April 2000
500 either in per-son or on television, but
how many realize the very first race held
at Indianapolis Motor Speedway was with
balloons?
ItwasJune 5,1909, when thetrack
surface wasn’t yet completed, that a bal-
loonracewasheldattheSpeedway.A
balloon club, the Indianapolis Aero Club,
helped organize the event with help from
CarlFisher,oneofthetrack’sfounders
who later becamea pilot. Aballoon named
“Ho o si er”wo nwithafl ig htt o
Westmoreland, Tennessee.
Two years later, thefirst Indy 500 car
race washeldat the track.
The next balloon race was held there
in the ‘20s, and a hot-air event was held in
1966, when running starts were the norm
for windy takeoffs.
Unfortunately, one of the nearly-in-
flateddraggingballoonstoppledapor-
table toilet, knockingitover andspilling
thewomaninsideintofullviewofthe
grandstand.
“They wouldn’t have balloons at the
trackforalongtimeafterthat,”said
Ruthie Hoffbauer of Carmel. “Theystill
hadall thathanging over them.”
Balloonswerebroughtbackfora
couple years in the ‘80s for the 75th anni-
versaryoftheIndy500.Offandonin
recentyears, a couple of dozenballoons
havebeenpartofthe festivitiesoutside
the track, althougha balloonevent is not
anannualevent there.
Othertimesofthe year, balloonists
usuallydon’tflyaroundtheSpeedway
because it is less thantwo miles from the
Indianapolisairport.
“Weprettymuchgetoutoftheir
airspace,” Hoffbauer said.
Eventhoughthere’splentyof open
areain theSpeedway to land,you wouldn’t
across thestreet isa nice bigfield,” she
said.
Hoffbauer, who operates a repair sta-
tionwithherhusband,Nick,estimates
thereareabout50activeballoonistsin
Indiana. About half of them are in central
Indiana.
Three full-time balloonists offerrides
around Indianapolis, the state’s most popu-
lated city and its capital. Rates are $150 to
$160 per person, Hoffbauer said.
Most of them fly about 20 miles north
of the city, where more landingsites are
found. Each August during the state fair,
controllersrouteairtrafficawayfrom
balloonsflyingfromthefair,sixmiles
away.
Althoughthere are a few small hills
inthe southernpartof the state, most of
Indiana is pretty flat. Ninety percent ofthe
state is between 500 and 1,000 feet above
sea level.
Pilots say the ballooning season there
is late May through early November. The
summersareoftenhotandhumidand
fields are full of soy beans and corn fields.
“It’sflatoldcorncountry,butit’s
beautiful,” said Jack Demaree, one of five
balloonists who live in Muncie.
Indianapolis is home to Peter Krieg,
the only active remaining smoke balloon-
istinthe world.Although hefliestradi-
tional hot-air balloons as well, Kriegre-
mainsapopularattractionatfestivals
aroundtheworldbyflyinghissmoke
balloon.Heascends like a rocket when his
linen bagis full of hot smoke, then para-
chutesdown whenithas lost its lift.
InBloomington,BillOliverenjoys
flying over and in the numerous limestone
quarries there. On calm days, youcanfly
right into the quarries to the crystal clear
water below them.
Play b alloon operated by TVJ Balloons.
Bottom: Old Indiana balloon operated
by Dave Bobel.
April2000
“Almostallof the architectural lime-
stone, including most of the buildings in
Washington,D.C.,werefrom
Bloomingtonquarries,”he said. “Youcan
fly right down in them with these sheer
70-foot walls.”
Not far away, a few state parks and
the HoosierNationalForest canmake
flyingchallengingin some parts of south-
centralIndiana, but mostof theregionhas
plenty of farms.
“We havelots of hills and hollers
here,”saidTravisV encel,alsoof
Bloomington. “There’s lots of cattle pas-
ture land.”
About a half-dozen balloonists live
nearNew Albany, just across the Ohio
Riverfrom Louisville.Flightsare usually
over smallfarms five to 10 miles outside
of town, said balloonist Brian Beazly.
Indiana,fromFt. Waynenorth,is
prime ballooningcountry. It’snot hard to
spot a horse and buggy associated with
Amish and Mennonite farms there.
Less ballooning is donein the ex-
tremenorthwestpartof Indiana,near Gary
and closer to Chicago and Lake Michi-
gan.
Pilotswanting a balloon rating need
tofinda designatedexaminer for balloons
in a neighboring state; there are none in
Indiana.
The Montgolfier Society of Indiana
existedformanyyears, hostinga seminar,
holdingmeetingsand publishinga news-
letter.Buttheclubhasbeeninactivelately.
Last year’s annual dinner was canceled
due tolack of interest, said Jay Gilletteof
Indianapolis.
ManyofIndiana’sballoonists be-
long to clubs in neighboring states,in-
cluding theMichianaBalloon Society,
based in southern Michigan, as well as
clubs in neighboring Ohio, Illinois and
Kentucky.
Sanctioned events and paying pas-
sengers are scarce at the many balloon
rallies held in Indiana each year. Instead,
funcompetitionwithcashprizesarepopu-
lar at festivals honoring popcorn, blue-
berries, hydroplane racing and 4-H.
Eventhoughtheclassicbicycling
film“BreakingAway”wasfilmedin
Bloomington, Vencelsaidhe’syettofind
a way to combine ballooning and bicy-
cling there.
Montgolfier Societyof Indiana, not currentlyactive.
City of Lakes Balloonfest, in Warsaw, 20 balloons fly the third weekend in
June;fourflightsinlightcompetition,FridayeveningthroughSunday
morning,glow Saturday; $1,500 prize money; concerts, crafts. Contact: Jerry
Hull, 2273S. CountryClubRoad, Warsaw,IN 46580. 219-268-9241.
Madison Regatta Balloon Festival, last weekend in June, 25 balloons fly at
the Ohio River at the Kentucky border as part of a week-long hydroplane race
festival;afternoonhareandhoundflightsSaturdayand Sundayfor $2,500
pursepluscrewprizes.Contact:ScottMcClinton,4900OldCreekWay,
Prospect, KY 40059. 502-228-8955.
JohnsonCountyFairRaceinFranklin,mid-July,20balloonsforone
Sunday eveninghare andhoundrace toopenthe countyfair;$1,500prize
money. Contact: Travis Vencel, 1115 North College Ave., Bloomington, IN
47404. 812-331-0157.
ElkhartCounty4-HFairBalloonChaseinGoshen,third-orfourth
weekendinJuly,25balloons, four flightsFridayeveningthroughSunday
morning,funcompetitionoverAmishfarmcountryfora$3,000purse.
Contact: Gene Stutsman, 802 South Indiana Ave., Goshen,IN 46526. 219-
534-2000.
IndianaStateFairGiantHot-AirBalloonRace,25balloonsflyfrom
Indianapolis the first weekend in August, with a Tuesday evening glow and
aflightWednesdaymorningfora$2,500hareandhoundrace.Contact:
Ruthie Hoffbauer, 2111 E. 136thSt., Carmel, IN 46032. 317-844-3718.
Summer Heat, in Muncie, second weekendin August, 35balloons fly four
flightsinsanctionedcompetitionfora$6,000purse;$20,000keygrab;
Balloon Illume Saturday evening.Contact: MichelleMcAllister, 425 N. High
St., Muncie, IN 47305. 1-800-369-2740.
Strassenfest, in Jasper, 15 balloons fly a hare and hound race Friday evening
atthe endofAugustfor a$1,500purseaspartof a GermanFestivalwith
carnival rides. Contact: Travis Vencel,1115 North CollegeAve., Bloomington,
IN 47404. 812-331-0157.
Marshall County Hot-Air Affair, in Plymouth, 25 balloons fly four flights
LaborDayWeekend, SaturdayeveningthroughMondaymorninginlight
competition with at least $1,000 in prizes; glow Sunday night; part of a large
blueberryfestivalfeaturingupto 1,000craftvendors. Contact:JerryHull,
2273 S. CountryClubRoad, Warsaw, IN 46580. 219-268-9241.
Po pcornBa lloo nFes t,in
Valparaiso,30balloonsflythesecond
weekend in September, four flights Friday
evening through Sunday morning in light
competitionfor$3,500inprizes.Fund-
raiserforlocalKiwanisclub.Contact:
JerryHull,2273S. CountryClubRoad,
Warsaw, IN 46580. 219-268-9241.
Monro eCoun tyFal lFes tiv al,in
Bloomington,lastweekendSeptember,
15balloonsflyFridayeveningthrough
Saturday evening in hare and hound flights
fora$2,000purse;aspartofatown
festival with crafts and a parade. Contact:
TravisVencel, 1115 NorthCollege Ave.,
Bloomington, IN 47404. 812-331-0157.
