Actually all the carts are Jeralds. My sister and I have the runabout, and my friend is driving the show cart.
Tommy Franks, a retired 4 star general, had the grand opening of his museum and conference center that weekend. That is why Wayne Newton came. Also had Neal McCoy for the evening concert. I did not go, but many people who had not heard Mr Newton before were absolutely amazed at his skill on the fiddle.
Our town is rather small--4500--and the event was so large that it took practically the whole town to run all the events! There was also a fly-in at the airport, and a large quilt and textile show, motorcycle rally, plus art show.
I did not get to see any of the events, as my friend driving the show cart has macular disease and I had to fetch her. She lives about 40 miles away, so there was quite a lot of logistics in transport, harnessing, and decorating with timing. Also, I did not realize that she would need to be accompanied all day. I thought I could work at the museum ice cream stand or help my sister at her art booth, but my friend was totally dependant on me. We had to keep in voice contact and she could not go about by herself. Because we had the horses, we were restricted in our activities that day. She had no trouble driving in the parade, it was moving about in a strange place that was not easy. You can see she is quite young; it is amazing how she has dealt with it.
Since the parade moved so slowly, it was fun to stop and let children pet my horse. Even though it is a small rural town, it is amazing how few children have actually touched a hrose or seen one up close.
And yes, I think people enjoyed our little horses more than seeing a movie star!
