It's a first in Vail. The first "Fourth of July" parade and celebration.
Vail began as a small ranch and railroad community that dates back to 1880. Parade goers lined the road this July 4th to celebrate the history and heritage.
"The Vail Preservation Society has made Colossal Cave part of Main street and so this is a parade that's on our Main street for Vail," said David Hook, the event chairman.
A reason the event is titled "A Colossal 4th."
"Everything exceeded our expectations by a lot. I can't tell you 3 or 4 times," said J.J. Lamb of the Vail Preservation Society.
40 entries and 150 participants that included veterans. "You had a good contingency of American Legion riders from all over," said Edward Wagner of the Federal of Southern Arizona Veterans.
And a fly-over of two F-16's -- just before noon.
An estimated 2 thousand spectators showed up. Not bad for the first year. "We will continue to build and make it bigger and bigger each year. Absolutely," said Hook.
Spectator Jane Metzher said, "They've been waiting for this a long long time. So I'm very proud of Vail. And God Bless America."
