it, flauntit.Perhaps that’s
the idea behind the Great Mississippi River
BalloonRaceeachOctoberinNatchez,
whichtakesadvantageofthecountry’s
largestriver.
Aballoon glow set to music is held on
boththe Louisiana andMississippisides
of the river as fireworks are shot off from
abargebetweenthem.Theriveralso
playsapartinthecompetition,when
pilots attempt to drop their markers on an
X placedon a floatingbarge.
AweeklaterinGreenville,pilots
actuallyinflate on a levy onthe banks of
the mighty Mississippi.
As many as 50 active balloonists call
Mississippi home. More than half of them
are serious competitors, pilots say. Sanc-
tionedcompetitionandchampionships
arefeaturedatmostoftheralliesinthe
state.
“Mississippiisalittleunusual,the
raceshereareextremelycompetitive,”
said Mark Bowie, of Greenwood. “I don’t
know of anotherstateotherthanmaybe
Michigan that has sucha number of seri-
ous competitive events.”
One reason for the desire to compete
isthe area where they canpractice.
“It’sgreatterrainherewithnoreal
hazards,” Bowie said.
Bowie prefers flying in the northwest
partofthestate,alongtheriverdelta
whichfeaturesmilesofrelativelyflat
farmland.Pilotsaimforunplantedturn
rows,wherethefarmerscanturntheir
equipment aroundinthe fields.
“We don’t have a hill for 100 miles,”
he said.“It’sallrowcrops,cotton,rice
and beans. By October, there’s no crops to
reallyworryabout. Youcanlandalmost
anywhere.”
Near the Alabama border, the terrain
isdifferent, but still fine for flying.
“Everybody thinks it’s desolate,” said
Dr.GeorgeShannonIII,aveterinarian
from Meridian whostartedballooningin
1979.“There are pine trees and hills where
I fly from. If you’ve flown here routinely,
it’s not so bad. If you’ve been flying for a
while and lookata map, youcanhave a
good time.”
Alligator sightings aren’t uncommon,
he said, but normally, chickens, wild tur-
keys,deerandfoxcanbespottedona
flight.
“And if you get lucky, you might see
a bobcat,” he said.
Shannon has flown near the Gulf of
Mexico, near Biloxi and Gulfport, but he
doesn’trecommend it.
“That’s a bad place to fly. You’ve got
a lot of swamp and low area and no place
toland,” Shannon said.
Greenwood,twocountieseastof
Greenville, used to be home to the largest
concentrationof pilotsinthestate,with
nearlytwodozen.Today,thereare only
aboutfour,pilotssay.OneisRichard
Dillon,theonlyballoonexaminer in the
state.
There are no repair stations basedin
Mississippi,howevertravelingcompa-
nies, fromGeorgia andMissouri, spend
time there in the winter andinspectmul-
tiple balloons within a few days.
Jackson,thecapitalandthemost
populouscitywithabout500,000in the
metropolitan area, has a healthy balloon-
ingcommunity.About20membersbe-
long to the Mid-Mississippi Balloon Club,
whichmeetsformonthlydinnersand
schedulesgroupflights.Pilotscallthe
club a hot line tofind outwhere tomeet.
“Usually, we have three or four bal-
loons to get together,” said club president
Mike Rawls.
AtleastoneballoonistinJackson
at $150per person, but most Mississippi
pilots don’t. There are nofull-time com-
mercial rideoperatorsinthe state, pilots
say.
Aboutthree-quartersofthestate’s
balloons are 77,000 cu. ft. or smaller due
tocompetition,saidKenJohnston,of
Jackson.Manyare 54,000or 63,000cu.
ft.
“Itjustreallyhasn’tseemtohave
caughtonhere,”saidLarryYoung,of
Senatobia. “We haven’t become the des-
tinationresort area. The onlyreal tourist
areawehavearoundhere isaroundthe
GulfCoast and those aren’t thebest places
to be flying balloons. The wind is always
blowingthe wrongway.”
Young said Tunica, a casino destina-
tionalongthe MississippiRiver,isalso
popular for tourists, but few bridges in the
area would force a chase todrive dozens
of miles if the balloon flies over the river.
Nocharter balloonridesare offered
atMississippiballoonfestivalseither.
RallyseasonstartsinMay,withsmall,
one-day events in Liberty and Monticello,
andendsinOctoberwithNatchezand
Greenville.
“Mostlywe tellpeople tocomeout
and crew and we’ll get you a ride,” Rawls
said.
BertCarollolivesinBrookhaven,
about50milessouthofJackson,where
therearenumerouschickenanddairy
farms. In order to keep the peace with the
farmers,whenhe wantstotakehisbal-
loonout,he prefersflyinginCanton,in
the center of the state.
“Youcandoalltheflyinginthe
world you want there,”he said. “I’m in the
propane business and a lot of my custom-
ers are farmers. I just didn’t want to jeop-
ardize businessfor a hobby.”
Mid-MississippiBalloonAssociation,20members,
about eight pilots in the Jackson area, dinner meetings on
the first Tuesday of the month; winter safety seminar as
balloonsareinspected;andaballoonhotlinewhere
pilotscanschedule groupflights. Annualduesare $20
andincludeamonthlynewsletter.Contact:P.O.Box
1020, Ridgeland, MS39158.
DeltaJubilee Balloon Festival, in Clarksdale, the first
weekend in June, 15 balloons glow Friday, fly competi-
tively Saturday morning, mass ascension Saturday after-
noon and a possible competitive event Sunday morning
inNABAsanctions,with$1,500inprizes;entertain-
ment.Contact:CoahomaCountyChamberofCom-
merce,1540DeSotoAve.,Clarksdale,MS38614.1-
800-626-3764. www.msballoonchamps.com
Greenwood Balloon Fest, last weekend in June, 75-100
balloons,five flightsFridaymorningthroughSunday
morninginNABAsanctionedcompetitionforstate
championshipanda$14,000purseandakeygrab;
balloons are alternatedon the evenings to either fly for
fun or glow; motorcycle rally, entertainment, fireworks,
carnivalrides.Contact:MarkBowie,P.O.Box1982,
Greenwood ,MS38935.662-455-4288.
www.msballoonchamps.com
MississippiChampionshipBalloonFest,inCanton,
FourthofJulyweekend,25-35balloonsglowonthe
Fourth; seven flights Thursday morning through Sunday
morning;NABA competitive sanctionedflightsinthe
mornings,withfunflightsintheafternoons;stateor
regionalchampionships;$20,000cashpurse.Contact:
Joe McKay, P.O. Box 115, Sharon, MS 39163. 601-859-
3378. www.msballoonchamps.com
GreatMississippiRiverBalloonRace,inNatchez,
thirdweekendinOctober,70balloonsflyafunflight
Fridaymorning, glow on bothsidesof the Mississippi
River to music and fireworks on Friday evening, NABA
sanctioned competitions: Saturday morning, baggie drop
toa barge on Saturday afternoon; Sunday morning hare
andhound; non-sanctioned competitionfor cash prizes
Sunday afternoon; prizes vary; headlinermusic,children’s
carnival,food,crafts.Contact:Laura Godfrey,640S.
Canal St., Box C, Natchez, MS 39120. 1-800-647-6724.
www.natchezms.com/balloonrace
Greenville Balloon Fest,last weekendin October, 40
balloons,Fridayglow,NABAcompetitionsSaturday
andSundaymorningfora$7,500purse,funflight
Saturday afternoon; children’s activities, carnival rides,
arts and crafts, live entertainment. Contact: Mark Bowie,
P.O. Box 1982, Greenwood, MS 38935. 662-455-4288.
www.msballoonchamps.com
is owned by Robert H. Hardin, Jr., of Greenwood,
Mississippi. Robert is owner and presiden t of Missis-
sippi Printing Co. He also owns and operates the
Mississippi II, a Cameron balloon and,Mississippi III,
a Lindstrand balloon . All three balloons are identical
as to color and logo.
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