November 2, 2018. Louisville, KY. – You may want to hang on to your Halloween costumes for next year’s Republic Bank Pegasus Parade. Themed “Pegasus Power,” the parade on May 2, 2019, will celebrate super heroes from all walks of life.

“Everyone has a hero. From real-life to the big screen, we plan to celebrate them all on Broadway next spring,” said Mike Berry, KDF President and CEO. “We invite everyone to save their hero costumes and join us for the Derby Festival event that’s been bringing the community together for more than 60 years.”

Registration is now open for groups interested in participating in the 2019 parade. Parade units are needed in the following categories: Equestrian, Specialty Unit, Marching Band, Inflatable and Float. Applications can be submitted online at KDF.org/PegasusParade.

Different themes are chosen each year to help guide the decorations and music used by the participants, including the building of floats and costuming of the inflatable handlers and crew. The floats compete for various awards based on originality, eye appeal, theme representation, animation, attention to detail and enthusiasm. Marching bands use the theme to help with musical selection and it is the basis of costume and concept design for the other marching units.

Republic Bank returns as title sponsor of the event since 2002, joining Contributing Sponsor KentuckyOne Health and The Galt House as the Official Hotel.

The Pegasus Parade – the Derby Festival’s founding event – is one of nearly 70 events produced by the Kentucky Derby Festival in the spring and provides an estimated economic impact of more than $22 million.

The Derby Festival is an independent community organization supported by 4,000 volunteers, 400 businesses and civic groups, Pegasus Pin sponsorships and event participation. It entertains more than 1.5 million people annually. This involvement has made the Festival the largest single attended event in Kentucky and one of the leading community celebrations in the world.