Skate Downtown Cincinnati is rolling into the Reds Opening Day parade with a float that survived a 30-foot plunge into the Ohio River.For the group's fourth year in the parade, nearly 55 skaters will coast through Cincinnati in red and black hockey jerseys to represent the Reds and promote the new NHL Street Hockey League at Sawyer Point.The centerpiece of their appearance is a giant roller skate that was launched into the river during the Red Bull Flugtag event last summer. A crane pulled it out of the water, and the team spent three weeks doing structural work and 3D printing to get it rolling on all four wheels again."I'm so surprised that it survived the drop after Red Bull Flugtag," Morgan Rigaud said. "It flew, it swam, and it survived, so it really deserved to be celebrated in the parade."Head designer Matt Withby said it is a miracle the roller skate is still standing. He worked for a couple of weeks to make the float parade ready."Basically, I've gone through, and I've re-welded the axles so that we have strong wheels," Withby said. "Initially, they were only made to go 50 feet and be pushed off a giant barge, so now they are roadworthy."WATCH: Skate Downtown Cincy's behind-the-scenes Opening Day prep Reds Opening Day Parade to feature giant float that survived Red Bull FlugtagThe team is also attaching the float to a city golf cart so it does not have to be pulled by hand."We fixed up the painting; we had to papier-mache new cardboard onto it so it would be structurally stable," Withby said.Rigaud said this year will be their biggest yet."We're really excited that No Effort Skate Crew will be there, Reckless Skaters will be there, some of the Hood Skaters are joining us, and then just some of the creative performers and talented folks that skated the riverfront with us will be there," Rigaud said.The group is also bringing back its DJ, who will ride on the Recreation Commission's boombox float. The float, originally designed last year by Maddie Slack, has been updated with new additions.Their parade appearance comes on the heels of a busy season for the local skating community."We've hosted 150 free public events at the riverfront," Rigaud said. "We had nearly 10,000 visitors last year for our free wellness programs and skating sessions."You can catch Skate Downtown Cincinnati rolling with the Reds starting on Elm Street on Opening Day.This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy. ...read more read less