Bridgeport Daze draws parade entries, vendors, spectators

Bridgeport AAU, in black, squared off against Brewster varsity players in the three-on-three basketball competition.

Bridgeport FFA advisor, Adam Corum applies barbecue sauce to pork ribs at the FFA food concession in fireman Park.

Nine-year-old Adrian Sanchez in a car just his size.

The Bridgeport Youth Soccer Club has become a fixture in the annual parade.

Berenice Gamez, left, and her sister, Maritza Gomez, showed up in costume for the festivities.

Mario Sanchez brought his customized red Chev 1970 C10 pickup.

Vendors selling food, crafts and mementos combined with live music to fill Fireman Park.

Tony Perez astride his full blood Andalusian, Principe, was among the half dozen horsemen in the parade.

Posted Thursday, June 8, 2017 11:56 am

Mike Maltais

BRIDGEPORT – Unlike the 2016 last-minute scramble to resuscitate and put on an earlier-cancelled Bridgeport Daze, this year’s event was pre-planned and good-to-go as parade entries, vendors, participants and spectators converged in Bridgeport, last Saturday morning, June 3.
Parade participants were already lining up at 9 a.m. for the 11 a.m. parade start and as the minutes ticked by, more gathered at the old track field east of town for the march down Columbia Avenue.
Bridgeport Chamber of Commerce President and Bridgeport Daze organizer, Zeke Martinez adopted a flexible parade schedule that made room for anyone who showed up Saturday morning to join the parade procession.
“I was a little concerned,” said Martinez about an adequate parade turnout. “A lot of them were last-minute entries.”
By parade time, more than two dozen entries from marching bands and motorcycle groups to hot cars and prancing horses provided plenty for spectators gathered along the city’s main drag.
“I did talk to some people yesterday and they told me they were happy we held the event this year,” Martinez said.
Music, games and vendors in and around Fireman Park offered a variety of diversions throughout the day. City personnel pitched in to provide traffic control and park cleanup services.