Courtesy of The Tampa Tribune
The 100th Gasparilla Pirate Fest invades the city on Saturday with bedecked buccaneers, booze and a bounty of beads to share with a projected crowd of hundreds of thousands — but it won’t be like the bacchanal of years past.
In a nutshell, if this is your first mock-invasion and parade — or if you haven’t attended in years — please note:
♦ The nearly four-mile parade route is a wet zone along Bayshore Boulevard starting at West Bay to Bay Boulevard, turning east on West Brorein Street, north on South Ashley Drive and ending at West Cass Street and North Ashley Drive.
♦ There are no open containers allowed on surrounding neighborhood streets.
♦ Several streets are closed for the festivities, and parking in neighborhoods along the parade route is not permitted. Organizers recommend parking in the garages in downtown Tampa or Ybor City for a flat fee ($5 to $12) and use the extra streetcar, bus or trolley service ($4 to $5 for an all-day pass for the streetcar or bus; 25 cents with cash only for the trolley). Look here for details.
The festivities commemorate swashbuckler Jose Gaspar and the undiscovered fortune he supposedly left buried along the Florida coast. Back in 1904, Tampa’s social and civic leaders adopted the pirate as the “patron rogue” of a festival (then held in May), and the tradition was born, organizers say.
But its wild reputation akin to Mardi Gras caused Tampa police and community leaders in recent years to pre-empt what they called “irresponsible behavior” with an education program directed at public and private high schools, local universities and the military.
As a result, the arrests and illegal shenanigans have dropped. Consider: In 2012, there were 365 Gasparilla incidents, with 63 arrests and 302 people issued citations for carrying open containers, police statistics show. Last year’s parade resulted in 107 incidents, with 44 arrests and 63 open-container citations.
“Education is the key, trying to get people to do the right thing prior to the event,” Police Chief Jane Castor said at a recent news conference. “If we could go to zero [arrests] with the general public, we would be very, very happy.”
Of course, there’s still lots of fun to be had. The day’s free festivities include the mock invasion and flotilla, the parade and a street festival. The Gasparilla Parade of the Pirates alone boasts more than 130 units, including more than 90 elaborate floats, 14 marching bands and more than 50 krewes tossing plastic beads and other trinkets at revelers.
Learn more about the parade and festival in my Tampa Tribune story here.