Cal Poly students in final stretch to complete Rose Parade float

PASADENA, Calif.—Cal Poly students are gearing up to see their work of art come to life on new years day at Pasadena’s Rose Parade.
  
The float is a joint effort between Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and Cal Poly Pomona students and depicts the Loch Ness monster. 
 
With the massive structure measuring 55 feet long and 21 feet high, it’s no wonder it’s taken over half the year to create “Nessie’s Lakeside Laughs.” 
 
“The first few days when the decorations first started going on were a little stressful, you know, pulling long, you know, 15 hour days. But right now, we're really getting in the groove of things. And with all of the fresh florals starting to go on and all the other materials, it's really, you know, the speed is ramping up. People are getting excited,” said Cal Poly Student Body President Collin Marfia.

It’s decorated with more than 37,000 flowers.
 
“It gets put in a machine and like clamp down really hard and it takes a long time. So we had our volunteers doing this and they covered lots of square footage,” said Cal Poly SLO Student Emily Marfia.

“Nessie, normally shy, elusive creature, decides to come up from the depths of Loch Ness and ends up making a whole lot of new friends to celebrate their newfound friendship. They throw a lake day party to celebrate. Hence, ‘Nessie’s Lakeside Laughs’,” said Cal Poly Student Body President Collin Marfia.

Students even engineered the moving parts of the various critters on board. 

This is the only student created float in the Rose Parade.