by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
Spots are quickly filling for Saturday’s Jacksonville Light Parade — easily one of Downtown’s biggest annual events.
Christina Langston, public relations manager for the City’s Office of Special Events, said 80 boats have registered for this year’s parade down the St. Johns River.
“We have extended registration until Wednesday,” she said Monday. “I had six more boats register this morning.”
This is the 22nd year for the event that gets bigger and bigger. Langston said she expects a crowd of nearly 200,000 to line both banks of the river for the parade that gets underway at 7 p.m. Boaters will begin at Metropolitan Park, navigate along the Northbank past the Landing, under the Acosta Bridge, circle over to the Southbank and continue down river to the School Board building. Fireworks will follow the parade. Even Mayor John Peyton is looking forward to the event.
“The Jacksonville Light Parade has become a a tradition for many and really provides a way for the entire community to welcome the holiday season together,” said Peyton. “It is also an excellent opportunity to showcase and celebrate our breathtaking river.”
Langston said local boaters make the event.
“We couldn’t do this without the participation of the boating community,” she said. “They are so passionate and that’s what makes it so special every year. We have a lot of new entries this year. The event has become more popular every year.”
Bob Gipson has been involved with the Captain’s Club, the organization that started the Light Parade, for 26 years.
He compared the reason the club came up with the idea to the reason they moved the annual Blessing of the Fleet Downtown after years at Mayport.
“Boaters wanted to draw attention to what we have here in Jacksonville. Downtown is very unique with the Northbank and the Southbank. We got involved to showcase the riverfront Downtown,” said Gipson.
He recalled that when the parade debuted, captains had to pay an entry fee, but first prize was a new car.
No one will add a new car to their inventory this year, but there are plenty of prizes to be won in several boat categories, like a two-day BMW driving experience from Tom Bush BMW. There’s also a five-hour limo ride in a Bentley, dinners, a golf outing, a C. Ford Riley print and tickets to see the Jacksonville Barracudas ice hockey team and the George Carlin show at the T-U Center.
The chance to win prizes, however, isn’t the reason as many as 100 captains and crews look forward to being part of the parade each year.
“I’m a veteran. I have missed a couple of times, but I am going to be back this year,” said Jacqueline Welti, who is decorating her 40-foot Freedom sailboat for the Light Parade.
Welti said she thought she might not be in town Nov. 25 because she was racing in the Caribbean 1,500, an ocean sailboat race from the Hamptons to the British Virgin Islands. Her team ran into foul weather and had to withdraw, so Welti decided to enter the Light Parade.
“The theme of the decorations this year will be snowflakes since it never snows in Florida,” she said.
Participating in the parade isn’t something she and her fellow boaters take lightly.
“It’s a commitment. We have to plan it for a month,” said Welti. “But it’s worth it. It’s a way to give something back to the City and it makes the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday season seem a little longer.
“We have as much fun waving to the crowd as the crowd has watching the boats.”
Eric Lockwood and his 30-foot Hunter sailboat took second place in class the first year he sailed in the parade and took first place last year.
“My girlfriend got me into it,” he said. “The first year, we did it not knowing what to expect. People told us about the currents, but it’s at night so it’s pretty calm. Safety is a big concern. You have to make sure everything works properly and pay attention to the separation between the boats.”
Lockwood said his type of vessel gives him more choices about how to decorate the entry.
“A sailboat has a mast, so you can do more decoration that you can with a powerboat. Last year, we built a palm tree on the mast and put a flamingo on the bow. We also had Santa in a hammock, electric tiki torches on the cockpit and girls in grass skirts waving to the crowd,” said Lockwood.