It was a chilly, but fairly comfortable evening. On the day after Thanksgiving, Howell has one of the biggest civic events of the year - The Fantasy of Lights Parade. At 6pm, a 5K run/walk begins at the First Presbyterian Church on Grand River and Chestnut. The 3.1 mile course loops along the parade route on east and west Grand River in front of the crowds waiting for the parade. Many of the participants in the race wear costumes or battery-operated lights to add to the festive mood.
As a member of the local running club, the Brighton Area Road Striders, I'm always there to help with this great event. Many club members work the registration table, then dash out to run the race without benefit of a proper warm-up. Others give up running for the evening to work out on the course. Whether you run or walk, this is a great way to see the crowds and work off some of the calories from yesterday's Holiday meal.
At 7pm, the parade starts near Citizens Insurance on Grand River and Byron. This year, the Budweiser Clydesdales were in the parade for the first time. They followed the honor guards that always lead the way. There were plenty of floats (rules state that there must be a minimum of 5,000 lights on each float), and groups from Cub Scout packs, to high school marching bands, local businesses and politicians were all represented.
Here the Michigan Department of Natural Resources has an entry with their fire control vehicle. There were all sorts of entries, from driven vehicles, to horse drawn carts, to towed trailers.
The Howell Chamber of Commerce is the driving force in this event and it gets better every year. There were plenty of other activities around the Historic Courthouse and downtown's four corners, and portable toilets and concession stands serving hot food and drinks were present along the entire parade route. Drive through Howell on Friday afternoon and you'll see lawn chairs placed to save prime viewing spots as early as noon! If you missed this year's festivities, make sure you pace your shopping next year to save some energy and see the Fantasy of Lights Parade!
Note to amateur photographers. I take pretty decent photos, but this event will test your abilities. Dark conditions, flashes that only work within 10-15 feet, and moving subjects all make it tough to compose, frame and shoot good photos. These represent some of the best of about 50 shots I made during the evening. I tested a variety of settings before the parade to get ready, but it wasn't enough.
Comments(0)