Cherry Festival bed race and parade bring playful energy to Front Street
Eight homemade beds raced down Front Street as thousands packed downtown for a parade built around Cherry Festival royalty, schools and civic pride.
Eight teams turned Front Street into a fast, noisy showcase at 4:45 p.m. Thursday, when the annual Bed Race rolled into downtown Traverse City as part of the 100th National Cherry Festival. The race and the Consumers Energy Community Royale Parade drew thousands to Front and Union streets, giving the city center one of its most crowded summer nights of the festival.
The bed race started at Front and Cass streets, with teams pushing creatively built homemade vehicles down the block and back again. Father Fred Foundation was involved in the evening.
The parade that followed combined the festival’s Heritage and Junior Royale traditions, stretching about 1 mile with about 35 minutes on route and roughly 1 hour 45 minutes total. Its 2026 theme, “Through The Years,” framed the procession as a look at the past, present and future of the Grand Traverse Region. Elementary schools and homeschools built floats around that theme, while marching bands, visiting royalty, community organizations, National Cherry Queen Ainslee Hewitt and her court filled out the lineup.
In 1948, the festival expanded from one prince and one princess to a junior royalty couple from each of seven local elementary schools. More than 25 schools now take part. The 2026 roster included Blair Elementary, Buckley, Central Grade School, Cherry Knoll Elementary, Courtade Elementary, Eastern Elementary, Glen Lake Community Schools, Grand Traverse Academy, Homeschooling in Northern Michigan, Immaculate Conception, Kingsley Elementary, Lake Ann Elementary, Lakeland Elementary, Long Lake Elementary, Mill Creek Elementary, New Covenant Christian Academy, Old Mission Peninsula Schools and Silver Lake Elementary.
A free Centennial History Exhibit ran June 27 through July 11, and the DTE Energy Foundation Cherry Royale Parade was also on the festival calendar.
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