Thousands of Local Children “Hop Into Spring” at Egg Bowl Replacement Event

Under bright blue skies, more than 7,000 colored plastic eggs scattered the field of the Rose Bowl Stadium, from the 40-yard line to the southern end zone Wednesday, as thousands of children and their parents gathered for a “Hop Into Spring” egg hunt and Rose Bowl Open House.

The event was hastily scheduled last week by the City and the Rose Bowl after rain forced the cancellation of the traditional Egg Bowl and Bunny Brunch that was to have been held Saturday, March 30. In past years, the Egg Bowl has seen thousands of children hunt for tens of thousands of brightly colored plastic eggs, followed by a family festival and a Bunny Brunch.

In contrast to the soggy weekend, Tuesday was Rose-Bowl-Game-perfect.

“We wanted to let the community come down and experience their stadium,” said Derek Doolittle, assistant general manager of the Rose Bowl Stadium, ” and we couldn’t have dialed up better weather.”

Doolittle said more than 3,000 children and parents participated in the hunt. He explained that the event was to be staged in three waves, with the first at 3:30 p.m. and the last at 5 p.m.

Following each hunt, the stadium’s “Bunny Squad” replenished the thousands of eggs scattered across the southern end of the field.

The stadium guests first visited the Rose Bowl’s California High School Hall of Fame, as well as the restored original 1922 locker room, before making their way to the field.

“It’s a really cool way to interact with the stadium,” said Doolittle, “before they come down to the iconic Spieker Field and get their ‘egg on.’”

Following a countdown, hundreds of children burst into the egg-gathering areas, scooping up eggs by the basketful and then posing for photos with a costumed Easter Bunny.

“It’s my first time actually at this stadium, and this is such a fun thing,” said Esther Sandoval, who attended with her son, David, 5. “Now that I know about this, we’ll be back again next year.”