Just like Christmas, the Dunedin Santa Parade approached fast
yesterday afternoon.
Cheyenne Rosie (12) urged her mother to hurry because she was
worried they would miss the start.
Slideshow: Santa Claus comes to town
She was right to be concerned, because the parade started on
time. It finished half-an-hour later.
The crowd sat low on the kerb and high in shop windows on
George St watching the 78 parade entries whizz by.
The Dunedin Santa Parade makes its way down George St
yesterday. Photo by Craig Baxter.
The speed had the seven dwarfs holding on to the chins of
their oversized heads, making made them appear quizzical.
Parade watcher Janene Moss (47) said she was surprised the
parade was over so fast, "especially since the weather held
out".
She had attended the parade for the past 19 years and while
yesterday's featured a similar number of floats to previous
years, she reckoned the floats zipped past in half the time
yesterday.
However, some didn't mind the pace. Craig Fleming (45), of
Dunedin, said he had watched from the same spot on George St
for the past seven years and yesterday was the best because
it began on time and was short.
However, his son, Seth (9), said he was disappointed the seal
float did not squirt the crowd with water, because getting
hit last year was a highlight.
Mark Glover (36) said the parade was quick, smooth and
"brilliant". In past years, big gaps between floats had made
the parade boring, he said.
His sister, Becky Glover (23), said she had been on floats in
six parades and it was hard waving to the same section of
crowd when your float stopped, so a fast-moving parade was
"fantastic".
Isaac Garchow (3) could not understand why his mother chose
to take a photo of him on his father's shoulders, rather than
watch the parade.
"Look behind you, Mum," he yelled.
Dunedin Santa Parade Trust chairman Dean Driver said
organisers were conscious of keeping the parade rolling
because they wanted to beat the forecast thunder and
lightning.
A lack of breakdowns also helped.
The 25,000 cardboard antlers handed out to the crowd was an
indicator of the crowd size, which was bolstered by the two
cruise ships being in Dunedin yesterday, he said.
• The Octagon Christmas Tree was officially lit
on Saturday night.
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