Oct 12, 2018
Tuesday, Oct. 9 ~ Day 4 of the Balloon Fest
It was windy all night with rain showers as late as 4:30AM. We were on the field by 7AM and there was that yellow flag yet again. We are not getting the full Balloon Fiesta experience but we are hanging in there. There were not too many people on the field Tuesday morning. We walked up and down checking out various pilots that were laying out their balloons on the grass, some do put a tarp down first. Everyone was waiting for the green flag that meant that this event is a go. Once again no Dawn Patrol nor the Laser Light Show. Day 4 and we have only seen this once on Day 1. Finally the Rainbow Riders, all twelve of them took off. They take riders up for a mere $500.00 US per flight per passenger and they cram as many as they can into their baskets.
Slowly others began to inflate their balloons.
Love this artsy shot Colin 🙂
Canadian balloon by Sundance Balloons out of Ontario.
One of this year’s new balloons.
Pigasus from Battle Creek, MI, new this year.
PXMART DOLL from Taitung City, Taiwan, new for 2018.
The penguin balloon is called Puddles and is from Breadstone – United Kingdom.
Zebra’s dressed in black and white are the officials who give each balloon the okay to launch. They control the entire field.
The first ever Emoji balloon from Oswestry, Shropshire, Great Britain.
Owl is also a new balloon this season from Godalming, Surrey – Great Britain
Simbaloo on the left from Basingstoke, Hampshire – Great Britain.
Not many flew Tuesday as the wind was blowing in the wrong direction. I25 is in this direction as well as many businesses and shopping areas, very little place to land a balloon.
Saxon Balloon from Sao Paul, Brazil. Quite clever.
Freedom Flight Balloon V from St. Cloud, Minnesota. It is 105,000 cu.ft.
They did not fly but fired up their burners over and over to the cheers of the crowd.
This balloon is dedicated to ‘Prisoners Of War, Missing in Action’. Major US Conflicts Since 1941 – still missing: WWII ~ 73,500 + ~ Korea 7,800 + ~ Vietnam 1,600 + ~ Cold War 100 + OIF-OEF 6?
When the pilot is flying she wears tennis shoes and all the other times she is in flip flops.
A new balloon this year, Cristo Redentor, Helio Neto. From Sao Paulo, Brazil. This was the first time this balloon has been inflated since the beginning of this balloon fiesta.
After this we went to Trader Joe’s and a grocery store and the laundromat. We got back at 3:20PM and at 4PM, had the happy hour I wrote about in the last post. Each day is full of activity to the point of being worn out ( mostly because of the time spent posting ) but we are so blessed to be here.
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WOW. WHAT A DAY EVEN IF SOME DIDN’T LIFT OFF. SPECTACULAR DESIGNS AND COLORS. THANK YOU.
Everyday has been different with special focus.
Another series of wonderful photos. Really appreciate the time and effort you and Colin have put into the blog for all of us to enjoy. Thanks so very much.
Thank you for understanding the amount of energy it takes to post something like this.
WOW!! WOW and WOW!! What great fun to see Colins photos – some very interesting shots. So enjoyed seeing all the new balloons. Do you know the total number of balloons that are there this year? This is such fun and thank you both for sharing so much of the Balloon Fiesta with us. SandyM
X2. Couldn’t have said it better myself! WOW! And double WOW!!
Thank you Dee, it actually was Wow, Wow while on the field.
568 balloons registered this year. Sometimes it seemed like many many more. So happy to share this with you all.
Lots of wonderful balloons , so many different styles and colors. thanks for sharing these excellent photos.
So glad that you are enjoying them George.
I love seeing all the new shapes that weren’t there when we went. I cant imagine what it takes to construct one of these. Great pictures.
Also the imagination to come up with all of these new designs.
I always knew from other bloggers this was a popular event but did not know it was so big, with a lot of balloons until you blogged about it. Great photos.
It is the largest hot air balloon event in the world.
Once again great pictures. I hope you get more good days where all the balloons can fly! We also found it exhausting and went and hid out in the desert near Sedona. We ended up doing nothing for four days before we started hiking around Sedona.
Yes it is exhausting. I thought I would have much more free time during the day, but then the blogging takes a very long time.
Contessa you are in a parka and….running shoes. I’ve never seen that before! Colin’s photos are amazing as is your dedication to the blog. Thanks. The colors are stunning!
What big ear muffs you have, too! They look warm and fuzzy. High desert get cold, doesn’t it. I, too, love the colors
I wonder if I will ever warm up again! I have had those ear muffs forever and they do keep my ears totally warm.
Not a parka, but my rain proof and wind proof jacket over a heavy fleece jacket on top of a long sleeved thing sweater. Yeah, the running shoes were/are a big deal but it was so cold and wet that I had to wear them. I recently found some ultra thin sockettes and with having the runners stretched three time I was good for a few hours.
WOW!!! Lots of balloons!!!
And many more to come 🙂
Oh, look at those poor toes! Imprisoned! haha!! Good thing you came prepared.
Fantastic photos! I am really enjoying seeing the new ones this year like Vincent and Christ the Redeemer. Thanks for sharing them!
Exactly, imprisoned!
You make me laugh…”Let my toes be freeeeee!”
Free like a balloon!
What a fantastic trip you are having – we are so very envious. The pictures are superb and really give us a good feeling what the balloon fest is all about. Enjoy and keep warm. We follow you each day and know all your words and pictures means so very much to us all.