Hot air balloon festivals are normally filled with excitement, joy, and astonishment. Unfortunately, the weather does not always cooperate for free balloon flight. Last Saturday March 5th, eighteen hot air balloons met at the Winthrop Inn ready to ascend into the sky. The wind was not consistent with a valley flight, and the morning flight was canceled. You could see the kids faces turn from smiles into frowns. Many of them had jumped out of bed at 5:30am so they could experience the mass ascension. That’s when we decided that we would inflate Seattle Ballooning’s hot air balloon, and give them a show.
>## You could see the kids faces turn from smiles into frowns
As the balloon started to fill with cool air, the crowd cheered. As soon as the balloon was upright and stable, Pilot Eliav yelled out to the crowd. “Any kids want to fly in the hot air balloon?”. The basket was immediately surrounded by excited parents and kids of all ages. Here they had come to see the balloons, and they were going to have the opportunity to fly in one!
We tethered the balloon basket to the truck, and filled the basket with 6-8 children at a time. Tethering a hot air balloon allows a pilot to fly the balloon up to 50 ft in the air while still being attached to the ground.
>## “Any kids want to fly in the hot air balloon?”
We ascended and landed over 20 times, until every single kid that got up that morning had the chance to fly. I remember when my friend Henry first took me for a balloon flight, and inspired me to become an aeronaut. Last Saturday, we got the opportunity to give back, and inspire future aeronauts ourselves.
**If your interested in having a tethered hot air balloon at your event, give us a call at 206-588-9788. You can also book a flight online at [Seattle Ballooning](http://www.seattleballooning.com)**.
