Flotilla gets bigger every year

The 22nd annual Cross Lake Flotilla will anchor down June 1. This year’s event theme will be “Pontoons in Paradise,” thanks to a Facebook contest in which participants picked the 2013 theme. The event is expected to be as well-attended as the years passed, but according to committee member Keith Grill, this year has some new attractions.

“This year, we’re having Paxton Sound [work with the band],” Grill said. “Which means we’re going to have some serious sound. We’re also going to have food vendors. Traditionally, the American Legion has provided the food with volunteers, but there are about six vendors on board.”

The otilla began in 1991 when a group of friends who lived on the lake decided to take the fun to another level. Jan Hirsch was one of those friends.

“I worked for the city’s recreation department and gured we had activities in parks for our citizens, so we needed to have activities for those who enjoyed Cross Lake, too,” Hirsch said.

Since then, it has continued to be a summertime success, always bene ting the American Legion.

“It’s the biggest free summer party for Shreveport, and it doesn’t cost the city anything,” said Jimmy Hanger, committee member and one of the event’s founders. “Half of the proceeds go to the American

Legion and all of their activities, including the Boy Scouts. The rest of the money goes into a fund for the following year.”

“We have the poker run again this year,” Grill said. “And there’s also a contest for decorations of the poker stops.”

The poker run starts at 1 p.m. and ends at 3 p.m. Another favorite attraction is the boat parade, which names a rst-, second- and third-place winner for best decorations.

Katie and Henry Bethard have been attending the otilla since 2009 and even won the boat decoration contest with a last-minute entry. Unaware of the parade, someone encouraged them to enter the day of the event, and it turned out to be a lucky decision.

“We have a lime green party barge from the ’70s with a striped canopy and fringe hanging so we decorated it with a bunch of Spanish-themed decorations,” Katie Bethard said.

“The only signi cant thing about my boat is a ‘La Cucaracha’ horn,” Henry said. “I think the horn won it for us. The guy driving laid on the horn and never let off until the whole parade was over.”

The otilla committee has decided to shake some things up this year for the parade vote. “This year, we’re changing the voting for the boat parade,” Grill said. “We’re going to try and have the vote be through Facebook. There used to be just three judges appointed [to make the decision], but this year we’re trying to get a little more public input.”

Participants are asked to sign up for the parade the same night people are registering for the poker run, which will be the Friday before the event. The American Legion will host a sh fry for those coming by as well.

The boats are an obvious component of the Cross Lake Flotilla, and over the years, they have also become an attraction.

“Over the last 10 years, I’ve noticed the boats that come out here you never see otherwise,” Harper said. “They are really big; people bring their pride and joy out [just for the otilla].”

“There’s a yacht [across the lake] that I heard will only be out twice [this year], otilla and the Fourth of July,” said committee member Steve Lavery.

“There’s usually 100 boats out there at a minimum,” Harper said. “[Everyone is welcome], and all you do is show up. The only thing you have to do is make sure you get a Cross Lake sticker from the Cross Lake Patrol, which every boat that gets on the lake needs that.”

Another new component this year are the sponsor packages. With more than 30 sponsors total, the committee has added a new level of sponsorship – gold level sponsors.

“We have ve total – Paxton Sound, Alleman Kawasaki (Alleman Cycle Plex), the Cove, The Bayou Daiquiri and Camus Electric,” Grill said.

“Everybody just pulls up, puts their anchor out, jumps in the water to oat around and visit,” Harper said. “[For some,] it’ll be the only time they all get to see everybody out on the water.”

–Katie Ho