It’s the End of Days

Small-town spirit returned to Thousand Oaks on Saturday as nearly 5,000 people lined the city’s main boulevard for the annual Conejo Valley Days parade.

Organizers said 105 parade entries--including Thousand Oaks City Councilwoman Linda Parks on her horse “Bubbles”--traveled the 1.4-mile route down Thousand Oaks Boulevard.

The parade marked the start of the final two days of Conejo Valley Days, which started on March 17 with a classic car show and picnic.

Wearing fire-engine red balloon pants and a wig to match, clown Gymie Jo of Thousand Oaks spent the last minutes before the parade working out the kinks in his disappearing flower trick.

“You have to love children to do this,” he said. “I’m just a 72-year-old child myself.”

With all the last-minute details to attend to, parade chairman John Prescott jokingly wondered why he agreed to the job this year.

“And people are saying this is the smoothest-running parade there has ever been,” said Prescott, a city planner working on behalf of the Kiwanis.

Later Saturday, more than 300 people attended a rodeo sponsored by the Westlake Village Rotary Club and WestOaks Chrysler Dodge at Conejo Creek Park.

The rodeo as well as a carnival will continue today at the park. Several rock and country and western bands will perform.