Event of the Month

I love Scottsdale's Parada del Sol - IF YOU LOVE at what other parade could you A PARADE, play such games as Road-apple YOU'LL GO SILLY Roulette? Here's how it worked: parada OVER THIS ONE fans purchased tickets with designated yard markers on them. Then as the Jaycees and the four-footed principals in the world's longest horse-drawn parade rode down the route, the spot where the first "road apple" was dropped was marked and measured; and the person holding the lucky ticket won a prize. But there's much more to the parada than wacky contests. In fact, it's not just a parade; it's an excuse for a community gettogether and there's always a surprise or two. Everyone is dressed in Western clothes to celebrate the fact that Scottsdale is "The West's Most Western Town." And the "cowboys" aren't all in the parade; they're lined up and down Scottsdale's main drag, too.

It's traditional to get downtown early, so I'm in my spot hours before the procession is scheduled to kick off. This is when the fun starts. Crowds have started gathering. And the Scottsdale Charros already are competing for the oldest, slowest horses in Ed Hank's makeshift corral.

I'm not sure anyone knows exactly when the parade will start. It's really up to the horses.

I remember one year when the bands, beauty queens, floats, and dignitaries were lining up at the intersection of Scottsdale and Indian School roads and the parade chairman was fighting to hold back his horse. Well, you know who won. All the chairman could do was shout, "Let's go!" and the parade was under way. Quite a few of the units were out of order that year, but some of the announcers got them mixed up anyway, so it really didn't matter all that much. Maybe it's the informality, the rather casual sense of orga-nization, that gives this parade its special hometown appeal. The Scottsdale Jaycees have allowed this nostalgic event to remain a "trip down memory lane." It sure was for Avis Culbert a while back.

Avis, the first Parada del Sol Queen, was entered in the 1989 parade as a 50th-birthday surprise. She was kidnapped by friends who decorated a wagon for her to ride with blue denim bows, bales of hay, and a horse made from old car parts. Friends were stationed along the parade route with signs that read: "Once a queen, always a queen." And they all sang, "The Old Gray Mare She Ain't What She Used To Be."

That song will be sung this year just as it is at every Parada del Sol when announcer Gil Gifford interviews Mayor Herb Drinkwater and his horse. Gil will sing the song to Herb, and everyone will join in while hizonner beams.

It's old Scottsdale, and I love it!

The Parada del Sol will take place January 25, running south along Scottsdale Road from Indian School Road to McDowell Road. But there's a month's worth of special events - before and after the parade - that add to the excitement: gunfights, performances by dancers and musicians, demonstrations by Native American craftsmen, the arrival of the Hashknife Pony Express, and the KNIX rodeo dance. Then there's the big rodeo. Cowboys come from all over to compete in events including calf roping, barrel racing, and bull riding. Afternoon and evening performances will run January 30-February 2 with admission ranging from $5-$12. For more information, contact the Scottsdale Jaycees Parada del Sol, P.O. Box 2925, Scottsdale, AZ 85252; telephone, (602) 990-3179. Photo Tour: Join the Friends of Arizona Highways and photographers Ken Akers and Jeff Kida at the Prescott Rodeo, July 2-5. The focus will be on arena action and behind-thescenes cowboy camaraderie. The spectacular countryside around the mile-high city offers a bonus of even more photo opportunities. For information and reservations, call the Friends' Travel Desk, (602) 271-5904.