Rose Parade 

With four months or so to go until the 128th Tournament of Roses Parade, it might seem too early to be thinking about the New Year. Not at all … Preparing for the Rose Parade is a year-round business in Pasadena, and it’s never too early to plan.

Speaking of never, the 2017 parade follows the “Never on Sunday” rule and will be Monday, Jan. 2, not on Jan. 1.

In the early days of the Rose Parade, it was decided not to hold the parade and Rose Bowl game on Sundays to avoid upsetting church-goers horses along Colorado Boulevard. So whenever New Year’s Day falls on a Sunday, the Rose Parade and Rose Bowl game are moved to the second.

The theme for the 128th Rose Parade is “Echoes of Success,” which in itself is an echo.

TOR President Brad Ratliff’s father, Dick Ratliff, was president for the 1999 parade. His theme was “Echoes of the Century.”

The younger Ratliff is an amateur musician, who brings his trumpet when he visits the bands who will march down the parade route in 2017. He sits in with each band and presents a Tournament of Roses flag, which serves as the formal invitation to participate.

This year, Arcadia High School Apache Marching Band and Color Guard will represent the foothills area.

Choosing the Royal Court Come September, preparations really take off. The seven members of the Royal Court will be chosen from young women who live or attend school in the boundaries of the Pasadena City College District.

Tryouts are Sept. 10 and Sept. 12. In October, the Court is chosen and the Queen is crowned.

The best-kept secret in Pasadena is who has been chosen for Grand Marshal of the Rose Parade and the attendant honor of flipping a special coin for the Rose Bowl Game.

The Grand Marshal will be someone (or sometimes more than one) who embodies the theme of the parade. The announcement is usually made in the fall, so there is plenty of time to guess who it might be. Any ideas?

People who want to attend the parade will be able to find plenty of parking and a place to stand on the street, or they can purchase tickets from SharpSeating.com for grandstands, parking, and events preceding and following the parade.

Tickets to the 103rd Rose Bowl Game are available through Ticketmaster, rosebowlpremiumseating.com and PrimeSport.

It’s worth the drive to Pasadena to walk through the float barns to see the floats in the final stages of preparation from Dec. 29 through Jan. 1.

After the parade, the floats are on display at Showcase of Floats in East Pasadena, Jan. 2 and 3.

For band lovers, Bandfest offers three shows on Dec. 30 and 31, each of which features half a dozen bands from the Rose Parade.

Equestfest, at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center on Dec. 30, showcases the skills of the horses and riders in a show setting. Tickets to these events, and for football fans, the Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at the Pasadena Convention Center on Dec. 31, are available from Sharp Seating.