I am very disappointed that Wednesday’s article, “Students split over whether balloon fiesta still an event to behold,” didn’t have better descriptions of our wondrous Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. The article reminds me of the negative opinion pieces the Daily Lobo used to write for election coverage (I’m glad to read this is not true this year).
Yes, you need to get up early to see balloon fiesta. If you’re not in your car on I-25 by 5:45 a.m., or the North Diversion Channel on your bicycle by 6 a.m., you risk missing the mass ascension the first Saturday of the event.
But for the price of crawling out of bed early and driving, or riding, down the road you get to experience one of the most amazing events in the world — an event for which people travel thousands of miles to attend.
The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is the biggest event of its kind in the world. Last week, Paul Smith, the balloon fiesta’s executive director, told me that even the meager 500 entries we have this year is more than twice the size of any other ballooning happening elsewhere in the world.
The Lobo’s coverage was also disappointing because it gave no sense of history.
The event began as a KOB (radio) stunt in 1972. The first few Albuquerque balloon fiestas literally started in the Winrock Shopping Center parking lot. The first one had a baker’s dozen of entries — seven short of the 20 it would have taken to make it the biggest balloon gathering of its time.
About 20,000 people showed up to watch and photograph the 13 balloons inflate and ascend. All this photographing later led to Kodak becoming the big-money-name sponsor for decades — hence the “most photographed event in the world” designation. Anybody who attends in situ either is taking photographs or wishes they could.
Another thing not covered by the article is a hugely important aspect of the world’s premier ballooning event, namely: Why is our balloon event so much bigger and better than everyone else’?
Answer: The world famous Albuquerque Box.
Wikipedia has an entry about the Albuquerque Box. It says, “The ’box’ is a set of predictable wind patterns that can be exploited to navigate the balloons.”
Saying roof-watching balloon fiesta is like being in Balloon Fiesta Park when hundreds of balloons inflate and take to the air is like saying watching a fish screen saver on your computer is like scuba diving the Great Barrier Reef.
A snapshot of the sky is not the same as feeling the heat of the propane burners on your cheeks on a cold October morning. Glowdeo videos don’t s prepare you for the real experience of walking around an inflating balloon. The effects of the flames you see jetting into the balloon depend on where you stand.
From the mouth and next to the burner, it’s a huge jet of blue flame that you feel and hear. When you get close enough, you feel the thrust in your soles and the rush of warm air is everywhere.
Different angles look different. How the colored translucent silks glow depends on how inflated the balloon is, where the jet is aimed and where you’re standing.
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And then there are the children’s faces! I’m using Ringling Brothers’ definition here.
Children of all ages watch, feel, smell and hear growing, glowing and ascending balloons with faces filled with wonderment.
Yes, you need to get up early, and yes, getting there can be a hassle, but being at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta mass ascension is like nothing you’ve ever experienced.
Like the smell and feel of roasting green chile at farmer’s markets, it’s an Albuquerque fall tradition you shouldn’t miss.
