Balloon Fiesta 2008

We arrived at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta a little earlier than usual this year, checking in on Monday ahead of the opening on Saturday. We wanted to be sure we got our favorite spot but overdid it a bit. There was only one other RV in that section when we got there and it didn't start filling up until the end of the week. That may have been at least partly because overall attendance was down this year.

Oue spot is on the edge of what was the launch field until the new facility was built two miles to the north a few years ago. It is a great spot because the balloons often come south directly over the RVs, and sometime land there. There are no electrical or water hookups but it costs only $25 per night.

This big cathedral-shaped balloon, new this year, looks like it is landing on the roof of our motorhome but actually came down directly in front of us.

When the wind takes the balloons north instead of south we enjoy hopping in the car and going with them, trying to reach the places they land. On this day many of them came down in a housing development, much to the delight of the residents. The pilots did a good job of setting them down in the streets without breaking anything.

This year I volunteered to work on a chase crew, which means that I helped launch the balloon and recover it after it landed. I was assigned to help a professional pilot from eastern Utah named Kevin Morgan. The white balloon in the photo above is one of several his company, Teton Balloons, owns. If you are ever in that area and want to take a Tetons sightseeing ride look them up. Kevin is a great pilot.

I later had an opportunity to ride with Kevin and of course grabbed it. It was my first ride and it was terrific. The wind took us about 15 miles north to the town of Bernalillo where we made a good landing in the fire station parking lot.

Getting all of the air out of the balloon and packing it up is not the most fun part of the adventure but it has to be done before the champaign comes out.

Key Grab Day (Friday) is one of my favorites because the balloons launch from off site and come over the field in tight formation as they compete for prizes attached to poles. The top prize is a new Honda car or truck.

This turned out to be the last good day of this year's Fiesta. Events for Saturday and Sunday were cancelled because of rain and high winds.

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