April 30, 2014. Louisville, KY. – The Kentucky Derby Festival’s oldest event – the 59th annual Republic Bank Pegasus Parade – steps off TOMORROW, May 1, at 5 p.m. The parade will march west on Broadway from Campbell to Ninth Street. The parade is one of the festival’s most cherished and popular events, attracting thousands of spectators to downtown streets. In honor of this year’s parade theme “Call of the Wild,” Jeff Corwin, host of ABC’s Ocean Mysteries will be the Theme Marshal. Actor Josh Hopkins, Lexington-born star of Cougar Town will be the Kentucky Marshal.
Among the Kentucky Derby Festival’s guests scheduled to appear at the Pegasus Parade are: Actor Jonathan Kite of CBS’s “Two Broke Girls;” Actor Geoff Stults of “Enlisted” on FOX; Actor Jon Seda of NBC’s “Chicago P.D.;” Actor Keith Robinson of the upcoming James Brown movie “Get On Up;” Damaris Phillips of the Food Network’s “Southern at Heart;” country music stars J.D. Shelburne and Olivia Henken; actress Josie Davis; Mark and Matthew Harris of A&E’s “Storage Wars;” Miss America 2014 Nina Davuluri; and Miss Kentucky 2014 Jenna Day.
Tickets for the Republic Bank Pegasus Parade are still available. They can be purchased tomorrow at will call from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Patrons who have already purchased tickets may pick them up at the will-call office located in the ArtSpace lobby at 323 W. Broadway. The entrance to ArtSpace is located next to the Brown Theater on Broadway between 3rd and 4th streets. This is the only location tickets may be picked up on Parade Day.
Floats from 15 sponsoring organizations will be featured: CenterStage at the Jewish Community Center, Centennial Festival of Riverboats – Waterfront Development, City of St. Matthews, Grand Lodge of Kentucky, Hwang’s Martial Arts, Kentuckiana Pride Festival, Kosair Charities/Kosair Shriners, Louisville Metro Parks & Recreation, Norton Healthcare, ResCare/Signature HealthCARE, Second Chance@Life, S.O.C.K.S. Inc, The Fillies, Inc., The Louisville Zoo, and “Produce” with Angels in Disguise.
The parade will also feature: 15 floats, 16 equestrian units, 1 camel, 6 inflatables, 11 marching bands, 2 push floats and 28 specialty units.
Inflatable characters scheduled to participate include: Republic Bank (Peggy Bank), Horseshoe Southern Indiana (Horseshoe), LG&E (Louie the Lightning Bug), AAA East Central (Otto the Auto), ZirMed, Inc. (“Animal” from The Muppet Show), Stage One Family Theatre (“Gator”).
COVERAGE NOTE: Live trucks are welcome in the float staging area for morning, noon and afternoon live news cut-ins. Complete broadcast coverage is the official right of NBC affiliate WAVE TV.
The Pegasus Parade – the Derby Festival’s founding event – is one of nearly 70 events produced by the Kentucky Derby Festival in the spring. The first parade was organized by just a handful of volunteers in 1956 on a budget of $640. It provides an estimated impact of $22 million to the area’s economy. The Derby Festival is now an independent community organization supported by 4,000 volunteers, 400 businesses and civic groups, Pegasus Pin sponsorships and event participation.
Parade Timing (good place for visuals and feature stories on Thursday, May 1):
- 6 AM: Floats moved and stacked in Float Assembly along Baxter Avenue
- 10 AM: Character balloons start inflation at Inflatable Assembly (Goodwill Lot and Gray Street)
- 1 PM: Marching bands begin arriving by bus at Band Assembly (top of Broadway, above Baxter Avenue)
- 1 PM: Horses start arriving in Equestrian Assembly (East Government Center on Baxter (South of Broadway)
- 2 PM: Specialty units begin assembly at Seven Counties parking lot on Broadway
- 4:30PM: Celebrities, Queen & Court, VIPs, etc. begin arriving at VIP Assembly at Louisville Stoneware
- 5 PM: Step-off at Broadway & Campbell (watch the parade funnel together as all the components enter the route from their separate staging areas)
