Hello and welcome back to Bright Side
for our Gasparilla 10 Tampa Bay special.
I'm Jenny Dean.
Are you ready for a big pirate invasion?
That's going to happen right here in
Tampa and a little more than 24 hours.
And then there is going to be a parade of
pirates like you have never seen before.
But before we look forward,
we do always like to look back.
And we're gonna go way back to
more than a century of tradition.
Behind gasparilla.
Jabari Thomas takes
you back to the very beginning.
Tampa Bay has celebrated the life
and legend of Jose Gaspar for
more than 100 years with a large parade and
festival known as the Gasparilla Pirate Fest.
It's hard to know what's
real about the life of Jose.
Gaspar's experts seem to believe that
he was a Spanish Navy man who turned
pirate to spite the government.
True or not, the idea of Gaspar
was enough to start Gasparilla.
In 1904, Ye Mystic crew of Gasparilla says
it was an event to promote the city of Tampa.
There was a secret plan to take
Tampa in a mock pirate attack with
costume Buccaneers on horseback.
A couple of years later,
the crew used the ship to capture the
city and the pirate vessels got bigger
and more elaborate over the years.
In modern times,
the crew sailing the only fully
rigged pirate ship in the world.
Comes from the South end of Hillsborough Bay,
followed by hundreds,
if not thousands of boats
to take over the city,
kidnap the mayor and demand
the key to the city.
It is quite the sight to see
for sure. It is so exciting
to be a part of that. But
I gotta tell you shiver me Timbers.
It's cold out this morning,
but everybody's wondering what
the forecast is going to be
like tomorrow morning Grant.
And as we go throughout the
day tomorrow for the parade.
Yeah. So I tomorrow's gonna
be yeah a little cool.
So everyone's gonna be saying
shiver me Timbers tomorrow
morning just like this morning.
But the thing that will be
different about tomorrow, well,
in addition to the fact there'll be pirates.
Downtown Tampa temperatures are gonna
warm up really nicely tomorrow.
We'll be in the 40s to start,
but as that evasion begins,
as that flotilla begins to
head into downtown Tampa,
temperatures will be climbing into the 60s.
By around 1:00 o'clock will be at 66 degrees.
We'll round out the day with
temperatures in the lower 70s.
Tomorrow afternoon now we will
see a little bit of cloud cover
rolling and no worries there.
Wind speeds will be up a little
bit though that'll be something
to watch out on the water.
We are expecting somewhat of a chop.
On the base.
So that flotilla will have to be mindful
of those conditions out on the Bay,
with wind speeds anywhere
between 15 to 20 knots at times.
Here's where we start off your
morning this morning, though.
Denny's in downtown Tampa.
Temperatures are at 49 degrees.
She's got several layers on.
You'll probably want those 254 in Saint Pete.
We've got 40s and a lot of other places,
even some 30s over the nature
coast that gets you into your
Friday over the next 12 hours.
A cooler day today with high temperatures
leveling off in the middle 60s.
Jenny, back out to you.
Well, it sounds like it's going to
be perfect weather for the parade.
But you know, people aren't just
thinking about the weather.
When you get hundreds of thousands of
people gathering in one general area,
they're gonna be fighting traffic
to get to the festivities.
And of course we want to get
you here as simple as possible.
Bright side, Sarah Rosario brings
you up to speed with what you need
to know if you're coming to Tampa.
With more than
300,000 people expected to line the
streets of Bayshore for Gasparilla,
unfortunately with the invasion of
pirates comes the invasion of traffic.
Let me bring you up to speed on what
you can do to avoid traffic hassles
and options for places to park
getting around during Gasparilla,
especially if you're in downtown Tampa
or you want to get here to Bayshore Blvd.
It's definitely not easy.
With pirates tying down the
Bay and dozens of Rd.
closures.
It's best to plan ahead so you can
enjoy the festivities if you're
trying to find a place to park.
The city of Tampa recommends prepaying
for parking and reserving your spot in
one of eight downtown Tampa garages.
From there,
you may want to consider taking the free
Jolly trolley with more than 50 Rd.
closures.
The parade begins at Bay to Bay and
Bayshore and ends near Ashley Drive
in Cash Street in downtown Tampa.
If you live close,
consider walking using those E
scooters or even bike share.
If you have to drive,
you may want to carpool and
stay up to date with St.
closures on your phone.
The city of Tampa has partnered with
transportation apps like Park Mobile.
Ways and Uber to make sure that
parade goers have the latest St.
closures available.
And finally,
you can also try parking in some
of the neighborhoods that line the
streets here along Bayshore Blvd.
But be careful because towing
will be enforced,
so be sure to read those
signs very carefully.
Watch out for pedestrians again
and the barricades posted,
and have fun.
Alright, you can also use
the Tiko streetcar for free.
Love taking the streetcar?
It's gonna be running from
8:00 AM until 2:00 AM.
So you can park your car at some of the
parking garages or lots in Ybor City,
then just hop on the streetcar.
Hart is also offering free bus
shuttles from 9:30 to 7:00 PM.
All you need to do is
head to 10 tampabay.com.
You can find out more information about that.
That would really help you a lot if
you really don't want to deal with all
of the hassle of being in and around.
The parade route. OK.
So whether you're a regular
and you know the drill,
you know what to do when you come down
here or whether this is your first time,
we still like to get the details and
the reminders and that is why we have
making Stephanie here from Event Fest.
You guys have been doing
this for many years now.
And what are some last minute
reminders that you have for people
that that they may need to know?
Just some things that we need to
be aware of when we come down here.
Absolutely.
Thanks for having me and
you totally touched on it.
We love the shuttles and such that come in.
It's such a way to decongest
Bayshore and the traffic down here.
So I always recommend those downtown
garages and then to walk on over.
You're talking about fighting those crowds.
One of the ways that we try to help
people with the ability to do that is by
offering some reserved seating options,
which we still have some available.
Those are available at
gasparillatreasures.com.
They range from simple reserved
Bleacher seats to fully catered
buffet and sort of a VIP.
Experience.
And then when does everything
really get underway?
I mean, things really get
started in the morning,
right? Absolutely.
So people definitely are out
here when our crew is out here
early in the morning kind
of holding down that spot
for their family and friends.
But the day technically
opens on Bayshore at noon.
That's when we have some
different sponsor activities
and things that get started.
And then the parade of course
starts at 2:00 o'clock.
And the invasion happens too,
right around then too,
right at noon or 11:30. What? Yeah.
So the invasion leaves Ballast Point earlier.
In the morning just after 11
and then it docks at the Tampa
Convention Center at 1:00 PM.
So exciting. And I know you guys
had some last minute reminders.
We are seeing tons of people out
here on Bayshore this morning,
people loving to get their running,
they're biking in.
I know they're closing down
Bayshore tonight at 10,
but it's not really for people
who are out to exercise.
Absolutely.
So we close
on Bayshore both sides of the street
tonight at 10:00 o'clock as you
mentioned and we just ask for the
folks who are maybe on scooters.
The bikes are wanting to get their
morning running to choose an alternate
route for tonight and for tomorrow.
We have so many things with
the event of this magnitude,
so many different vehicles,
moving barricades and tents
and different things around.
It's just we want to make sure that
safety is our number one priority and
we just ask that pedestrians and such,
if you could stay off Bayshore
just for another, you know,
24 hours until we get through this,
get through the cleanup and then
you can have it back on Sunday,
yes, but get out here and enjoy
the festivities. It is so much fun.
We have our pirates here joining us.
And by the way, I'm letting the mayor
know I'm fully with the pirates.
You know, I'm we're going to invade Tampa
tomorrow and we are going to have a blast.
But I know Megan,
you mentioned safety is a priority.
It's something that is always top
of mind when it comes to Gasparilla.
The parade, of course,
all about the fun,
but it is important to be responsible.
So I want to go back to Caitlin and Frank.
They are in studio and they've
got three kids.
They got three things that
you need to know about staying
safe this weekend.
Hong Kong. Beep beep. Hello. Yeah.
Safety first. Fun is a close second though.
But we wanna chat about boat safety.
Yeah, sounded like a boat out there.
That was a truck. Or about the Coast
Guard will be out in full force during
tomorrow's boat parade to reduce
any chance of accidents out there.
They'll be enforcing safety zones.
Other regulations too.
Any vessels without a motor
or under 10 feet long are not
allowed in that boat parade.
Jet skis also are banned.
Yeah, see when you say it.
And you. Point your finger.
That really emphasizes it right there.
Extra patrols will also be on the
ground along the parade route tomorrow.
The Tampa Police Motor Unit says
they will be all hands on deck,
as you would imagine, before,
during and even after celebrations.
They'll have multiple units
out to monitor the crowds,
and officers are also trained to look
for alcohol related offenses like
underage drinking and drunk driving. And
law enforcement leaders say you
should have a plan in place in
case you get lost in the crowd.
Police suggest if you bring your kids.
With you that you take a photo of them,
even give them some contact information
in case they get lost or separated.
And if you go into group,
pick a designated meeting spot ahead of time.
Always a good idea.
Police encourage you to reach
out if you notice anything.
Suspicious is if you see something,
say something.
And we've got the beads on this
morning. The beads, the popular
thing to have on out there.
Popular things that throw
but you don't want to throw
them in the water. Jenny.
Keep it clean out there.
That is absolutely right.
We are gonna talk more about that
after the break because it is so
important that you do your part
to help clean up before you even
leave all of the festivities,
making sure that you're cleaning up.
And then of course Caitlin has a story
that you are not going to want to miss.
We will be right back.
The big parade is coming up on Saturday,
and this is the newest addition
to this year's Gasparilla.
Coming up on Bright Side, we're
going to take you on the ship for
a sneak peek.
Look who we found over here.
We got to the mayor.
Read. Ohh boy. This is what led up to
this weekend's Gasparilla invasion.
Pirates from You Mystic crew descended
upon City Hall earlier this week.
They went to take Mayor Jane Castor hostage.
Of course she met with them to try and
negotiate a peaceful surrender of the city,
but of course they're not willing to do that.
Their message?
Surrender or face the invasion.
And guess what?
The mayor's gonna have to
face the invasion tomorrow,
and of course you're going to see some
famous faces at Gasparilla tomorrow.
WWE Hall of Famer Nature Boy Ric Flair
will be the Grand Marshall for the parade.
Flair has a home in Tampa and joining
him in the Gasparilla Honorary community
hero is Sergeant Major Matt Parrish,
who is a green beret,
so it should be a truly special
time and a good time at Gasparilla.
Of course, means getting into costume,
and it's marked by, of course, the beads.
Everybody loves getting the beads,
but as bright side anchor Frank Wiley
shows us many times these necklaces,
they wind up getting into the water.
A parade of pageantry sails through
Tampa Bay around this time every year.
Pirates, ships, and good times comes with it.
Also, tradition brings trash bunches
of beads gifted during Gasparilla.
Sometimes the necklaces,
for whatever reason,
are tossed into the water.
It litters the surface,
eventually sinking to the bottom
where it looks like ships wrecked.
Enjoy the event, but do so
responsibly. Our actions
matter. People's choices matter.
Alyssa dude runs volunteer
services at the Florida Aquarium.
Our marine life can get entangled in
that debris in the beads, or they
can ingest it, mistake it for food.
So a couple times a year, volunteer
divers dig out what they can find,
whatever beads they don't grab, and a
roundabout way makes it to your stomach.
They start to decompose,
and when they do, they break down
and they start leaching chemicals.
If animals are ingesting these plastics,
and then it's going to
bioaccumulate up the food chain.
Right, so we're one of the top predators.
We eat some of the fish,
enough to motivate most folks to do
good by not littering. For those
who want to do better, there's this
any beads that you collect along the
parade route or through the festivities,
if you bring them back to the aquarium,
you can donate them back to us.
And what we will do is give you
half off your admission to come in.
The idea show you up close
that our wildlife deserves
to be treasured in Tampa.
Frank Wiley. In Tampa Bay.
And it's not just beads in the water.
There's also, of course, the litter on
the streets keep Tampa Bay beautiful.
They are ready to get out and help
clean everything up after all the fun.
Each year the group works with volunteers
and the city to pick up the beads and
the trash all along Bayshore Blvd.
And of course the nearby
streets and neighborhoods.
The cleanup starts Sunday morning
bright and early at 7:30 AM,
and they still need volunteers,
but they are asking you to register.
We have a link for you to do.
That right at 10 tampabay.com alright girls,
just wanna have fun.
Isn't that the truth?
Well, the Bonnie Reed crew,
they are ready to celebrate Gasparilla
in style and on a new ride this year.
Bright side,
Caitlin Lockerbie met up with one
of the founding members of that
Pirates of the Pirate Queens.
Make way for new float in this
year's Gasparilla parade.
The Bonnie Reed crew will be cruising
down Bayshore on this new pirate ship.
I'm going to stand up here, in fact,
my name is on this bead hook here.
Camille Matthews helped found the crew
in 1994 and was behind the push for
this new and improved float that artist
Jason Hellfish brought to fruition.
We've been working on this for about a year,
really close with the crew obviously,
but you know from design to
build a fabrication.
To finish float, that's about what it took.
Well, it's an all female crew so I survived
that putting front and center the pirates.
The crew represents Anne Bonny and Mary Reed.
We have the two female pirates up here.
That was the important part.
We have wood, steel, PVC, fiberglass.
So it's all that combined.
You can't miss this floating down Bayshore.
And the audience is so fun.
They always seem to love the
music and of course beads.
Pro tip from this pirate if you
wanna catch the most. Treasure.
If they want to score a lot of beads,
the best thing to do is have the
names of the crews hold them up.
We're #38.
Yeah, yes.
So if you hold up Bonnie Reed crew,
you will be getting a lot of
beads from the crew.
When we come back, we are going to
be finishing up our special guest
Morilla show here on 10 Tampa Bay
with a pirate from the Mystic crew
of Gasparilla. We'll be back.
Yes, we are. And of course,
what would Gasparilla be without pirates?
Bob Kelly is joining me with
you Mystic crew of Gasparilla.
Bob, how long have you
been a part of Gasparilla?
This is my 30th year, 30 years.
What's your favorite part?
I still love the invasion.
You know, seeing all the boats
out on the Bay, you know, all the
people coming in.
It's just it's amazing to see
it from the Gasparilla ship.
It's even more amazing
to see it from overhead.
Because it's so unique to Tampa that
we have this type of celebration and
that we just love pirates. Well,
and you note that, you know,
even with the celebrations we've had
with the Lightning, with the Bucks on
the water, no places
like this in the entire country.
So this is what's wonderful,
to show off Tampa and show
off the waterfront the way we
do. Absolutely. We've got about 30 seconds.
Any last minute tips for all these
part-time pirates that become pirates
for one day out of the year and come
down to celebrate. Pace yourself.
You know, you don't have to start drinking
at 8:00 o'clock in the morning. It's
a long day. If you're
going to be on the water, captaining
a boat, stay sober. Be safe. Can
everybody home safely tomorrow?
Yes, let's do that.
And of course, no beads in the Bay.
We want to keep our beautiful Bay
clean and nice for many guests.
Varillas to come.
Bob, thank you so much.
We look forward to the big invasion tomorrow.
I know you're probably not
going to sleep tonight at all.
You guys are so busy,
but I'm already dressed.
It's anyway, thank you so much.
And before we go,
we do want to put up a QR code on
our screen so that you can find
out everything you need to do.
All you need to do is hold your phone
up and scan it on your phone camera.
And that takes you straight to our
Gasparilla guide that covers everything
from event schedules to parking,
where to find bathrooms and so much more.
You guys, thank you so much for joining
us out here along Bayshore Blvd.
Beautiful Bayshore for our
special Gasparilla.
Bright side show on 10 Tampa Bay.
We hope you have a safe and
wonderful day and weekend.
And of course for the
Gasparilla invasion tomorrow.
We'll see you then.