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By SUSAN HEMMINGWAY, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 24, 2008

TAMPA - Pirates will rule the Gasparilla parade on Saturday, but so will gypsies, riverboat gamblers and Greek goddesses. The themes of Tampa krewes formed in recent years aren't all based on marauding buccaneers.

The formation of new krewes has taken off in the past decade. Duane Wendel, co-owner of the Bead Barn in South Tampa, says he sees three to four new krewes each year. The Bead Barn, a popular parade-bead vendor near the Palma Ceia Country Club, is packed with krewe members buying beads this time of year.

Many krewes are spinoffs from older krewes, says Randy Conte of the Inter-Krewe Council in Tampa. The council, a social network, started with six established krewes in 1992 and is now up to more than four dozen.

The oldest krewe in Tampa is Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla. It formed in 1904 and staged the first Gasparilla event that year. Some 40 prominent businessmen "surprised" the city with a mock pirate invasion. The elite male pirate krewe now has 800 members and 11 floats in the Gasparilla parade.

Established in 2007, the Krewe of Ann Jeffrey will be the most recently formed krewe in Saturday's parade.

For more information about krewes in Tampa - including advice on how to start one - go to the Inter-Krewe Council Web site, www.interkrewe.org.

And if you're going to the parade, here's what to expect:

•Pirate Invasion: Starts at 11:30 a.m. when Ye Mystic Krewe's pirate ship, the Jose Gasparilla, sails from the south end of Hillsborough Bay to the Tampa Convention Center. The ship will be loaded with pirates blasting guns and cannons and surrounded by a flotilla of pleasure boats.

Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio surrenders the city when the pirates dock at the convention center at 1 p.m.

•Parade of Pirates: Starts at 2 p.m. Marching bands, krewe floats and color guards - 115 units in all - will begin a 3.5-mile parade route at Bayshore and Bay to Bay boulevards and go north on Bayshore into downtown, crossing the Platt Street Bridge. The parade ends at Marion and Jackson streets.

•The crowd: Go early to claim a spot on the parade route sidelines. Parade organizers expect some 500,000 spectators.

•Cost: Free

•Reserved seats: Bleacher seats can be reserved for $24 each (children 2 and younger are free). To purchase, call (813) 353-8108.

•Information: www

.gasparillapiratefest.com.

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