Nice Morning Over the Arkansas

The forecast for yesterday morning called for light winds and blue

skies, so I gathered some of my favorite local crew members (Billy, Mike, and Paul) and planned a flight. David Hoover was flying, too, so we all met at the commuter lot, checked the winds, and headed north to a launch site.

A Catholic Church on Highway 365 has a large lot and some nice lawn space, so we assembled the balloons and off we went. The winds on the surface were very light, but not very far off the surface, they picked up nicely. When we dropped down low, they stalled out and turned a bit to

the right.

David stayed low longer than I did, changing out passengers at one point, but I hoped to land near Two Rivers Park, so I stayed high. That meant that David's flight was a bit longer than mine, but Paul (my passenger) and I had a great landing in a beautiful spot; clean grass with no fence.

Paul is a terrific photographer, and he's posted some of his pictures HERE. I'm sure he'll add to the album soon.

Finally! Some Ballooning!

Last weekend, Hot Springs hosted their annual Legends Balloon Festival. While Hot Springs is a
tough place to fly because it's surrounded by forest, they put on a really great event, with thousands of spectators. I'm not sure how many of those spectators come out to see the balloons, and how many come to watch the bands perform. This year, Charlie Daniels played Friday night, while Three Dog Night played on Saturday.

I glowed my balloon on Friday and flew it across the airport grounds on Saturday. I also enjoyed spending time with

Chris and Sharon, my Hot Springs crew, and Patty, a new crew member who lives in Jacksonville.

Thanks to Hot Springs Tourism and Convention Bureau, and all the people who make it such a terrific event!

This morning, My family (Jill, Alex, and Alex's friend, Chris) rolled out of bed early to help Mike

and I fly our balloo

n. We met up with David Hoover at Burns Park and flew from there. As we were preparing to launch, we could see fog building on the Arkansas River, and we knew we were in for a beautiful flight.

Both balloons launched together and stayed close for the first half of the flight. We tried to stay low, to remain in slow winds, while maintaining enough altitude over the fog. We flew mostly to the west, but when we were low we headed to the south. After while, I started looking for a landing spot. I missed my first choice of spots (I'm always too anx

ious to get to the ground, and I get pushed to the left), but used the winds to work my way into the parking lot at Chuck E Cheese. We deflated the balloon and called our crew to let them know

where we were.

It was a great start to a terrific Sunday (culminating in a Packer's victory!).

Next weekend Jill and I will make our annual trip to Columbus, Kansas to see lots of friends, fly the balloon, and eat lasagna!

Second Sunday in a Row!

Billy is a great crew member, but he's a busy guy! It's tough to find him in town when the weather is favorable for a flight. Last week, he helped crew for my flight with Patty. After the flight, he mentioned he was around this weekend, too. I told him my truck would be out of town with Jill this weekend to which he replied, "I have a hitch."

If Billy wants to crew and the weather's good, I'm game to fly!

Billy recruited a passenger, his brother Ryan, and we met at the Y (where the balloon was) bright and early this morning. I had hoped to fly in West Little Rock, but the winds just weren't right to fly there, so we set out for Vilonia. I hadn't flown there since the small town north of Little Rock was hit by a tornado last spring.

We launched from a school west of town and flew east, landing on the east edge of town. From the air we could see quite a bit of storm damage, especially some of the tornado's track through wooded areas.

The flight was almost perfect. The only problem was that I needed to fly high through most of the flight to get where I wanted to. I like to get down on the treetops a sometimes, but the winds just didn't allow that. It was nice to have some good "steerability," and it was really calm on the surface, making for a very gentle landing!

Thanks to Billy and Ryan for making it a great morning!

Flight With Patty

When I first started working at the Y in Little Rock, one of our board members, Patty, told me she'd like to ride in the balloon. Patty is very adventurous and outgoing, so I knew she'd be a fun passenger. When I needed an attorney to review my passenger and crew waiver, I asked Patty if she'd trade me that service for a balloon flight, and she was all for it. After a couple years of trying to find a time (she travels out of town often), we finally settled on a flight this morn

Patty, her husband Witt, our mutual friend (and my regular crew member) Billy, and I all assembled in Gravel Ridge, then drove north of the air force base where we inflated at an elementary school. A nice inflation, a gentle launch, and Patty and I were headed to the northeast.

The winds aloft were quick, exceeding 20 mph at times, and carried us northeast. The winds down low were much slower and took us north. Those are the perfect wind conditions for a great flight! The only thing wrong with this morning's flight was that it was a little hazy due to some rain yesterday. That precipitation also concerned me because I don't like to get the balloon wet when we pack it up.

It was a nice flight with a terrific passenger! Thanks to everyone who took part!

Bryant Family Fest

David Hoover e-mailed several weeks ago, and asked if I wanted to do a flight and a glow for Bryant's Family Festival. It sounded like fun, so I agreed. It also sounded hot; afternoon flights in July can get kind of steamy around here, but you can't always avoid the heat when your favorite hobby is an outdoor one. The flight was July 3rd, and the glow on the 4th, in coordination with the Fest's fireworks.

It was a bit difficult recruiting crew on a holiday weekend, but Paul Henry came through (and were we glad he did!) We met up with David, Mike Hickey and everyone's crew/passengers, and headed into the fest. Bands were playing and food booths were set up, but few crowds. I think everyone was avoiding the heat and waiting for fireworks tonight.

It was early, so we waited for the winds to die down before we inflated. As I was standing my balloon up, it got a little breezy again, so as the other two balloons launched, I deflated for another attempt. Sometimes I really wish my balloon had a scoop instead of a skirt!

Our second attempt was successful and away I flew. I had to go solo so Paul could help Jill chase me. It's a bit boring flying solo, but the scenery was good, and lots of people came out of their homes to say, "Hi!"

I knew from studying the maps prior to the flight, that my path was taking me toward some good landing areas, so I enjoyed the ride. Soon, I found myself headed for a nice lawn, and dropped right in. The landowner came out and gave us permission to drive the truck in to the balloon. We visited with the spectators that came along, then packed up and headed back to Paul's car.

We'll be back tonight for a glow during the 4th of July fireworks. If you're in Bryant, stop by!

Nice Saturday over Central Arkansas

All last week, I watched Saturday's forecast, and it was looking good. Saturday came and I was not disappointed! Our friend Alex has crewed for us pretty often, so we asked him if he wanted to designate a passenger for us. Lucky for us, he chose his friend Jason. We met up with Jason and his girlfriend, Renada in Gravel Ridge. Then we headed to Bayou Meto Elementary for an easy inflation and a nice lift-off.

The flight was beautiful. We got some good views from up high, and we rode the treetops (Jason also got a video of us flying through a tree, but I'm not posting that here!) and the ridges down low.

The winds aloft were pretty quick, with us reaching speeds of over 30 mph! Most of our time, we stayed down low so we didn't get too far from our crew! We did get much farther east than they expected us to be, so we called them when we landed and told them how to find us.

The landing was a good one. The winds were a little quick, and I had to make a decision; either vent hard on landing to keep from dragging a short distance (but risk not being able to keep the balloon inflated) or vent less aggressively, and let the wind blow us around a bit on the ground. I think I found a good balance, dragging only a few yards, and staying nicely inflated.

We tried to move the balloon across our landing field, near the gate, but the winds kicked up, and we were forced to deflate it where we were. The landowners were very nice, opening the gate and letting us drive the truck right in to the middle of the field for an easy packup.

We drove back to Gravel Ridge for the standard celebration, and went on with our weekend! Thanks to Alex, Jill, Jason, and Renada for kicking off my Saturday very nicely!

CARTI Flight Foggy Morning

CARTI is a cancer treatment center that is very prominent in Little Rock. Last year, I promised a flight in the balloon that they could auction at their big holiday fundraising event. After several months, it finally worked out for me to fly the buyer of the ride!
Dawn-Marie actually bought the ride for her mom, who was battling cancer at the time, and who loved balloons. Unfortunately, her health didn't allow her to take the flight, and she passed away. So, Dawn-Marie flew with me to honor her mother's memory.

We met Dawn-Marie and her husband, Jason as well as David and his passengers (two balloons are better than one) on the westside of Little Rock an hour before sunrise (love the long days of June, but HATE the early mornings! A pibal went up, and we headed south to find a launch site.

We had to slow down fast inflations so we wouldn't beat the sun into the sky, but once the sun rose, we headed off into the wild blue yonder. Unfortunately, it soon became apparent that the wild blue yonder was being covered by white fog. To our north (the direction we we were heading) was a thick blanket of fog. David and I discussed trying to fly over it, but decided to drop down to steer clear.

Fortunately, at lower elevations, the winds took us to the southwest and away from the heaviest fog. Unfortunately, landing spots are few and far between in that country. David and I both played on the treetops, and generally had fun flying. David even performed a splash and dash.

As the morning went on, I expected the fog to burn off. Instead, it became thicker and it spread our way. We found fields in which to land, and got on the ground.

My landing was pretty gentle, but it wasn't the first place you'd want to park your balloon. It was in a big pasture that was pretty overgrown. Dawn-Marie and I deflated the balloon and hiked (we were lucky to find our way to the landowner's house) out of the field. We called our crew and let them know where to find us. Then we rode back to the balloon and packed it up.

While Jill and Jason were looking for us, they happened down a dead end road. As they were attempting to back out, they were yelled at by a local resident who didn't want anyone driving on his public road. Not sure where he wanted to go so badly (half dressed) at 7:30 on a Sunday morning, but he was very angry that his street was partially blocked.

I was much luckier in that the owner of the field I landed in was VERY friendly and accommodating, allowing us to drive right in to the balloon. I'm sorry the chasers had to deal with a turkey, and I'm very grateful for their hard work and early "roll out" so I could fly!

Flight with Caitlynn and Marci

At the Y's auction last month, my friends David and June bought the balloon ride we donated. I thought June was going to fly with me, but when the weather looked good for a Saturday flight, and I e-mailed David to set it up, he said I'd be flying their daughters, Marci and Caitlynn. I've met the girls before, and Caitlynn flew with me on a tether last summer, so I was really looking forward to a flight with them.

We recruited our friend Alex to help crew, and met at 6:00 in Gravel Ridge. After a short drive north to Bayou Meto School, we assembled the balloon, loaded the passengers, and up we went.

It took Caitlynn a few minutes to get used to the noise of the burner, but Marci seemed to like it (she's a big Harley Davidson fan, so noise is her friend!) and soon they were having a great time!

I talked to the controller at Little Rock Air Force Base to let him know we were operating in their airspace (never saw anything else in the sky during our flight) and on we flew. It's always fun flying over sparsely populated areas. This was a pretty place to fly, with lots of ridges, trees, and open spaces.

The winds on the surface were really calm, but up just a hundred feet or so, they picked up quickly. The surface winds were expected to say calm, so I was pretty sure we'd have a very gentle landing, but I knew we could fly toward Cabot, and we could fly over town if we weren't able to land before we got to the city.

After about 40 minutes in flight, we saw a nice field, right next to the Welcome to Cabot sign. We flew toward it, and dropped into the middle of the field. Soon, the chase crew was there. Alex dragged the balloon to the road, and we deflated dry on the pavement.

The only disappointment of the morning was when we discovered the Fried Pie Shoppe in Jacksonville on the way home had switched to its Summer hours and wouldn't open until 10:00. Oh well, donuts would have to do!

First Flight of 2011

Well, we're a quarter of the way through the not-so-new year, and I still hadn't had a chance to fly. Because it had been so long, I wasn't current, and knew I'd have to fly solo. Flying by myself is kind of boring, and the balloon responds differently, so it isn't my favorite thing to do, but I had a nice flight none the less.

David was going to fly this morning, so we decided to fly together, which is always fun. He asked me to take some pictures of his balloon in flight, which gave me something to distract me from flying (I worked hard to fly safely, but it wasn't the best flying...chalk it up to being "rusty.) Two other area pilots, Wayne Woods and Mike Dickey decided to fly with us, too. It took them a little longer to inflate, so I didn't see much of them in flight.

Winds were kind of tricky. They were mostly from the south, but at about 800 feet above the ground, they came out of the north! Just above the surface, they took an uncharacteristic right turn. I missed several good approaches because I misjudged that right turn. I did get some good "touch and goes" and a nice final landing on a road (with my crew there to catch me) for a dry packup.

I hope to get several flights through the spring and early summer, so watch this space for more posts!