For the Polys, yet another winning Rose Parade float

In lieu of flowers — because they’ve probably seen enough of those for awhile — we offer a balloon bouquet to the Cal Poly students who created yet another winning entry for the annual Tournament of Roses Parade. This time, the crew from the Polys — SLO and Pomona — took home the Founders’ Trophy for the most beautiful float directed by volunteers from a community or organization.

Their float, “A New Leaf,” featured a family of chameleons. While we would not ordinarily apply the adjective “beautiful” to lizards, can we just say we’re blown away by the animation that enabled the largest chameleon to change the color of its stripes? The rolling eyeballs were a nice touch, too.

The Founders’ Trophy adds to the string of major awards collected by the Poly campuses — 57 since the universities began entering the Rose Parade in 1949. That’s an impressive legacy, especially when you consider they are competing against professional float builders.

Congratulations, Polys!

This story was originally published January 3, 2017 at 9:52 PM with the headline "For the Polys, yet another winning Rose Parade float."