ofthe world’s most
popular tourist destinations, so naturally
there’sballooningtobe done there. Com-
mercial balloonists arewilling to give
sightseers aride,for as little as $99 a
person.
Butballooning isn’t as popular there
asyou might think. Only about a dozen
active balloonists fly near Las Vegas, and
manyfly recreationally, just a couple of
times a month.
“Peopledon’t cometo Las Vegas to go
in a balloon,” said balloonist Joe Hanna.
“People are here for all sorts of other recre-
ation.” Most of his paying passengers are
local residents.
He’s had couples get married in his
balloon, but one couple took it further. “I
had one consummatedone time,” Hanna
said. “Iwas finding otherthings to do on the
other sideof the balloon.” About 90 percent
of Hanna’s flights are in the morning.
“You can’t trust the afternoons,” he
said. The wind and thermals often die down
after sunset. And dust devils are common.
Hanna says the best season for flying
there is late October through April. When
it’s110degrees,it’sjusttoohotinthe
summer. “When it cools off to 90 degrees,
you don’t want to be flying,” Hanna said.
Bobbie Smith, of LasVegas, said a
uniquefeaturethere are erratic winds. They
can be 20 mph on one side ofthevalley,and
perfectly calm on the otherside. “The wind,
it does blow through here, quite frequently
and often,” Smith said.
Vegas pilots usually get wind reports
fromtheth reesurro undin gairp orts:
McCarran, Ellis Air Force Base and one in
North Las Vegas.
“We’ve been blown out at one side of
the valley, drive 20 minutes to the other side
of town and flown for an hour and a half
without going two miles,” said balloonist
Doug Campbell.
For many years, Smith flew balloons
for the Landmark Hotel, then Circus Cir-
cus. He’d fly VIPs for the casinos, often
taking off from the roof of the casino park-
ing garage.
“Normally we had trouble getting the
people out,” Smith said. “They don’t come
out here to get up at 6 a.m. to go out for a
balloon ride. They were just getting in.”
Despite the number of casinos, most
aren’tinterestedinhavingaballoonto
promote them.
“They don’t want the people outside,”
Smith said. “You can’t put a nickel in their
slot machine out on the sidewalk.”
About 3,000additional residents move
to Las Vegas each month. For years, it’s
been the fastest-growing city in the nation.
Allthatgrowthhasmeant flyingfarther
away from the famous glittery strip.
“We used to fly across the strip all the
time,” Hanna said. “Now, with all thebuild-
ings, we don’t do it any more.”
Most of theflying thereis typical desert
flying, on dirt, and often in areas without
roads.
“We use tarps all the time,” he said.
“Grass is a premium.”
About 85 percent of Nevada’s land is
owned by the government, much of it the
Bureau of Land Management.
Hannasaidnooneballoonsnear
Hoover Dam and Lake Mead, in Boulder
City, about an hour from Las Vegas on the
Arizona border.“They don’t want you there
and they let you know,” he said.
Nevada also has one of the most re-
stricted parcels of airspace.Known as Area
51, the air spaceabout 60 miles north ofLas
Vegasisprohibited.Militaryplanes and
rockets are often tested there.
Nevadaremainsoneofthemost
sparsely populated states. Of its nearly2
million residents, most live in or near Las
Vegas or Reno.
Then there’s Bob Davis, who flies in
Tonopah, halfway between the two cities.
“I’m the only (balloon) pilot for 200
miles,” hesaid. “It’s mostly a mountainous
area, with valleys five miles across. There
are no trees to speak of. It’s wide open.”
On his flights there, he can spot bob-
cats, coyotes, rabbits and badgers.
“It’s mostly windy, so there are a lot of
days I can’t fly,” he said.
He’s the closest balloonist to Area 51,
and knows enough to stay away from it.Gas
balloonist Joe Kittinger had to cut short a
flight once when he
couldn’t get permission to fly over the
region.
“You can’t even walk into it,” Davis
said. “There are great big signs. If you did,
You would have company in the way of a
jet right away.”
There are no balloon repair stations in
Nevada, so most pilots usually go to Cali-
forniaor Phoenixwhentheyneedone,
pilots say.
Stanley Robertson, ofReno, is theonly
designated examiner for balloonists in the
state.
Fewer thana dozen balloonistslive
near Reno, and neighboring communities
of Sparks, Minden and Gardnerville.
There, in the cooler high desert, bal-
looning can be done all year, but nearly all
flights are in the morning, Robertson said.
“The winds come up in the afternoon
because of the heat differential,” he said.
“The mornings in the summertime are still
in the 40-degree range.”
Even though there are plenty of parks
in Reno, Robertson and other local balloon-
ists rarely fly there other than during their
annual balloon festival. Although the air-
port is very balloon-friendly—even direct-
ing planes away from balloons during the
rally—pilotsdon’twanttoruinagood
thing or create their first red zone there.
“We haveso many otherplaces to fly,”
Robertson said.
One popular spot is from Stead Air-
port, north of town.
“Theyhavean inactive runway and
it’skindofaballoonport,”saidKatie
Griggs, a balloonist fromthe Reno area.
“It’s a great place to fly and to train because
there’s nothing out thereexceptsagebrush.”
High-altitude balloons have been re-
leased there, and the airport was the loca-
tionforsomeof theEarthwindsglobal
attempts.
Rob ert sonen joy sfl yin gfro m
California’s Sacramento Valley, over the
Sierras, and into Nevada, up to 80 miles to
the east. He needs oxygen for his flights,
which can range from 12,000 to 16,000 feet
in his AX-8 balloon.
Next, he plans to fly over Lake Tahoe,
22 by 12 miles long, and land in the Nevada
desert.
Tourists visiting Lake Tahoe can see
the sights by balloon there. Robert Allen
launches and lands balloons from his per-
sonal, patented $500,000 catamaran in the
The vessel, 120 feet by 20 feet, has
fold-out arms making it 60-feet wide to
accommodatetheballoon.Passengersmeet
in the marina then ride the boat out in the
water as the balloon is inflated. After an
hour or so, the boat maneuvers under the
balloonwhich lands back on it.
PatKimmerling,ofGardnerville,south
ofLakeTahoe, fliesinthe irrigatedCarson
Valley, rich with farmlands and pastures.
“Wehavea wonderfulplace tofly,”he
said.“We can rise highenoughtosee Lake
Tahoe.”
Becausethey only receive about 7
inchesof raina year, Kimmerlingestimates
theweathermaypermita balloonflight300
mornings a year, althoughfew ever in the
afternoon. The winds come up around 10
a.m. andnever die down untilafter sunset,
he said.
But, like in many places where bal-
loonsfly frequently, there are red zones in
thevalley. “Thelonger youflyin thatarea,
the more people could get upset,”he said.
Oneof thelargestballoonralliesinthe
country is held each September in Reno.
Some120balloonsflythreemorningflights
incompetitionfor $20,000inprizes. There
are dawn patrolflightsandevena morning
Glow Show prior to the morning flights.
The Renoevent has been calledone of the
classiestin the country for balloon pilots.
Organizers screen their pilots, so not
everyone wanting an invitation gets one.
Still,there arewaitinglists.“Theyjusttreat
usreallynice, they pay for everything,put
on parties and workwith local pilots,”
Griggssaid.
Local volunteers alsoholdballooning
trainingsessions for the public before the
annual rally.
A100-ballooneventwasheldinNorth
Las Vegas for many years. But the event
moved toLas Vegaswhen organizer Betty
McCreless,who had workedfor thecham-
ber of commerce, suddenlyleft.
She has held the smaller Las Vegas
BalloonClassicat a county park for eight
years, butislookingfor a newsitefor 2001.
“They’re buildingso fast, all of our good
launch sites are going,” McCreless said.
Shesaidcasinosdon’tseem tobeinterested
inbeing a major sponsorfor the event.
“LasVegas is hard,”she said.“I’dbeg
the casinos and they said they’d sponsor us
if I brought the rally to their parking lot.”
Balloon rallieshavebeenheldin
Tonopah, Fernley, and in
Gardnerville,where anotherrallyisplanned
for 2001.
AndinOctober, aninformalgathering
of balloonists often gather near Gerlach, in
Black Rock,where land speed records have
Southern Nevada Hot-Air Balloon Club, about 25 members, meet the fourth
Tuesday of each month, from September through May, at the North Las Vegas
Airport, with speakers, videos; annual meeting at power company for powerline
demonstration; club flights, picnics, breakfast, ice cream social. Dues are $10 a
year and include a newsletter,published monthly except during the summer.
Contact: Linda Dupee, president, 5109 W. Gilmore Ave., Las Vegas, NV 89130.
702-656-6282.
The GreatReno BalloonRace, theweekendafter Labor Day,120 balloonsflythree
morning flights, Friday through Sunday in competitionfor $20,000 inprizes; key
grab;dawn patrol flights;morning Glow Showprior tomorning mass ascensions;
tissuepaper balloonlaunch;vendors. Contact:P.O. Box12695, Reno, NV 89510.
775-826-1181. Internet: www.renoballoon.com
Las Vegas Balloon Classic, fourth weekend in October, 65 balloons fly Friday
morningfor fun, and Saturday and Sunday morningsfor funcompetition;Balloon
Classic Glow Saturday evening. Contact: Betty McCreless, 6261 E. Carey Ave.,
LasV egas,NV89156.702-434-9900ext.100.Internet:
www.bettysballoonclassic.com
Laughlin River Flight, third weekend in October, 50 balloons fly four flights,
Thursdaythrough Sunday morningincompetitionfor a $7,500purse;keygrab for
a vehicle; RiverGlowson FridayandSaturdayon thebanksof the ColoradoRiver;
pilots receivetwo motel rooms, meals, some passenger rides. Contact: Doug
Campbell, 3275 Rosanna Street, Las Vegas, NV 89117. 702-248-7609. Internet:
www.lasvegasballoonrides.com
Black Rock Desert AlkaliAscension, near Gerlach, 15 balloons, typicallythe first
weekend in October asan alternative to the Albuquerque Fiesta, two fun morning
flightsover flat, barren desert;camping, tailgate party. No sponsors or amenities.
Contact:Shawn Waggoner, 1463Winterwood Ave., Sparks, NV 89434. 775-626-
4174.
flattest—and barren—places on earth.
“Thecrew does nothinguntilthey get
ready to land, then they point the truck
towardstheballoonandhitthegas,”Griggs
said.
Great Reno Bal-
loon Race and tissue pa-
per balloon competition.
Photos by Fred Cornellus,
courtesy GRBR.
• Gardnerville
