ULTRAFLIGHT MAGAZINE

February 2000 By Michelle Daniele
 
Of course, I couldn't sleep, although I was hoping I'd get at least an hour or two. My eyes were wide open as I lay there in an RV amongst a sea of RV's that gathered for this world famous event. Our new home for the next ten days would be the PPG/PPC camp just south of the balloon park and even more south of the Official Fiesta RV park. Earlier that night, a conglomeration of staff, pilots, spouses and friends gathered for a general meeting about what to expect for the first day of flying at the Balloon fiesta.

This particular adventure started at Sun and Fun last year when Guy Leon Dufour, president of Adventure, stated it was his life-long dream to fly his powered paraglider at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta. Some call it luck, but we like to think it was providence that secured that first mid-May meeting with the balloon fiesta directors, Pat Brake, Steve Feeley and Paul Smith. More meetings, more luck and hard work got us in! Soon we discovered that getting in was the easy part.

Major challenges included pilot invitations, registration, insurance, securing tents, arranging for RV's and obtaining on site gasoline and oil for the pilots. Calling on sponsors, we designed T-shirts and pins and set up the demonstration for the FAA. One by one each challenge was laid to rest.
 
Our volunteer staff grew, each name lending more and more credibility : from Quebec, Canada, Eric Dufour (owner of Paratour/PPG instructor); from San Diego, Alan Chuculate (writer, PPG/ PG and hanglider instructor);
from San Diego, Bill Bennett (pioneer and developer of the sport of hangliding); from Tampa, Francesco De Santis "Check" (owner U Can Fly 2, PPG instructor); from Kissimmee, FL, Scott Alan (owner of Paraborne, PPG instructor); from Albuquerque, Boris Mayforth (PG/PPG instructor); and from Houston, Andy McGavin (PPG instructor).

 

Four months later, my husband Jerry, our partner Tony Olmi and I had managed to put together the first PPG and PPC Fly In at this 28th Annual Kodak Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.

The backdrop for the inaugural Balloon Fiesta Fly-In was an incredible kaleidoscope of 900 hot air balloons drifting wherever the winds of chance cared to take them. From a modest beginning, with just 13 balloons in 1972, the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta has grown into the largest (over 350 acres), most celebrated balloon event in the world.

 

With virtually no rules to dampen crowd spirit, spectators mingle with pilots and crews. Drawing more than a million spectators,it has been given the title of "the world's most photographed event". It is estimated that more than 25 million still photographs are take during the fiesta.

Balloons are entered from around the world and news coverage comes from more than 50 countries. Why Albuquerque? Its location, location, WEATHER! With a combination of weather patterns and geographic landscape, balloonists enjoy a phenomenon called the "Albuquerque box."

 
This so-called "box" allows balloonists to navigate and orchestrate their flight by the changing wind directions at different altitudes. At 5000 ft, Albuquerque is a high mountain desert that during October, produces cool crisp mornings, lounge chair afternoons and near perfect evenings. With the Sandia Mountains (sandia means watermelon in Spanish and the mountains turn this color at sunset) to the East, the Rio Grande River Valley in the middle, and a series of volcanoes and mesas (the badlands) to the West, Albuquerque is an unexpected "Land of Enchantment" to the newcomer. We soon discovered Albuquerque held the same "enchantment" for our PPG/PPC pilots.
 
October 1 saw over 900 hot air balloon pilots, 55 PPG and 2 PPC pilots registered to fly. Of the PPG and PPC pilots only 20 out of the 58 were from the US, with the rest from Canada, France, Belgium and Malaysia. Our foreign delegation included Michel Touitou, former French PPG champion; Guy Leon Dufour, owner/president of Adventure; Thierry Simonet manufacturer of Back Bone Paramoteurs; and Francois Lagarde, the French pilot featured in National Geographic's March 1999 issue.

Equipment included the Paramotor, Paratour's SD line, Adventure, DK, Mini Plane, Backbone, Jet Pocket and Six Chuter. Pilots paid a registration and insurance fee and were required to have a minimum of 40 hours of flying time to participate.

Another requirement was that Jerry and our weather briefer Boris, were to attend the Balloon pilot's briefing session at 6:00 every morning. Before daybreak, thousands of headlights streamed into the parking lots. Nine hundred balloon pilots and two PPG pilots gathered outdoors under a predawn sky, as the "Dawn Patrol" balloons drifted by.

 

Each balloon glowed like a giant Japanese lantern. The balloon meister and an FAA official relayed all the pertinent information for that days flying. By sunrise there were over 100,000 spectators milling among the pilots and their balloons.

With our fly-in divided into three, three day slots, the first day of each slot consisted of general briefing, each pilot submitting the required documents and each one receiving the numbered aircraft ID banner, armband and special edition pin. On the "box" days, launching was from the pilot's camp; on other days the machines were transported to the main balloon field. Being the first year that other types of aircraft were permitted near the balloons, some logistical and timing problems were encountered.
Balloon officials and FAA played it conservatively, sterilizing the field of balloons before giving thumbs-up for our group. For the pilot who anticipated flying alongside the balloons, some understandable frustration and disappointment took place. For most, though, the spirit of camaraderie and new found friendships were the key element.

Afternoons were dominated by naps, showers, trips to Santa-Fe, the hot springs, the scenic badlands or just readying the machines for another day's excitement. Evenings consisted of enjoying the nighttime balloon glows, hangar talk, potlucks, games, music and dancing. So it went for 10 days.

As the final day of the fiesta approached, I wondered where the time had gone. Even though we were tired and spent, I wasn't ready for it to end. And in a sense it didn't end.

Our presence at the Balloon Fiesta launched us into a whole new territory, as the people of Albuquerque had now discovered the powered paraglider! The response and interest was immediate.

With the Eric Dufour family hanging around an additional week, we soon put him to work in helping us train the flow of students that were signing up. Of the first ten students, half were women. With smaller, lighter weight machines and good training, women are increasingly taking to this sport. Everyone relished the spectacular panorama of the Sandia Mountains, volcanoes and the gorgeous Albuquerque sunsets.

 

Reflecting on the Fiesta, I can vouch that it was a wonderful experience - new friendships, putting faces to e-mail addresses, etc. One pilot called me a week later describing how much he was missing Albuquerque and stated that he catches himself daydreaming about the fiesta while at work. As for me, I'm caught in that daydream, too.

Taking place in early October, this year's Kodak Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta marked the 28th year for the event. In a sense, the fiesta moved into a new era by welcoming powered paragliders and powered parachutes to join in the extravaganza. The Albuquerque Journal gave some good coverage in stories and photos regarding the PPG/PPC addition to the Fiesta.

Enthusiasm ran high among participants and spectators alike, with people arriving daily as early as 4:00.

 
The highways were packed by 5:00 am. It is told that an early riser using the park and ride service arrived at 4:45, but still did not make it into the coveted spot until 7:00. An unusually large number of persons (exceeding expectations) used the park and ride service, causing a major glitch in it efficiency.
As can be seen in the photos here, many shapes and sizes were the order of the day for the colorful balloons. Readily noticeable were the traditional styles plus some interest-getters such as a giraffe, teddy bear, boot, cow, dinosaur, Noah's ark, house, elephant, clown face and fish. Jesus the Hot Air Balloon was the largest balloon in the fiesta.

Of special note was the presence of Tipper Gore, wife of Vice President Al Gore. Being in the area on a fund-raising mission for her husband, Mrs. Gore spiced up her agenda with an enjoyable balloon ride on Sunday morning, October 3.

UltraFlight Magazine is especially grateful to Randy Chavez, Six Chuter dealer of Dream Flight, Bloomfield, NM for his willingness to represent the magazine at the Fiesta. Randy skillfully flew his brand new Six Chuter with UltraFlight's colorful canopy for all to enjoy. Thanks Randy.