 |
| Cal Poly Universities' design for their 58th entry into the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Parade is called ?Enchanted Reverie.? |
Cal Poly Universities' (in Pomona and San Luis Obispo) Rose Float Associations have finalized the design for their 58th entry into the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Parade, “Enchanted Reverie.” The float entry depicts a troupe of fairies who have joined together around their treetop castle to bask in their whimsical wonderland.
The float entry was designed to match the Pasadena Tournament of Roses 2006 theme, “It's Magical.” In considering the parade theme, students chose the design for its fairytale appeal to the young at heart of all ages who remember a time of fantasy and magic in their lives.
“We're hoping for a winner,” says Matthew Yeseta, Cal Poly Pomona Rose Float Association president. Yeseta says this is the first year in a long time that the universities are incorporating water into the float, “which adds to its mystique.”
Teasing the friendly dragon who oversees their dream world, the fairies on the “Enchanted Reverie” float interact with their surroundings, emerging from giant flowers, riding on snails, pouring water from a never-ending vessel, and having an all-around magical time in their world. Atop a great tree sits their home base, a fairy castle with towers and turrets with some of its inhabitants peeking out to see the magic that surrounds them.
“Magic comes from the imagination — a facet of the mind each Cal Poly student is encouraged to exercise both in and out of classes,” explains Jennifer Cooley, Rose Float committee chair at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
The magical friendships between fairies, creatures and the dragon are also symbolic of the relationships that are forged in the float-building process, as students from over 200 miles apart come together year after year to join forces in the creation of magnificent collaborative entries that is as much magic as it is real to those who give it life.
About two dozen students from Cal Poly Pomona and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo work on the Rose Float year round. The two campuses, located approximately 225 miles apart, manage to coordinate the effort to complete the float for each parade. Throughout the 12-month period, both student committees work closely together on the design and construction of their respective portion to ensure the float is built to specification.
Students from the two universities have designed, constructed, decorated and financed entries to the Tournament of Roses Parade every year since 1949. Involvementin this project highlights the Cal Poly Universities' learn-by-doing philosophy as students develop these decorative floats from design conception to welding together steel and pasting petals to driving the contraption down Colorado Boulevard.
To learn more about the Rose Float project or becoming a volunteer, visit www.cpp.edu/~rose_float or contact Janetta McDowell, Rose Float senior coordinator in the Office of Student Life & Cultural Centers, at (909) 869-3642.