Featuring traditional floats, student-athletes, bands and a lawn chair brigade, the Veishea Parade has more than 80 entries to entertain the estimated 75,000 onlookers.

Though the parade won’t begin until 11:30 a.m. Saturday, the day begins Friday at midnight for parade organizers, as they will work through the night to prepare for the parade.

“We have to work at getting the floats to the staging area. It takes a lot of time and a lot of logistics to get them in that order,” said Mike Abbott, Veishea Parade co-chair.

With the help of a police liaison, all floats are moved to their starting positions by the Armory.

At 11:30 a.m., the 80 entries in the parade will begin the half-hour route that weaves through campus.

“We have a pretty good mix [of parade entries],” said Abbott, senior in finance. “We have all of the old favorites returning.”

Abott said this year’s choice of parade marshals is significant.

The committee chose the three Big XII Championship teams — gymnastics, women’s basketball and men’s basketball — as parade marshals.

“It was a unique year with the sports teams,” said Kyle Mehmen, Veishea Parade co-chair. “We wanted to honor them in this way. We deem them all grand marshals.”

Basketball coaches Larry Eustachy and Bill Fennelly will represent their teams, and the players will follow later in the parade.

Along with honoring the many successful sports teams, the parade will honor a few dignitaries, including Gov. Tom Vilsack, John Vincent Atanasoff Jr. and former ISU football coach Johnny Majors, Mehmen said.

This year, the number of marching bands has increased to six, from last year’s three, Abbott said. The bands are the ISU Marching Band, ISU Groove Drumline, ISU Alumni Marching Band, and bands from Ames High School, Eldora New-Providence and Ellsworth Community College.

“We worked hard to recruit bands,” Abbott said. “Our goal was to increase the number, and we have definitely done that.”

Another feature of the parade that Mehmen said people look forward to every year is the traditional floats.

This year there are six, said Mehmen, senior in agricultural studies.

One float that parade-goers can expect to see is called “Enchanting Our Tomorrows,” built by Pi Beta Phi, 208 Ash Ave., and Delta Sigma Phi, 218 Ash Ave.

Katie Weisenhorn, member of Pi Beta Phi, said the main features of the float are a large castle with spinning towers and a large dragon.

Rick Faulise, Delta Sigma Phi member, said the float was conceived around the idea of “a child day dreaming in school.” It is based in medieval times, but very cartoon-like, said Faulise, freshman in pre-business.

Among the float’s moving parts are a mouse, a jester and a draw bridge. Weisenhorn, sophomore in chemical engineering, said it could take up to 20 people to operate those parts from inside the float.

Construction started back in January, and there is still a lot of work to do, Faulise said.

“It is my life right now,” he said, “but the end is in sight.”

Along with traditional floats there will be five new balloons, including Garfield’s friend Odie and the famous moose Rocky, from the cartoon “Rocky and Bullwinkle,” Abbott said. He said it takes about 10 people to hold down a medium-sized balloon and more than that for a large balloon.

Another parade favorite, Mehmen said, is the Barker Brigade Lawn Chair Drill Team.

Barker House resident Brian Anciaux, former drill sergeant, said Barker House in Lyon Hall has been performing in the Veishea Parade for 13 years.

“It gives us a chance to promote residence halls during Veishea, being positive, energetic representatives,” said Anciaux, senior in mechanical engineering. “We hope that they like the new stuff and enjoy the tradition.”

The Veishea parade is something that attracts people to Iowa State and also brings them back. Class of 1972 alumna Glenda DeKoster said other spring parades are not nearly as much fun as the Veishea parade.

“We like Iowa State so much,” DeKoster said. “We like to see what is new.”