Sunday Feb 3rd, 2008 - The Tower District of Fresno, California

SPONSORED BY SOHIO COLLECTIBLES

We'll have pics from the 2008 parade as we get them from folks!
In the meantime, check out pics from our past parade entries and
some 2008 Parade stats and facts:

Bead Total:  5040 beads to the crowds all in orange and black.  The big hit this year were the skulls beads sponsored by Clark and Sabra
and the black beads sponsored by our fiend Kellie over @ Funeralideas.com.

Grim Rides members Felix and Gloria bought along a full case and brought a half case left over from last year making our grand total = 420 dozen beads.

This year's theme was "locally grown".  I thought it was appropriate we had 420 dozen beads.

Parade Casualty:  Lurch, a '65 M-M Hearse (owner of Amy the Hearse Queen) blew a hole in his radiator and got really hot. 
But he made it to the parade end. Thanks go to a kind hearted cop who lifted the "DO NOT CROSS" tape & let us escape the exit route a few blocks early.

We ate:  2 dozen donuts, 41 Cinnamon Buns and four 12 packs of soda before, during and after the parade by hearse owners and bead walkers.
Thank you to SOHIO COLLECTIBLES for the yummies!

Furthest Traveled:  Felix and Gloria from up past Sacramento.  They had to use snow chains!  They're die hard.

Due to Rain:  We had a bunch of hearses bail out on us.  We still went and had so much fun!

Next year will be our fifth year in the parade and we're already looking forward to it.
If you'd like to participate, you need to contact me starting in October of this year.

Thank you to everyone who came to see us in the rain. 
We love you to death.

xoxox,
amy thq
 

Grim Rides lining up for Parade	Terry Weber leading the way in Parade
Beginning of Parade Route	Beginning of Parade Route 2
Cruising the Parade Route	Hyper Happy Crowds

We go in a Mardi Gras parade once a year. It is one of the largest West Coast Mardi Gras Events.
It's about a mile long winding through a popular shopping district.  At this time, it is our ONLY public event that we do each year.
Everyone is so busy, it's only thing we have the time or energy to do.

Huge crowds of folks show up to see us do that voodoo that we do so darn well.
We get a heck of a lot of attention when we do the parade, it's astounding.

We love the crowds to death.  Even if we only can rustle up a few hearses to come out,
we always bring a ton of beads with us.  This year we brought 4.680 beads to throw
between the beads club members bought and ones that were sponsored (at a little below cost) by some killer folks!

The crowds go insane for our beads.  It's pretty killer.

FOLKS WHO SPONSORED US:

PEOPLE WHO SPONSORED BEADS
(updated ASAP)

My Siamese admiring 90 dozen beads sponsored by W. Clark Miller & Sabra Sonewald

Simple Donation with No Ads.

For folks who don't want to sponsor but still want to help out.
Enter any amount you wish from a few bucks to whatever.
This is used towards expenses such as our entry fee, promotion, supplies, sodas, etc. 
No ads will be placed on beads or site with simple donations.  This is just for folks who want to help out.

Thanks for helping!
(If you are shy and do not want your name listed on this page?  TELL ME in the optional note field.)

PEOPLE WHO HELPED OUT WITH A DONATION

Connie M.
Tasha  - 1963 Cadillac Eureka Endloader
Kobias Hayes
Buster

FAQ

All questions relating to sponsoring beads have been removed since we are not offering any more bead sponsorships.  Thank you.

Q:  I have a hearse, ambulance, limo, flower car, or other funeral car and I would like to participate but I'm not in Grim Rides.  May I?
A:  Email Amy at grimrides@aol.com and we'll talk.  You must be able to come to Central California Sunday February 3, 2008.
Participation in this event is the only way to get into Grim Rides, so if you are interested in joining GR, DO NOT MISS OUT.

Q:  My hearse isn't perfect.  OR My hearse is kustom.  OR My hearse is stock.   Does that matter to you?
A:  Nope.  All I care if that it runs, it's registered, insured and you behave yourself in a manner befitting GR.
Smile at the crowds.  Wave at the crowds.  Not mind if folks take your photo (because they will). 
Again, SMILE!  Folks are going to be checking out your hearse!  You must be able to brake quickly to avoid
hyperactive parade watchers who may fling themselves in front of your hearse. You must be able to remain calm
under stress and above everything, remain in control of your vehicle. I am not exaggerating when I say that folks
have thrown themselves in through my open windows during the parade. You also need to have a fire extinguisher in your
hearse for the parade, it's required by the organizers. No drinking before or during the parade.  NO FLASHING.

Q:  Can I have or buy a flier or poster for the parade?  My friend has one from last year and I love it.
A:   Please check back!  I'll see if I can do an online thing.  I'm busy though.  It might not be until after the parade.

Q:  Can I buy some Grim Rides Mardi Gras beads?
A:  Ones with ads must be distributed at the parade.  I do get some with my own money, but leftovers are a rare thing.
I'm more into tossing them at the parade.  If we have any available, we'll list them on the site after the parade.

Q:  Do you need bead tossers?  I saw you guys last year and it looks like fun to toss the beads!
A:  You can email me your information to grimrides@aol.com and I'll let you know.  If you have a Myspace, include a link to that.
I'll warn you, it's harder than it looks.  We even have bead captains to keep 'em all in line. 
You must be able to follow directions.  We are VERY SPECIFIC on how, where and when to throw our beads.

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* technically, these are below cost, we rounded down not up on the cost.  And after the paypal fees come out, we are shelling out some money too.  but hey, we're not complaining.  we're happy to get some help on the beads.

**casket pictures just to illustrate sponsorship levels, you are not buying a casket.  Expenses for parade include or have included in the past:  paper, photocopies, printing, staples, cheap staple guns, diet pepsi to chug so I can get hyper and attach over 3000 ads to beads by myself in the middle of the night as I curse myself for ever making a hearse club and website, simple snacks for the parade i.e. DONUTS, unexpected shipping and handling costs, cheap rain ponchos or umbrellas for the bead throwers should it rain and a bunch more stuff that isn't listed but always ends up costing me lots of money and forces me to eat nothing but Top Ramen.  Pine Level Sponsorships help towards miscellaneous expenses incurred due to the Parade and their names and / or site will be thanked on this page.  Steel Level Sponsorships Sponsorships help towards miscellaneous expenses incurred due to the Parade and their names and / or site will be thanked on this page.  Bronze Level Sponsorships sponsors help us a whole hell of a lot and get their name and / or site on any promotional materials such as flyers and / or posters, a thank you written on Lurch's side windows for parade and a thank you on this Mardi Gras page and the main GR site page for 3 months in the form of a text ad and / or button, whichever I think works best with the layout of the site at the time.  All sponsorships subject to approval by Amy THQ Shanafelt.  If for any reason I do not want to accept or cannot accept a sponsorship, I will refund your money upon receiving it.  Confirmation of Sponsorship will be sent via Email.  Folks who sponsor Grim Rides are not associated with Grim Rides and it's members and the behavior or views of either party should not reflect negatively on the other, or vice versa.   I think that's enough legal mumbo jumbo for now.  Got any questions?   Email me @ grimrides@aol.com and I'll do my best to clarify anything you have a question about.