A Tethered Wedding

Picture this: a beautiful bride, a handsome groom, and wedding guests waiting for a solemn ceremony. But Mother Nature is in a playful mood and doesn't want to settle down. What was I thinking when I agreed to do this wedding in my balloon?

Many years ago, before I became a balloon pilot, I was Wedding Coordinator for a large southern California church. So when one of my chase crew members asked me about planning her wedding during the 25th Kodak Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, I saw it as an opportunity to creatively choreograph something special for my friends. Karen and Tony mentioned that they wanted to tie the knot in my balloon and two images came to mind of balloon weddings that I had seen in the past. One included the ceremony being performed on the ground, followed by the bride and groom taking flight above the cheers of their family and friends. It looked great in pictures. The second one I recalled had taken place on the ground, in the balloon basket, but without the envelope being inflated or even attached. I believe it may have been a windy day. In this wedding there were several other balloons and crews in attendance. At the dramatic moment when the minister pronounced the couple husband and wife, a chorus of burners were ignited, to the delight of the crowd. So it was with these images in mind that I sat down with the bride-to-be to discuss her nuptial plans.

I should have known that things were destined to be a little off-center from the start. After all, the name of my balloon is "Still Crazy." Tells you something, doesn't it? Initially, the couple talked about a very, VERY informal wedding. The wedding party would consist of crew members in matching "Still Crazy" sweatshirts, with the bridal couple in white sweatshirts labeled "Bride" and "Groom." This concept was modified when the bride's mother sent her a big hint in the form of a white brocaded suit that fit Karen beautifully. The groom, appropriately, decided to rent a tuxedo. The crew, however, showed up in a hodgepodge of gear that looked like they had worn it since 5 :00 a.m., and run around in the desert dust for awhile (they had). But they were priceless, and saved the day like the heroes that they really are.

But I'm getting ahead of myself in the story. I have to tell you first about how the wedding was supposed to happen, and then about what actually transpired. The plan was to inflate the balloon on the new Fiesta field following the completion of the morning flying events. I obtained special permission from the Balloomneisteren to do this at 11:00 on Friday, October 11, 1996. The crew would be lined up on each side of the balloon, with some of them holding our chase flags in an archway which the bride and groom would walk through. The Wedding March would be played from the high-powered stereo speakers in our chase truck (to which the balloon would be tethered). The minister would perform the ceremony in front of the basket, while the happy couple would stand inside the basket with myself, as pilot, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible in the rear of the basket. The family members would be seated on folding chairs in front of the balloon, listening to the ceremony over a small public address system, borrowed for the occasion. We would then deflate the balloon after the ceremony, and have a tailgate bridal reception.

Well the first thing to go awry was the minister or clergyman. Several weeks prior to Fiesta, Karen and Tony started calling to make arrangements for someone to officiate at their wedding. Not being current members of any local church, they found themselves at something of a disadvantage. They were given a variety of reasons why nobody on their list of potential clergymen could perform the ceremony: they hadn't gone through the counseling regimen that one church required, they hadn't given enough advanc e notice, the wedding couldn't be done outside the church, etc., etc. I was very disappointed in the excuses. But then Karen confided in me that she really had hoped that I could perform the ceremony as "captain of the ship." I laughed at this idea. I was flattered, of course, but I had to tell her that I have absolutely no legal authority to marry anyone. She was convinced that she wanted it this way, however, and arranged things so that the "legal" ceremony would take place at the county courthouse with a Justice-of-the-Peace, on the day before the "balloon ceremony," attended by family and friends. Under these circumstances, I agreed to perform the marriage as long as I could make some sort of disclaimer statement so that nobody would think I was trying pull off an illegal union. OK, everyone could live with that.

The day of the wedding dawned with fine ballooning weather. It was the day of the Key Grab Contest, in which all balloons were required to launch off-field and try to fly over the Fiesta Park. Knowing that good launch sites were extremely scarce, I decided not to attempt entry into the fray. So my crew and I went to the nearby town of Rio Rancho, just to fly for fun. Of all the flying I did during Fiesta, this day was the best. Winds were gentle, allowing multiple hops, easy chasing, and fantastic first-time experiences for several people, including some of Karen and Tony's out of-state family members. We had our champagne ceremony and then hurried back to the Fiesta Park in order to set up for the Big Event.

Traffic was jammed up beyond belief. 850 balloon chase vehicles on the road will tend to do that! We took a few short-cuts and managed to be back on the Fiesta field at 11:00. But unfortunately, our assigned space was blocked and we couldn't get to it! The Navy Seals had finished a parachuting show over a half-hour ago, but the Field officials had not removed the flag barriers which kept all vehicles out of the way. I was on the verge of panic because I could just imagine the wedding patty standing there looking around, and muttering epithets about me and my crew not being there on time. Finally, we were allowed to cross the barrier and drive to our assigned space. I guess I worried needlessly, because my crew and I actually were the first ones on the scene. The wedding party was hopelessly snarled in the traffic outside the Fiesta Park.

It was about 45 minutes later that the wedding party arrived in a frazzled and rattled state. I had used the extra time to go over the words of the ceremony which were printed in a book that I had, so that I would sound like I knew what I was talking about. I also had time to change into my black robe, which was part of a costume collection I had accumulated over the years. Folding chairs had been set in place for the wedding guests. The crew had unpacked the balloon and tied it off securely to our truck. It was laid out in the direction of the usual prevailing winds and they leaped into action to begin cold inflation as soon as they saw the Bride and Groom arrive on the scene. I gave them the signal to begin.

It was then that the situation got weird in a hurry. As I hit the burners to start the hot inflation, there was a dramatic shift in the wind direction. Suddenly, the balloon was backing up on me. Several thousand yards of ripstop nylon were moving in the direction of the wedding party, the wedding cake, the chase vehicles, and yikes, the burners! I stopped burning as my half-standing balloon caved in from the surface wind blowing over it. My terrific crew repositioned the fan and some of the guests while they pulled the throat open for me to resume burning. Finally, when the wind ceased for a moment, I was able to complete my inflation. There was never any danger that the balloon would leave the ground, but I was concerned that I would have to rip-out the top and deflate the balloon in a very awkward place. Thanks to my crew, this wasn't necessary.

At this point, some of the decorum we had planned was thrown out the window. There was no archwayof flags for the couple to walk through. The crew was occupied with other duties. And the Wedding March music was shut off. It turns out that the speakers I thought were powerful enough to be heard throughout half the state of New Mexico, could not be heard at all above the crowd noise from the angle at which the truck was parked. And the step ladder which we had anticipated would make it easier for the bride to enter the basket while wearing a skirt, could not be found. So her father lifted her up and set her in place beside her husband-to-be. Oh, and the wind started to trouble us again, rocking the basket back and forth, while the crew valiantly put as much weight on the basket as they could in order to keep it from moving. I burned as much as I thought was appropriate to stabilize the balloon without getting overly buoyant. But the wind kept toying with us throughout the ceremony, requiring frequent interruptions in the ceremony for short burns.

In spite of all that, something magical happened. The bride got misty-eyed as I told the assembled guests that there were two purposes to the marriage ceremony. First was the legal aspect, which had already been taken care of by the proper authorities. Secondly, was the ceremony of the heart, which brings together the loved ones of two families and unites two people in the holy estate of marriage. That's what this was all about, and why all these friends and relatives were here-to be witnesses to the union of two hearts and lives. So although I was not endowed with the authority to legally sanction this event, in the spirit of love, I could do my part to make this a special day for Karen and Tony.

The public address system worked flawlessly (thank heaven) and the guests told me afterward that they particularly enjoyed hearing the bride and groom speak their vows to each other so clearly. (Usually in church weddings it is difficult to hear them if they are not in front of a microphone.) As the ceremony continued, the wind steadily increased, causing the pages of my book to flip back and forth, not to mention that the basket rocked more and more as we proceeded with the traditional words. My heroic crew was working hard to keep things smooth and in true ballooning fashion, other crews joined in to help. Members of the "Wildest Dream" and "Cruise Control" were there when we needed them.

Finally I whispered to the bride and groom that I was going to cut out the final prayers and skip to the end. As I pronounced them husband and wife, they kissed and the camera-holding guests went crazy. It was a sweet success in spite of everything. The families hugged the new couple while my crew helped me deflate the balloon. I don't want to go into detail about the deflation, but it was just as disagreeable as the inflation had been. It didn't matter at that point because the crew was pleased to have been a part of this marriage of two incredibly happy people.

I told Karen and Tony how honored I was to be asked to be a part of their special day. They thanked me profusely. And they told me that they will always remember their anniversary because it will fall during Balloon Fiesta. They will also always have another reason celebrate and drink champagne with us in October. Not a bad idea!