ballina paddy's day parade not on paddy's day?

artyeva

can anyone please tell me why the st patrick's day parade in ballina is happening on the 18th and not the 17th? if mr artyeva doesn't get to the bottom of it he's going to wreck the head off me with his 'hilarious' hypothesis. [hypothesises?] :rolleyes:

is it a liscencing licencing liscensing permission issue or something?

Daisy M

One reason that I heard was that having it on the sat would lose a lot of shops trade if it was on the saturday.

shaca

I think Ballina usually has bands etc from other towns so the parade is bigger. Those bands will more than likely be available on the Sunday because Ballina will be the only town with a parade on.

Paul4As

Are the bars open on Saturday in Ballina? If so then we are grand so! I thought that is where most people celebrate the day! Probably even more so this year with the big rugby match on!
Have never seen the Ballina's St Patrick's Day parade before...heard it is a few tractors...well according to my wife. Might try to check it out on Sunday.

Mayo Miss

Castlebar parade is on Sunday too. A lot of the shops in Ballinrobe have notices in their windows stating they are open for business on Saturday. Shops have lost a lot of trade in the last two years and are doing all they can to keep a few customers coming through the doors.

steph1

Noticed shops in Ballina with notices on the windows saying they are open from 12-6.
The parade should be on the feast day of the Saint.

happyoutscan

steph1 wrote: »

The parade should be on the feast day of the Saint.

Perhaps, but if it's affecting businesses that are seriously struggling then an alternative HAS to be found.

qrrgprgua

Ballina does things arse ways anyway... most complex traffic system.. Not a great place for new jobs (mc donalds told to stuff it)

and they have a St. Cyrils day parade instead of a St. Patricks Day parade...

steph1

Every business is struggling. Our national day and a day when we are proud to be Irish is on 17th March. Its not a moveable feast. The parade should be held on that day.
I had to laugh today. I met a woman and she told me she was getting her hair done tomorrow Patrick's Day. I said to her sure hairdressers are not open and she tells me they are.
Is there really a need for this?

Ilovelucy

Ballina people must be the moaniest people on the planet. I don't see a similar Castlebar thread seeing as their parade is on Sunday too.

finisklin

Maybe boards.ie hasn't come to Castlebar, yet!

qrrgprgua

steph1 wrote: »

I had to laugh today. I met a woman and she told me she was getting her hair done tomorrow Patrick's Day. I said to her sure hairdressers are not open and she tells me they are.
Is there really a need for this?

Maybe she is the same women who is organising the St. Cyrils Day parade on the 18th..... He hair appointment clashed on the 17th.. Solution move the parade.

The whole thing is beyond Pathetic. In the town today you would not have even known it was st. Patricks day.. Most businesses open

Did they not catch that tomorrow is MOTHERS DAY!!. ... Would have been easier to have the parade today,

qrrgprgua

Example of last years parade..

Get to Ballina tomorrow ontime otherwise 5 mins late and you will miss it.

(Thats no joke!)

steph1

qrrgprgua wrote: »

Maybe she is the same women who is organising the St. Cyrils Day parade on the 18th..... He hair appointment clashed on the 17th.. Solution move the parade.

The whole thing is beyond Pathetic. In the town today you would not have even known it was st. Patricks day.. Most businesses open

Did they not catch that tomorrow is MOTHERS DAY!!. ... Would have been easier to have the parade today,

:D:D
Its unreal. I have just been up town myself and its like a normal Saturday afternoon. Over the last few days I heard that the chamber of commerce sent an email to all the businesses in town telling them that Saturday was a normal trading day and they should open for business.
The fact that the 18th is Mother's Day should have been a factor for whoever organises the parade. A lot of people take their mothers out on that day and some people may be travelling out of town to visit their mothers.
Anyway apart from all that its just not Patrick's Day in Ballina today!

finisklin

Whatever about the parade being on the day of the 17th or not, the turnout and parade itself was good. I really enjoyed it, even the cheesy red cortina, escort and a capri thrown in for good measure.

Fair play to all the kids in the clubs and schools that participated, they enjoyed it. I watched it on Tone street and certainly all the crowd around me were well impressed. Granted they were all families with young kids and plenty of cheering and clapping.

The only part of it that was a turn off was the scangers before hand parading their stuff in 10 degrees.

The other point to note is that Ballina doesn't have it's own band. A key criteria for it's own parade. For years the Ballina Brass and Reed band was a focal point for the parade (and New Years Eve) however since they retired/folded Ballina is reliant on other bands to headline the parade. The Balla and Achill Pipe bands were great...the beat of the drums and the pipers. Aghhaaa.

Some of these might have been doubled booked for other parades around the county. Hence the logic of having the Ballina parade on an alternative day. There is scope to do more with the parade, look at the festival, transfer some of the organisation to the parade. Just a view....

steph1

finisklin wrote: »

The only part of it that was a turn off was the scangers before hand parading their stuff in 10 degrees.

:D:D
Ah yes the sunshine brings them all out :D:D

happyoutscan

steph1 wrote: »

Every business is struggling. Our national day and a day when we are proud to be Irish is on 17th March. Its not a moveable feast. The parade should be held on that day.
I had to laugh today. I met a woman and she told me she was getting her hair done tomorrow Patrick's Day. I said to her sure hairdressers are not open and she tells me they are.
Is there really a need for this?

Yes. Because businesses are struggling.

steph1

:D:D

Ok lets have the pubs open on Good Friday so! :D:D

Ilovelucy

Steph1 as a suPposed business woman I'd have thought you'd be in favour of the town doing as much as it can to promote business. Some people are so negative both here and in real life. Ballina needs positive people to get us all back to posterity. Unfortunately there will always be people ready to mention McDonalds lest we forget.

Graciefacey

Well my family and I really enjoyed it! Didn't give a toss that it was on Sunday. I.however agree with the poster that mentioned the under dressed individuals parading themselves up and down the middle of the street like a warm up act with flabby bellies boobs and thighs on show. Totally inappropriate!

Vandy West

Graciefacey wrote: »

Well my family and I really enjoyed it! Didn't give a toss that it was on Sunday. I.however agree with the poster that mentioned the under dressed individuals parading themselves up and down the middle of the street like a warm up act with flabby bellies boobs and thighs on show. Totally inappropriate!

Are you implying that it would have been ok had the individuals not been "flabby"? Or is it the absurdly large earrings that really bother you?

(Which one of those little icons indicates sarcasm?)

Graciefacey

Vandy West wrote: »

Graciefacey wrote: »

Well my family and I really enjoyed it! Didn't give a toss that it was on Sunday. I.however agree with the poster that mentioned the under dressed individuals parading themselves up and down the middle of the street like a warm up act with flabby bellies boobs and thighs on show. Totally inappropriate!

Are you implying that it would have been ok had the individuals not been "flabby"? Or is it the absurdly large earrings that really bother you?

(Which one of those little icons indicates sarcasm?)

Oh ya it would have been totally fine if they were toned!!

hollypink

I hadn't been at the parade in years and I enjoyed it. Even better, the kids around us, including my friend's little man, seemed to really enjoy it, judging from the squeals when the floats snaked around the corner! I didn't think it was a bit deal that it was on the 18th, in fact, it worked out much better because it was a dry day. I wonder if the businesses actually benefitted from it though; I was in a few of them on Patrick's day and they seemed very quiet.

I missed the em "underdressed individuals" thankfully; I guess they were further up the street.

Daisy M

St Patricks day falls on a saturday once every 6/7 years. The parade should be on the day. The day itself felt flat without a parade in the town. The parade was excellent and I enjoyed it. It wasnt on until 4.30 shops could have opened as normal and closed a little early. It was mothers day the day after and lots of people would have been out and about buying presents anyway. If you alienate the public ie customers you drive them elsewhere, people need to see give and take from their local business.' Ballina needs to start promoting itself in a positive manner and attracting people to the town and showing all it has to offer.

finisklin

One female's chest was completely disportionate to her body and when she kept stuffing her hand inside her top to balance them out the penny dropped.....they were stuffed with something....either balloons with water or paper. The fact that she was about 14 only made it more ridicolous.

The characters were straight out of Craggy Island's parade.

steph1

Ilovelucy wrote: »

Steph1 as a suPposed business woman I'd have thought you'd be in favour of the town doing as much as it can to promote business. Some people are so negative both here and in real life. Ballina needs positive people to get us all back to posterity. Unfortunately there will always be people ready to mention McDonalds lest we forget.

McDonalds mmmmmmm !!

qrrgprgua

Ilovelucy wrote: »

Steph1 as a suPposed business woman I'd have thought you'd be in favour of the town doing as much as it can to promote business. Some people are so negative both here and in real life. Ballina needs positive people to get us all back to posterity. Unfortunately there will always be people ready to mention McDonalds lest we forget.

Yes because it was the wrong decision.. now we just have a burnt out hotel that adds nothing to the town.. Just a hole for drug addicts.

finisklin

qrrgprgua wrote: »

Yes because it was the wrong decision.. now we just have a burnt out hotel that adds nothing to the town.. Just a hole for drug addicts.

Has the owner of the property not a responsibility to ensure that it is maintained, safe and looked after? Or perhaps it helps the planning application if it is run down, burnt out and not contributing to the social, economic fibre of the town.

I don't think he's in Nama either.