NORTH WEBSTER - Cowboys and Indians, pioneers and saloon girls participated in the 58th annual "Wild, Wild West" Mermaid Festival Cutie Parade Wednesday.

Proceeding down Ind. 13 were 133 walking, hand-drawn and motorized entries from the region.

Participants donned cowboy hats and boots and applied war paint and feathers to follow the "Wild, Wild West" theme.

All the children were accompanied by adults, who either strolled alongside, donned costumes themselves or served as the muscle for hand-drawn units or as drivers for the motorized units.

One covered wagon driver, secured in his car seat, fell asleep at the reins. Another participant, a blond, curly-haired Indian, hid behind her mother's legs when a photographer tried to capture her image on film.

Three dancers from the Red Garter Saloon delighted the judges and the audience with a traditional gesture. After completing a "can-can" number, the girls flipped up their silk skirts to reveal the backside of their bloomers, printed with "Wild" "Wild" "West."

A pacifier-sucking pianist went by in a hand-drawn unit, dressed in top hat and vest and seated before a miniature upright piano.

A motorized unit featured a near-life-size buffalo, a smoking fire and a tribe of Native Americans by a tepee.

Sponsored by the North Webster Lions Club and the International Palace of Sports, $30,000 in educational scholarships is available. Parade participants compete for the top four places - $5,000 for first place, $2,500 for second, $1,500 for third and $1,000 for fourth place in each category.

Winners will be announced Friday during the Cutie Pageant, which begins at 6:30 p.m. Children in the cutie pageant must participate in the cutie parade. [[In-content Ad]]