For the 16th year, the Red Rock Balloon Rally was held just five miles east of downtown Gallup, New Mexico among the brilliant red sandstone cliffs and playful canyons of Red Rock State Park. This year, 129 balloonists participated in the Rally, December 6-8, 1996, sponsored by Four Corners Welding & Gas Supply, KGLX Radio, and Cadillac.
Organizing the event for the 16th year, Karl Lohmann spoke proudly of how this invitation-only event has grown steadily from its first year of only 25 balloons to an expected participation of 150 pilots in 1997. Projecting into the future, Lohmann hopes to have 200 pilots registered to celebrate Red Rock's 20th Anniversary in the year 2000.
Flying at Red Rock State Park is said to be a pilot's paradise. There are no prohibited zones and no fences or locked gates to contend with either. Throughout the year Red Rock is open to flying with up to eight predictable directions that will take you up and down the walls of its magnificent canyons and over some of the most beautiful rugged terrain in the state.
Saturday morning, pilots enjoyed flying in and out of the canyons east of the launch site. High elevation winds were a little "squirrely" so most of the pilots stayed low and enjoyed the peaceful ground currents. There are a few well-known places that balloonists can identify with in this easterly direction, such as "Becky's Bungalow," "Fiasco Canyon," and one appropriately named "Karl's Crash." It is said that on a good day, a pilot could fly east for 60 miles, all the way to the Continental Divide!
Sunday, as pilots and crew stepped out the doors of their headquarters at the historic El Rancho Hotel, they were greeted with a bright, crisp morning that brought ideal flying conditions. This time the peaceful westerly winds allowed the balloons to play among the sandstone cliffs of the four canyons on the opposite side of the launch site. Impressed by their unique flying experience at Red Rock, the visiting German TV crew commented that the winds "caressed the rocks," which is actually what many pilots did with their baskets and envelopes Sunday as well.
Following Sunday's Norwest Piggy Bank and Smiths Food & Drug Centers Races,
participants gathered at the visitor center for the awards brunch. Top
competing pilots were presented with hand-made Indian crafts and jewelry
from the local artisans with the Red Rock Balloon Rally logo adorning each
piece. Every three years a new mold for the Rally's logo is made, which in
turn, is incorporated into the design of the prizes. When a new logo is
chosen, local Indian crafts people are commissioned to make jewelry,
sandcast paintings, bolo ties, pins, and other crafts that will be used for
the next three years as awards for the pilots. Many pilots over the past 16
years have gone home with some beautiful hand-crafted items that are a part
of the cultural heritage of New Mexico and its people.
Describing the Red Rock Balloon Rally, Karl Lohmann said "This is a service organization that has developed excellent landowner relations by supporting the community. This year the left over propane was given to Church Rock Elementary School so they could keep warm during the winter. The school has an enrollment of 350 children who live in the area, some of which are bused in from 15 miles away. The kids, grades Kindergarten through Fifth Grade, are 98 percent Native American Indians who appreciate their education."
In addition to the propane donation, money realized from the food concession s at the rally benefited the elementary school. This year $2,000 was raised for the school, with Wal-Mart matching that amount. The organization Crime Stoppers profited from the T-shirt and pin sales and the McKinley County Search & Rescue donated money to community programs from the parking lot and launch site fees.
Many of the pilots, crew and organizers are local Native Americans so there is a strong sense of community involvement in the rally. Parents of the school children also own some of the acreage used to land the balloons. To establish good landowner relations, Lohmann and others talk to the landowners each year to eliminate concerns about the well-being of their livestock. To compensate the property owners for using their land during the rally, this Spring a crew will go out and seed portions of their land so the livestock will have grass to graze on this Summer.
Located 139 miles west of Albuquerque, Gallup is the trading hub of western American Indian arts and crafts. The pageantry and tradition of American Indian heritage is celebrated every year during the second week in August, when performers and artists from the Navajo, Zuni, Acoma, Laguna, and Hopi Indian Nations gather for the Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonial. The late Will Rogers called this gathering "The Greatest American Show," where natives and visitors alike can enjoy dances, parades, rodeos and arts and crafts shows that characterize this distinct New Mexico region.
