands and equestrian teams will traverse Colorado Boulevard by way of the guts of Outdated Pasadena. The parade might be adopted by the Rose Bowl recreation between the Oregon Geese and the Ohio State Buckeyes.

The parade started hours after a pickup truck driver plowed by way of a crowd in New Orleans’ French Quarter, killing not less than 10 individuals and injuring not less than 30 in a suspected terrorist assault.

A person drove into the gang round 3:15 a.m. Wednesday alongside Bourbon Avenue, which was bustling with New Yr’s Eve revelers and guests on the town for the Sugar Bowl school soccer recreation on the close by Superdome. New Orleans Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick mentioned the driving force “was hellbent on creating the carnage and the injury that he did.”

Lisa Derderian, a spokeswoman for town of Pasadena, informed The Instances early Wednesday that the Rose Parade route is lined with “very strong car boundaries” and that greater than 1,000 regulation enforcement officers are within the metropolis.

<img class="image" alt="Crowds line Colorado Boulevard in chairs on sidewalks in the early morning in anticipation of the Rose Bowl parade." srcset="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/68a9c60/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/320x213!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fd6%2Fc3%2Fd31ab9284d9cb10757f309de3387%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-001.jpg 320w,https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d927ce7/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/568x379!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fd6%2Fc3%2Fd31ab9284d9cb10757f309de3387%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-001.jpg 568w,https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/15181df/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/768x512!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fd6%2Fc3%2Fd31ab9284d9cb10757f309de3387%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-001.jpg 768w,https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/12dae5c/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/1080x720!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fd6%2Fc3%2Fd31ab9284d9cb10757f309de3387%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-001.jpg 1080w,https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/088b051/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/1240x826!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fd6%2Fc3%2Fd31ab9284d9cb10757f309de3387%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-001.jpg 1240w,https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/a1383c2/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/1440x960!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fd6%2Fc3%2Fd31ab9284d9cb10757f309de3387%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-001.jpg 1440w,https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/2afa27e/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/2160x1440!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fd6%2Fc3%2Fd31ab9284d9cb10757f309de3387%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-001.jpg 2160w" sizes="100vw" width="2000" height="1333" src="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/84124cb/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/2000x1333!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fd6%2Fc3%2Fd31ab9284d9cb10757f309de3387%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-001.jpg" decoding="async" loading="lazy"/> Crowds line Colorado Boulevard within the early morning Wednesday in anticipation of the 136th Rose Bowl Parade.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Instances)

“This can be a top-rated federal occasion, and it has been for a few years, so we now have federal, state, county and metropolis sources which were in Pasadena for a number of days and can stay by way of the tip of the parade and the sport tonight,” Derderian mentioned.

“We need to guarantee the general public that we now have each safety measure in place,” she added. “We’re assured we're ready for this parade and this recreation, however with that in thoughts, we additionally really feel for the state of Louisiana what they’re going by way of.”

Throughout final yr’s Rose Parade, a girl rammed her car into one of many barricades alongside Colorado Boulevard, Derderian mentioned.

“She might have simply injured or killed individuals,” Derderian mentioned. “She had some previous historical past of psychological sickness, was informed to not cross a line, didn’t pay attention, revved her engine, and continued driving. The boundaries stopped her.”

Match of Roses officers mentioned in an announcement Wednesday that they “prolong our deepest sympathies to the individuals of Louisiana and town of New Orleans following this morning’s tragic occasions.”

“We stand in solidarity with all the state throughout this tough time.”

For the fourth consecutive yr, the state of Louisiana has a float within the Rose Parade. This yr’s float, dubbed “Louisiana Saturday Night time,” incorporates a big alligator carrying a beaded necklace and carrying a Cajun dance corridor and pots of boiled seafood on its again.

Mark Garcia, a retired firefighter from Contra Costa County who camped in a single day alongside Colorado Boulevard together with his household, mentioned that whereas he was saddened by the information in New Orleans, he had “by no means felt safer” than he did alongside the Rose Parade route Wednesday morning.

“There’s been two or three police patrolling this block all night time lengthy,” mentioned Garcia, 58, including that he was comforted by the “enormous police presence.”

<img class="image" alt="Bryce Murphy and sister Charlotte Murphy lie on blankets along the Rose Parade route and look at their phones" srcset="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/421422e/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/320x213!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Ff2%2F7e%2F5dc0c84f4be8a9366d1a82f3b9f1%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-002.jpg 320w,https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/0aa635d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/568x379!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Ff2%2F7e%2F5dc0c84f4be8a9366d1a82f3b9f1%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-002.jpg 568w,https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d0db53f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/768x512!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Ff2%2F7e%2F5dc0c84f4be8a9366d1a82f3b9f1%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-002.jpg 768w,https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/265f567/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/1080x720!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Ff2%2F7e%2F5dc0c84f4be8a9366d1a82f3b9f1%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-002.jpg 1080w,https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d5dfa64/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/1240x826!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Ff2%2F7e%2F5dc0c84f4be8a9366d1a82f3b9f1%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-002.jpg 1240w,https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/01923b2/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/1440x960!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Ff2%2F7e%2F5dc0c84f4be8a9366d1a82f3b9f1%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-002.jpg 1440w,https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/72ce5e4/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/2160x1440!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Ff2%2F7e%2F5dc0c84f4be8a9366d1a82f3b9f1%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-002.jpg 2160w" sizes="100vw" width="2000" height="1333" src="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/1becf34/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/2000x1333!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Ff2%2F7e%2F5dc0c84f4be8a9366d1a82f3b9f1%2F1487479-me-2025-rose-parade-002.jpg" decoding="async" loading="lazy"/> Bryce Murphy, left, and sister Charlotte Murphy of Rancho Cucamonga cross the hours earlier than the parade on their telephones, accompanied by their grandmother Roseann Ochoa.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Instances)

Garcia, who lives in Danville, was attending the parade for the second yr in a row. He staked out his tenting spot at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday morning, turned mates with different campers and was in excessive spirits — regardless of solely getting three hours of sleep.

“It’s only a nice spectacle bringing collectively so many individuals. Everybody’s in an ideal temper,” Garcia mentioned. “It’s such an ideal occasion. It’s fairly an enterprise.”

Just a few blocks away, Angel Gutierrez, of Pasadena, huddled together with his household round a makeshift bonfire earlier than the parade started.

Gutierrez additionally claimed his tenting spot early Tuesday morning, saying he most well-liked to camp for a full day and night time — even with the chilly in a single day climate — slightly than shell out as much as $125 apiece for grandstand seats that may refill weeks upfront.

“I don’t need to say it, however the stands are for boring individuals,” Gutierrez mentioned with fun. “Right here, you get the entire expertise, getting to speak to totally different individuals.”

Gutierrez has been coming to the parade for about 20 years — and his 10-year-old son, Rony Plascencia, has been attending since he was an toddler.

“That is about beginning off the yr good,” Rony mentioned.

He added: “My New Yr’s decision is for homeless individuals to get a house.”

This yr’s Rose Parade grand marshal is Billie Jean King, the tennis icon and gender equality activist who received 20 Wimbledon titles, 39 Grand Slam titles, and drew an viewers of 90 million individuals worldwide for the televised 1973 “Battle of the Sexes” match during which she beat onetime nationwide tennis champion Bobby Riggs.

When she was introduced because the parade’s grand marshal in October, King, a Lengthy Seaside native, mentioned it “is sort of a dream come true.”

“As a toddler, the annual Match of Roses Parade was a giant deal in our residence,” mentioned King, 81. “We used to speak about all of it yr lengthy. ... We seemed ahead to it each single yr.”

The 2021 Rose Parade was canceled for the primary time since World Battle II due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It returned to a smaller crowd in 2022, however attendance has been rising within the years since.

Sweet Carlson, a spokeswoman for the Match of Roses, mentioned in an announcement to The Instances that about 750,000 individuals lined the route in 2024, in contrast with about 700,000 in 2022, indicating a “robust return” to pre-pandemic crowd sizes.

“The constant progress in attendance underscores the Rose Parade’s enduring enchantment and the enjoyment it brings to our neighborhood and guests from all over the world,” she mentioned. “We’re assured this yr’s parade will proceed to attract a vibrant and engaged viewers.”

The Rose Bowl, which is now the School Soccer Playoff quarterfinal, might be broadcast nationally on ESPN, with pre-game festivities starting at 1 p.m. PST and kickoff scheduled for two p.m.

Alongside the parade route, Susan and Leo Caviness, who traveled from Ohio to observe their son carry out with the Ohio State College Marching Band, mentioned they weren't bothered by the 50-degree morning in Pasadena — which, to lots of the Southern Californians in attendance, qualifies as chilly.