by Dianne Prothro and Pat Mencimer
Photos by Mark Prothro
Eden, Utah is a beautiful valley
community located 40 miles northeast of Salt Lake City, where twenty-five
balloonists gathered August 23-25 to compete in the second annual hot air
balloon festival. Coming from as far away as Albuquerque, New Mexico and
Wichita Falls, Texas, they arrived Friday afternoon for registration and
information, where they received a pleasant surprisethere would be no red
zones.
Balloonmeister Mike Bauwens signaled a go for the Friday evening fun flight. Because of a slight breeze and no organized competition, several pilots served as ground crew for the others that decided to fly. Although only a few balloons graced the evening sky, they created excitement and anticipation for the Saturday morning flight.
Day one of competition brought two targets and fun chaiienges to the pilots. The winds predictably changed during the early morning hours, which resulted in an interesting show of flying skills for all the spectators to obselve. After the targets closed, only about half of the pilots had been able to score. In the lead was Ray Beir of Albuquerque.
The afternoon proved exciting for several pilots and crew who canceled afternoon naps to visit the Hansen Llama ranch. They were greeted by Labrador puppies and experienced rubbing noses with Llamas including a new mom.
When the balloonists reassembled for the scheduled glow, they were welcomed by several thousand enthusiastic people. It was a very impressive show of support from a community with a population of only 5,000. The evening breeze convinced four pilots to take to the skies, while others delighted the crowd with their beautiful glowing balloons as they listened to the music of the Kap Brothers band.
Calm winds and two targets greeted pilots on day two of competition.. It looked for awhile as if all of the balloons would stay right above the field with no chance of reaching a target. Only three pilots would eventually score.
As Park City pilot, Skip Mencimer, called to his crew that he had given up all hope of scoring, and was ready to change passengers, he found a wind that would take him to the target. Mike Bauwens watched as "Wild Thing" scored, and followed in for a throw that would put him in first place. Skip moved to third behind Ray Beir. Mark Prothro and Mark Fox finished fourth and fiffh respectively.
Wendy Hill, along with her crew of five, organized a very nice weekend with lots of excitement from the sizable crowd, which made it a great event for spectators and participants alike.
