Candy flew through the air, fire trucks honked and crowds cheered. Children were decked out in red, white and blue, waving at parade floats and festive cars.

Redmond’s 2024 Fourth of July parade rolled through town on a hot Thursday morning.

A variety of floats, cars and local organizations flooded downtown from 10 a.m. to about 11:15 a.m., featuring Redmond Youth Cheer exciting the crowd with chants, Sasquatch Water Company cooling onlookers with a water spray, and Highland Baptist Church helping pick up trash to finish off the parade.

There were 87 entrees this year with more than 20 Jeeps, according to the Redmond Chamber of Commerce and CVB. Marketing Director Connor Cubic heard from paradegoers that this might be the biggest parade yet, along with an increase in crowd presence.

One parade attender, Koreen Metzger, said she seeing local churches contribue to the parade. She also noted it was a good communal, non-political parade.

“What really speaks to me is the Christian floats and music,” Metzger said. “You don’t see that at every parade.”

Gary and Naomi Box, a couple who have resided in Redmond for 27 years, said they look forward to seeing the horses and local high school bands.

“Gotta have scoopers for them,” Gary Box said, referring to the horses.

The couple moved to Redmond from Florence in search of more sun and less wind and have since been to the Fourth of July parade around four times.

Naomi Box said she enjoys the comradery of the people, especially for a “rinky-dink” town.

Michael and Kyle Palmer, two Redmond youngsters, enjoyed the parade

Kyle Palmer said “the motorcycles … and candy!” were his favorite parts.

The Palmers brought designated candy bags to catch and store their goods.

First-time paradegoer, Rachelle Nobel and her daughter, Dilynn, said they were excited to see the horses. They have lived in Redmond for five years and only ever attended the Redmond Christmas parade.

“She’s super excited,” Nobel said, referring to her daughter.

Kristen Kane said she enjoys the parade because it reminds her of her Northern California hometown. She attended with her children and “Nana,” who said it was her first time at the parade as she’’s from Texas.

Kristen Kane’s son, Henry, said his favorite part was seeing the “cool cars.” His grandma told him they may need to get a Jeep now since there were so many featured in the parade.

Hundreds of other people watched the parade even in extreme heat, wearing festive outfits and big smiles to show their support for the community and the country.

Tallies from the parade judging were split into five categories with three winners each.

For organization, first-place winner was Redmond Historic Landmarks, followed by Redmond Fire and Rescue for second place and Oregon Veterans Motorcycle Association taking third.

For business entrees, Biji’s Construction took first place, Sasquatch Water Co. taking second and Ridgeview Veterinary Clinic took third.

For individual entrees, Brian Douglas was the first-place winner, Joe Kosanovic, also known as Uncle Sam, took second and Tim Treichler took third.

In animal and mounted judging, Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch took first place, Lazy M Ranch took second and Deschutes Sheriff’s Posse took third.

In children entrees, Redmond Youth Cheer took first place, Cub Scouts Troop No. 27 took second and Girl Scouts of Oregon took third.