THE MAGIC CONTINUES!
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This morning was another early morning but we were able to drive and park at the Crew Parking, thanks to our pass from Bruce. The other mornings we either hitched a ride or took the bus and walked (boy, are we getting our walking – :-))) which is good for us after all the Happy Hours, Potluck, and dinners out – :-))).
We were able to see some of the Dawn Patrol and then the non competitors and special shapes inflated and launched (most of them). Another awesome ascension. And so many new special shapes. One of our most interesting one was the space shuttle (it is actually 30% larger than the actual shuttle) and the American Flag. Those two did inflate but did not launch due to the winds. All the pictures are in the album – Enjoy!!
For the competition, the balloonists who participated had to launch at least one mile away from the field and then make their way to the field where there were five poles. On the top of each pole was an envelope with money. The pilots were to maneuver their balloon and pick the envelope from the pole to get the prize. They had to have both feet firmly planted on the floor of their basket. WOW! Lots of skill and lots of mother nature involved here.
There was a layer of higher winds in the atmosphere and that layer was predicted to be lower as the sun rose. So we went off with the pilot to watch some of the launches of the special shapes and the competitors to see where that wind was. The competitors launched at 8 AM from various places and as they came close to the field, they were going fast!!!. Our pilot decided not to launch because the issue was not coming to the field but landing afterwards… So we parked near the entrance and watched the competition – really neat!! We did find out that at least 2 envelopes were taken – not sure of any more details at this time…
Those who stayed back at the campground also had a show. Many of the special shapes landed and some did have some problems landing because of the wind. But in the end, everyone landed safely – YEA!!!
Tonight was to be the Special Shapes Glow but because of the wind, it was cancelled. Hopefully there will be another chance tomorrow.
In between I have finally got caught up on the blog and email. So if I owe you an email and you did not receive any answer, send me another…
Andy and I have had such a great time here. We have met and got to know some great people and hope to stay in touch as we travel along the way. And would we do this again – ABSOLUTELY!!! I HIGHLY recommended this to everyone. Some of the pictures are great but there is nothing like standing in the middle of all these balloons and watching and feeling them inflate, stand up and take off. There is nothing like helping a pilot unload the envelope, set up the basket, inflate the balloon, feel the heat of the propane and see, feel, experience that balloon come up off the ground and then lift off. MAGICAL!! I will always remember this experience!!!
And we still have 3 more days – how exciting!!!
FYI – If you are receiving this by email and the picture links do not work, go to http://thehitzels.blogspot.com
and there is another link that should work. If you have any problems, please leave a comment or email me at gardenhavens@hotmail.com. Also I would like to know your opinion on this new format of pictures. If I only have a few, I will post in the blog. But if there are many, I will utilize this new format.
Blessings to all!!!
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