Hayward hosts annual Light Your Engines Parade

Hayward was brighter than ever over the weekend for the Light Your Engines Parade.

The annual tradition lights up Main Street with holiday-themed vehicles and floats, everything from cars and trucks to ATVs and UTVs. 

The Light Your Engines Parade rolls down Main Street and turns onto 2nd Street. It is part of the annual Christmas In Hayward festivities, which is an ongoing celebration between Thanksgiving and Christmas Weekends. 

Bringing the Hayward community together as the countdown to Christmas begins, the festivities are organized by business owner Billie Jo Sabin.

She owns the Angler’s Bar and Grill on Main Street and has coordinated the Light Your Engines parade for the past seven years, with help in recent years from Michelle Richardson of The Driving Force, a local group that promotes snowmobiling and ATV trail riding in Sawyer County.

Sabin says there were 27 entries this year, most from local businesses, along with several residents who joined in with their own decorated floats.

She says she loves helping families create new traditions and memories during the holiday season.

“To see the amount of people that were at the parade on Saturday night, even with the bitter coldness, it was super cool. It brings tears to my eyes, it’s such a great thing for the area,” says Sabin. 

She adds that many families reach out to her to see when the parade is to start planning for the weekend.

She also credits the Hayward Police Department and Public Works Department for helping clear Main Street and prepare the route, and the Downtown Hayward Business Improvement District and local businesses for supporting the broader Christmas in Hayward events.

A full list of events for this month can be found on the Christmas in Hayward Facebook page or the Downtown Hayward Wisconsin Website.