The weather could not have been more Irish. There was a
glimmer of hope with an initial temperature forecast near 40 before the parade – but a cold
rainy front moved in and it grew worse throughout the day.
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This
did not dampen the spirits of those who came out to celebrate St. Patrick
wearing as much green as possible..JPG)
The
cannon went off just after 10:00am for one of the largest St. Pat’s Parades in
New York State (we rank right up there with Syracuse but NYC is still the
grandest).
The
number of participants seemed endless and the Red Band did not step off until
11:20.
We
were the 23rd unit in the purple division which was made up of mostly
local bands and floats. The bands from out-of-town are placed near the
beginning – they finish our parade, hop on a bus to Syracuse to march at the
end of their parade.
So
big was this parade that the marchers seemed to outnumber the spectators.
The
low number watching the parade may have been the result of the lousy weather
and also by the fact the WKTV was broadcasting it LIVE and people may have
decided to stay in their warm homes to watch it on TV.
It
was a short parade – only .7 miles long from Oneida Square ending at the steps
of the Historic Hotel Utica.
And
so La Banda Rossa begins its 109th Season
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