August1999
the hoodof his truck askedif it was OK to
deflate his balloon in his field. “You’ve
got to land somewhere,”said the farmer,
unfazed by the huge balloon.
Perhaps it’s the quiet, bucolic setting
ormerely dry Yankeehumor,but the
dozen or so balloonistsin Vermont don’t
tendtostirthelocalsupmuch.The 600,000
people who call Vermont home are used
to invasions, from tourists who ski in the
winter, tap maple trees in the spring, bike
in the summer and leaf peep in the fall.
Foradecade, thelargestspecialevent
inVermontwasthe Lake ChamplainBal-
loonFestival,heldnearBurlington,
Vermont’slargestcitywith175,000
people inthe region. Up to80,000specta-
tors attended the festival.
RickPollack,whoorganizedthe
events withhis wife, Roseann, called the
region “one of the most scenic and spec-
tacularplaces I’ve ever flown in.” The
rallywasa runner upinBalloon Life’s
bestballoonfestivalcontest.Upto50
bal lo on s— in cl ud in gman ys peci al
shapes—flew in the Essex Junction Fair-
gro un d s.Pil ot ss awth emi gh t y
AdirondacksacrossLakeChamplainto
the west, andthe GreenMountains to the
east.
Eveniftheballoonswerewinded
out, the crowds enjoyed an arts and crafts
show, carnivalridesandplenty of enter-
tainmentthroughouttheweekend.Pilot
packsincludedjugs of maple syrup, free
gasolinefortheirchasetrucks,T-shirts,
pins, a poster, chocolate chip cookies, and
even$30in$2bills tospendduring the
weekend.
The Pollacksgave awaythe cashto
demonstrate the economic impact the fes-
tivalhadonthecommunity.Theyeven
handedout $10,000 in $2bills in change
atthegate,so whenthe billsshowedup
throughouttown,people wouldknow it
wasbecause the balloonswere there.
“It was totally unscientific, but it was
very effective,” Rick said. “But the prob-
lemwaspeoplekeptsayingtheyhad
never seen one before,so they kept them.”
After 10 years ofsuccess, the festival
took a year off in 1998 because the cost of
runningtheeventgrewtoolargeatthe
fairgrounds. The Pollacksplantoresur-
rectthefestivalinJune1999inNew
Haven,about20milestothesouthof
Burlington.It’s more rural,plus it is closer
toBen& Jerry’sfactory.
“Now we’re inasmall community,
there’sbeenmoreinitialsupport,”Rick
said. “The response has been overwhelm-
ing.”
He’s planning to scale back the rally
some and invite just 30 balloons.And he’s
planningtoofferthe publicfree admis-
siontothe rally. “I’ve got two other jobs
just in case it doesn’t work out,” he joked.
Hesays thenew sitemakes Burlington
looklikeametropolis,eventhoughit’s
hardto finda skyline inBurlington. The
former rallysiteoftentookballoonsto-
wardstheBurlingtonInternationalAir-
porttothe south. Yet the air traffic con-
trollersoftenallowedballoonstoland
nexttothe runways.Thegoodrelation-
ship was created, in part, because Pollack
joinedtheair trafficcontroller’shockey
team.
About 40 miles east of Burlington is
Stowe,nestlednexttoMt.Mansfield,
Vermont’s tallest mountain at 4,400 feet.
“It’s a beautifulvalley,right at the foot-
hills of theGreen Mountains,” said Chuck
Baraw,whoo peratestheStoweflake
Mountain Resort and flies oneof their two
balloons.Hecharges$395torentthe
balloon for a flightfor twoor three pas-
sengers.
TheStoweValley,15to20miles
long,sees30balloonseachJulyduring
the Stoweflake Hot-Air Balloon Festival.
Pilots are given rooms at Baraw’s family
resort. There’s no snow skiing in July, but
plenty of hiking, biking, fishing, golfing
and boatingavailable.
“This is like a vacation for thepilots,”
he said. No commercial flights or serious
competitionsare held.
“Most of thepilots who come up here
thefirsttimeareprettytentative.They
watchtheiraltitude,”Barawsaid.Bal-
looningoverthemountainsispossible,
but not without a lot of planning,forpilots
andchasecrews,whofindthemselves
driv in gth ro ug hqu ain tplacesli ke
Smuggler’s Notch.
The Vermontcountryside issosce-
nic, the von TrappFamily—of Sound of
Music fame—relocated in Stowe because
itreminded themof their native Austria.
Johannes von Trapp, one of the nine chil-
drenofMaria,waspartnerinBaraw’s
August1999
Balloonshavebeenspottedin
QuecheeeachFather’sDayweekendsince
1980. “The flyingis absolutely spectacu-
lar,” said pilot Stephen Pinzino.Pilots
launch from a village green that sits in a
bowl near a covered bridge and a set of
waterfalls along the Ottaquechee River.
“We often follow the gorge, which is
65feetdeep,”Pinzinosaid. “Iftheweather
is right, you can drop right in the river.”
Therest oftheflying areaconsists of
rollinghillsand farmland, but the landing
spots have been described as “tight” by
visitingpilots.
Commercial pilots are issued rides
by the organizers, who charge $175 per
person. With the incentive of “gorgeous”
flyinganda chance to make some money,
there’s a waitinglist for pilots wanting to
attend, Pinzino said.
Spectatorscanalsoenjoya craftshow,
fiddler’s contest and events for children.
Admissionis $6, but children who bring
their dads on Father’s Day are admitted
free.
A few balloons returnto Quechee
late September to give touristsrides over
the blazing foliage.
Brian Boland, who operates the only
repair stationin the state, hoststhree very
informal festivals each year at the Post
MillsAirport,where he lives. The 50-acre
site is home to an experimental balloon
andairshipmuseum. The firstweekend in
February, balloonists are encouraged to
“freeze your bippee.”About a dozen bal-
loonistsattend, “and maybe about a half
dozen spectators show up,”Boland said.
Inmid-May, arallyjustforhomebuilt
balloons and airships is held. The airport
grounds are filled with odd-shaped bal-
loons and airships with “little weird de-
tails.”
“Peoplewhoboughtstore-bought
things can show up, but we’ll lend them
somethingfrom the museum to fly ifthey
really want to fly,”Boland said. Many of
the 50pilots this yearcampedon the
airport grounds, threw a sleeping bag on
thefloor ofthe museum or booked a guest
cottage there.
“This yearit took 14daysto get
everybodyoff theproperty,”Bolandsaid.
TheFridaythroughSundayschedule
draws about 300 spectators.
Another drop-in event is held there
themiddleweekendinAugust. Hisevents
started about 11 years ago, when Boland
moved to Vermont from Connecticut. “It
was an excuseto getsomeofmy old
cronies to come see me,”he said.
Inkeepingwithlow-keyinformality,
there’snoadmissionandactuallyno hours
for the museum. Anyone can come visit
and usually find someone to show them
around,or at least look inside the win-
dowsof the fused arch doors. 75 balloons
and five airships inside are lined against
the walls.
“Thereareexperimentalburners,
wicker-body vehiclesthatflyanddrive, a
whole mess of stuff,” Boland said.
Heattributesthefewballoonsin
Vermonttothebeautiful terrain.“It’s
prettywoodedand mountainous,”Boland
said. “One of the features that’s kept the
balloonists to a minimum here are there
are no big vistasto see them. There could
be a balloon flying a half mile from you,
but no one would see it.”
ExperimentalBalloon and Airship
Meet,mid-Mayin Post Mills. About50
balloons and airships flown to show their
uniqueness.Contact:BrianBoland,Post
MillsAirport, P.O. Box 51, PostMills, VT
05058. 802-333-9254.
LakeChamplainBalloonFestival, 30
balloons in New Haven, crafts, amusement
rides, entertainment. Contact:P.O. Box115,
Charlotte, VT 05445. 802-425-4883. www-
balloonfest.together.com
Quechee BalloonFestival, thirdweek-
end in June, 20+ balloons, paid rides, gorge
flying. Contact:Quechee Chamber of Com-
merce, P.O. Box 106, Quechee, V T 05059.
802-295-7900. www.quechee.com
StoweflakeHot-AirBalloonFestival,
second weekend in July, 30 balloons; four
fun flights scheduled. Contact: Stoweflake
Mountain Resort and Spa, P.O.Box 369,
Stowe, VT 05672. 802-253-7355.
Mills •
Stowe
