My First Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta Chase

My First Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta Chase

Having lived in New Mexico for almost thirty years cannot go by without being involved in the annual event called the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta held every October of the year. From the very beginning back in the mid-80’s I had watched these gigantic colorful balloons with weaved baskets hanging or dangling below them as they pass the countryside and take an occasional dip into the Rio Grande river for whatever reason the pilot chose to do so. 

At least ten years passed before I became interested in participating as a chase crew for one of the balloon teams showing up from everywhere around the country for this event. I had a friend who had a friend who knew a crew looking for a chase crew. Watching and learning the art of ballooning, I knew a chase crew was an essential part of a successful southwestern over the mountains, rivers and desert balloon flight. 

One can only imagine the energy and passion put into such a celebration to show off their flying skills and participate in a growing sport in New Mexico and other parts of the world. It was this friend who told me he knew a guy from Missouri who needed a guy with a four wheel drive pickup truck to chase for him this fiesta.

He knew I had a 1985 Ford F 250 pickup truck and I was always looking for a chance to bring excitement into my life as a natural risk taker and knowing that if I chased for him, I would get the free rides in the balloon as my compensation for helping the crew. 

As a newcomer to the state I watched these balloon flights intensely and although I knew absolutely nothing about the sport, I was inspired to follow these balloon as they drifted across the sky making only a sound of the propane blasting the heat up to stay afloat in the air. I knew two things for sure; heat rises and cold air in the mornings was needed to get the balloons off into the air thus early morning before sunrise starts were natural beginnings. 

Another thing I learned while watching these balloons maneuver in the air is that they don’t always go where the pilot wants it to go. I have seen them run into trees, high electric wires, and unintentional dips into the Rio Grande River. Regardless of the reason, it seemed they always took it with the right spirit and started all over again the next day. 

The day of the flight the crew gave me a walkie talkie that was only as good as the distance between us and the straight line of vision provided. It is hard to lose sight of the balloon but the challenge arrives once it separates from the group and floats out on their own down the road or in this case, the desert. The crew master said I had only one goal. 

He said to me “all you have to do is follow me the best you can and arrive at the landing spot to be available to help land and stabilize the balloon, take it down and haul it up to the bed of the truck and bring us back to the takeoff spot."

We chased the balloon for about ten miles maybe twelve before it set down. We had to travel at various speeds to keep up with it as we had to navigate the anticipated flight route and find the intended landing area within reasonable times and expectations. The distance between the radio and the balloon varied and sometimes the radio didn’t work or reach the caller or receiver. The entire flight took less than an hour after takeoff. 

I learned a balloon can only travel as fast as the wind can move or carry it. I also learned it was better to drive ahead of it anticipating the direction or flight path than to follow it. This cut a lot of time on the recovery and helping with taking the balloon down to pack it up in the truck. It was also important to know which way the wind was “steering” the balloon as it was its only means to control directions. 

Last but not least I learned there were gas balloons and hot air balloons and the difference was significant yet very similar. The part of the balloon that holds the hot air or gas is called the envelope. The basket that carries the pilot and passengers is the gondola. With both types of lighter-than-air flight, pilots try to control their direction by taking advantage of different wind currents at different altitudes. 

Both kinds of balloons are classified as aircraft by the U.S. Federal Aeronautics Administration, and pilots must get separate licenses to fly each type. Gas balloon pilots typically started out flying hot-air balloons, and then decided they wanted to be able to fly farther, higher and longer. Because gas balloons cost more to fly, they usually aren’t flown as often. Their flights can last for days, unlike hot-air flights, which usually last about an hour. 

Gas balloons usually need more people to help with their launch than hot-air balloons. It takes about ten people to launch a gas balloon and about half that number to launch a hot-air balloon. Chasing for these hot air balloons was fun and I would do it again if the opportunity ever came up again.