Budweiser Clydesdales to visit Spokane for Lilac Festival

The Budweiser Clydesdales will arrive in Spokane next week for several days of appearances, and then will participate in the Armed Forces Torchlight Parade on May 21.

The horses will be stabled at the Spokane County Fair and Expo Center during their visit. Ten horses travel to events – two more than are harnessed to pull the historic beer wagon so that horses can rotate out for rest, according to a news release.

They’ll be in full hitch on Spokane Falls Boulevard, and individual horses will visit Providence Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital and the Ronald McDonald House before they take part in the parade.

Budweiser said in the news release that the horses are selected for their size and color – they’re about 6 feet tall at the shoulder and weigh about 2,000 pounds. They travel in three semis custom-built for the team.

The last time the Clydesdales visited Spokane was 2014.

Here is their schedule next week in Spokane:

• May 18: Public viewing at the fairgrounds, 404 N. Havana St., 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• May 19: Public viewing at the fairgrounds, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Clydesdales in full hitch at 334 W. Spokane Falls Blvd. from 5-7 p.m.
• May 20: Public viewing from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; one horse at Providence Sacred Heart Hospital, 101 W. Eighth Ave., from 10 a.m. to noon; one horse at the Ronald McDonald House, 1015 W. Fifth Ave., from 1-3 p.m.
• May 21: Public viewing from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; take part in the Spokane Armed Forces Torchlight Parade downtown at 7:45 p.m.
• May 22: Public viewing from 10 a.m. to noon