Prepare for pint-sized pirates! Gasparilla Children's Parade - WFLA-TV Newschannel 8

Tampa Bay's pirate party season kicks off today with the first in a series of bead-filled parades. The Gasparilla Children's Parade and Piratechnic Extravaganza takes place in Tampa today, with events beginning at 11 a.m.

Here's a rundown of events:

11 a.m. - Vendors open, activities for children begin.

11 a.m. - 1 p.m. - Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Rodeo, located along Bayshore Boulevard, between Rome and Dakota Avenues. Kids will receive free bicycle helmets (while supplies last), then use a provided bicycle to navigate through a training course.

1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. - Gasparilla Preschooler's Stroll. Begins at Bay to Bay Boulevard and ends at Howard Avenue. Children dress up as pirates, decorate their wagons and bicycles, and parade up Bayshore.

3:00 - 3:30 p.m. - Gasparilla Air Invasion, featuring a parachute jump by the Para-Commandoes -- the U. S. Special Operations Jump Team.

3:30 - 6:00 p.m. - Children's Gasparilla Parade, begins at Bay to Bay, and runs north along Bayshore to Watrous/Orleans Avenues.

7:00 - 7:30 p.m. - "Piratechnic" Extravaganza. This fireworks show recreates the fictional battle between Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla and the City of Tampa. The show is centered at Bayshore Boulevard and Howard Avenue.

Admission to all events is free. You can purchase tickets for reserved seating for the parade by visiting http://gasparillatreasures.com/.