So I think most folks know that there are beads thrown (from floats, from balconies) at Mardi Gras. What I don't think most people know is how much time, effort and money is spent in getting the beads, loading them onto the floats and what this process entails for any individual krewe or what it means down to the individual parade float rider. (Warning: There is going to be some math in this post). Anyway, I had no clue about the volume of beads that it takes for one rider let alone one krewe to put on a parade. It's mind boggling. I got my first inkling when I went to the Krewe of Mid City new rider den party last spring. As I was shown around the float den, we came across a palette(!) stacked with bags of beads that was maybe 4 feet high- I was told that this was a typical amount of beads for 1 rider in the parade. More recently, when I volunteered at the ARC of Greater New Orleans bead recycling program I got another insider view of the volume of beads that go into putting on Mardi Gras. The recycling warehouse was full of thousands of 3o lb sacks of beads in all sizes and colors (as well as mountains of plastic cups, stuffed animals and other trinkets)- and this was just the beads and other items that were being recycled- let alone the new ones that were being purchased by all the krewes for all the parades that occur in the 2 weeks of carnival across the NO region! Anyway here's a quick breakdown- when you are talking about beads for an individual rider (here comes the math) you talk in terms of dozens or even grosses (12 dozen dozen beads= 12x12=144 individual bead necklaces) of beads. Here is the typical bead inventory for a "light throwing" rider in a 2-3hr parade: 6 doz krewe logo beads, 1 gross special logo beads, 6 doz addtl special logo beads, 1 gross other bead types,4 gross (48 doz!) 36" beads, 32 doz 48"beads, 40 doz 48" metallic beads, 12 doz 60" larger size beads..you get the idea- for a "moderate" or "heavy" thrower you can double or even triple these amounts (in volume and in cost)...riders typically purchase bead packages from their krewe which goes towards helping to fund the parade (decorate the floats, pay the marching bands, tractor drivers,etc etc)...in addition to beads (which come in all kinds of lengths-most typically 48",but also 33", 42"and 60"- and individual bead sizes- denoted in millimeters- from 8mm up to 12mm) there are also various other "throws" that get tossed to the crowds. These are limited in scope only by the individual krewes imaginations (and wallets) but fall into a few main categories: Plush toys (ie stuffed animals) w/ or w/ out krewe logos, doubloons (plastic and/or metal coins that typically have the krewe logos embossed on them- usually ordered in quantities of 200 or more for a single parade for each rider) and other krewe-branded "trinkets" (things like plastic cups, drink koozies, frisbees, footballs, even food items like bags of potato chips or Moon Pies!) which are ordered by the dozens again by each rider on a float-holy cow!...again, if it can be bought in quanity, can have a logo put on it and you can throw it from a float w/ out killing somebody, some krewe has or is throwing it during a parade..For my first ride I bought a basic bead & throw package from the krewe- along w/ ordering some exta krewe-branded frisbees, specialty beads, footballs, koozies and the like. I then supplemented this with 3 bags of plush toys (about 100 pcs) and 4 30lb bags of beads from the ARC of New Orleans- to save a little bit of money but also to help do a little bit to save the environment by using recycled items..this configuration probably falls at the "lighter throwing" end of the spectrum so I'll have to see if I run out by the end or not (running out may be better than having too many thows left at the end-having too many items left at the end can result in riders starting to throw not single strands of beads but full bags-maybe a dozen at a time-into the crowd to get rid of their beads). On the receiving end, folks who go to a lot of parades may only collect certain things- for instance,only doubloons or only footballs or plastic cups- while others want to get anything and everything they can get their hands on. Apparently for certain parades that feature very unique or limited quanity "special" throws the competition to get one ("Throw me something mister!) can be fierce and I'm told that if something hits the ground,you better put your foot on it to claim it vs reaching down w/ your hand b/c you will likely get your fingers stomped!..You also have to pay attention b/c you have multiple riders on any given float who may be throwing beads at the same time and if you aren't careful you can "catch" some beads to the side of your head or in the face which-if it is a 60", 12mm size strand of beads- is not a pleasant experience..All in all, this whole parade thing is going to be quite an experience and i will be part of it both as a rider/thrower and as an observer/throw catcher- wild!
So I think most folks know that there are beads thrown (from floats, from balconies) at Mardi Gras. What I don't think most people know is how much time, effort and money is spent in getting the beads, loading them onto the floats and what this process entails for any individual krewe or what it means down to the individual parade float rider. (Warning: There is going to be some math in this post). Anyway, I had no clue about the volume of beads that it takes for one rider let alone one krewe to put on a parade. It's mind boggling. I got my first inkling when I went to the Krewe of Mid City new rider den party last spring. As I was shown around the float den, we came across a palette(!) stacked with bags of beads that was maybe 4 feet high- I was told that this was a typical amount of beads for 1 rider in the parade. More recently, when I volunteered at the ARC of Greater New Orleans bead recycling program I got another insider view of the volume of beads that go into putting on Mardi Gras. The recycling warehouse was full of thousands of 3o lb sacks of beads in all sizes and colors (as well as mountains of plastic cups, stuffed animals and other trinkets)- and this was just the beads and other items that were being recycled- let alone the new ones that were being purchased by all the krewes for all the parades that occur in the 2 weeks of carnival across the NO region! Anyway here's a quick breakdown- when you are talking about beads for an individual rider (here comes the math) you talk in terms of dozens or even grosses (12 dozen dozen beads= 12x12=144 individual bead necklaces) of beads. Here is the typical bead inventory for a "light throwing" rider in a 2-3hr parade: 6 doz krewe logo beads, 1 gross special logo beads, 6 doz addtl special logo beads, 1 gross other bead types,4 gross (48 doz!) 36" beads, 32 doz 48"beads, 40 doz 48" metallic beads, 12 doz 60" larger size beads..you get the idea- for a "moderate" or "heavy" thrower you can double or even triple these amounts (in volume and in cost)...riders typically purchase bead packages from their krewe which goes towards helping to fund the parade (decorate the floats, pay the marching bands, tractor drivers,etc etc)...in addition to beads (which come in all kinds of lengths-most typically 48",but also 33", 42"and 60"- and individual bead sizes- denoted in millimeters- from 8mm up to 12mm) there are also various other "throws" that get tossed to the crowds. These are limited in scope only by the individual krewes imaginations (and wallets) but fall into a few main categories: Plush toys (ie stuffed animals) w/ or w/ out krewe logos, doubloons (plastic and/or metal coins that typically have the krewe logos embossed on them- usually ordered in quantities of 200 or more for a single parade for each rider) and other krewe-branded "trinkets" (things like plastic cups, drink koozies, frisbees, footballs, even food items like bags of potato chips or Moon Pies!) which are ordered by the dozens again by each rider on a float-holy cow!...again, if it can be bought in quanity, can have a logo put on it and you can throw it from a float w/ out killing somebody, some krewe has or is throwing it during a parade..For my first ride I bought a basic bead & throw package from the krewe- along w/ ordering some exta krewe-branded frisbees, specialty beads, footballs, koozies and the like. I then supplemented this with 3 bags of plush toys (about 100 pcs) and 4 30lb bags of beads from the ARC of New Orleans- to save a little bit of money but also to help do a little bit to save the environment by using recycled items..this configuration probably falls at the "lighter throwing" end of the spectrum so I'll have to see if I run out by the end or not (running out may be better than having too many thows left at the end-having too many items left at the end can result in riders starting to throw not single strands of beads but full bags-maybe a dozen at a time-into the crowd to get rid of their beads). On the receiving end, folks who go to a lot of parades may only collect certain things- for instance,only doubloons or only footballs or plastic cups- while others want to get anything and everything they can get their hands on. Apparently for certain parades that feature very unique or limited quanity "special" throws the competition to get one ("Throw me something mister!) can be fierce and I'm told that if something hits the ground,you better put your foot on it to claim it vs reaching down w/ your hand b/c you will likely get your fingers stomped!..You also have to pay attention b/c you have multiple riders on any given float who may be throwing beads at the same time and if you aren't careful you can "catch" some beads to the side of your head or in the face which-if it is a 60", 12mm size strand of beads- is not a pleasant experience..All in all, this whole parade thing is going to be quite an experience and i will be part of it both as a rider/thrower and as an observer/throw catcher- wild!
