BalloonLife,October1999

6

PREFLIGHT

Aerostar International
Aerostar International hasannounced the publication of its
updatedandexpandedweb-site, www.aerostar.com. Thisweb-
siteisacomprehensive presentationof thecompany’sline of
products and services. Thehistorical information on the develop-
ment of hot air ballooninghas beenenhancedin the new site.
Every aspect of hot air ballooning is now covered in the Hot
Air Ballooningpages.Thisincludesthe historyof ballooning,
frequentlyaskedquestions,how topurchase ahot air balloon,
studentpilotrequirementsandallofthesystemsavailablefor
purchase from Aerostar. The distributor andservice/repair sta-
tions are highlighted in the hot air balloon section. Direct e-mail
and web-site links toAerostar distributors and repair stations is
a wonderful new convenience. Everything from tanks, to baskets
tofabrics is covered under the systems search. The highquality
offabrics used and Aerostar’s partnerships with DuPont,Milliken
& Co, Duro Industries and Performance Textiles are highlighted
on the fabric’s page. Pictures speak a thousand words, and on the
envelopes pages you can see many of the different shapes, which
have been recentlyproduced.
TwonewpagesareWhat’sNewandPromotionalIdeas.
ThesepageswillfeaturedifferentprojectsAerostarhascom-
pleted eachmonth. What’s New right now? The Aerostar Pavil-
ion and the Hot Air Balloon Exhibit at the Kirby Science Center
inSiouxFalls, SD.
Alsonewlyaddedisaproductsearchcategoryandpages
detailing the Ad-Vantages of the commercial products Aerostar

produces. The commercialproductsdivisionincludescold-air
inflatables,inflatablecostumes,heliumandparadeballoons.
Each category has numerous photos of the different promotional
possibilitiesthatinflatablescreate for businesses. The pictures
show the expertise and quality that Aerostar delivers with every
job.Thecontactpagehasbeenexpandedsocustomerscan
submitquoterequests on-line, and e-mailtheir accountexecu-
tives directly.
Contact: Allen Schlenker, National Sales Manager, PO Box
5057, SiouxFalls, SD 57104, 605-331-3500.

IMC Insurance
IMC Insurance has announced the development of their new
web-site, www.weinsurefun.com. Tom Reussé toldBalloon Life
that the new andimprovedinteractive web-sitewilleventually
allow balloonists toget ballooninsurance quotes automatically
andcomplete andprint their owncertificates without havingto
call the office.
Form orein fo rmati onvi si tth enewweb -si te,
www.weinsurefun.com, or email: tomr@imcgroup.com

Discover Balloons
Discover Balloons, Albuquerque, New Mexico, now offers
on-lineshopping forone-of-a-kind balloon gifts. ThenewOnline
Store can be found at http://www.hotairballoongifts.com/.
The DiscoverBalloonsOnlineStoreofferssomethingfor
every taste — from gold pendants and silk ties to furnishings and
artwork.Balloonmusicboxes,beersteins,beltbucklesand

BalloonLife,October 1999

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barstoolsare justa few of the uniqueitems theycarry. You’llalso
find a broad selection of holiday cards and gifts.
The siteofferscolorpictures of each item, a shoppingcart to
tally purchases, and a secure server for transactions — making
purchasing balloon gifts convenient and worry-free.
For moreinformation contactthe storeinHistoricOld
Town, Albuquerque:Discover Balloons, 205-C San FelipeNW,
Albuquerque,NM87104;(505)842-1111;em ail:
dballoon@rt66.com, Internet: www.hotairballoongifts.com/.

FAI News
On September 23 the FAI presented world record diplomas
to Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones during a ceremony at the
SmithsonianAir and Space Museum. The pairreceived theirFAI
Diplomasfor the three absolute world records establishedduring
their around-the-world flight March 1 to March 21.
The BreitlingOrbiter 3gondolaisnow onpermanentdisplay
atthe SmithsonianNationalAir and Space Museum in Washing-
tonD.C. Thisis the worlds most visited museum, allcategories,
and probably themost important Aerospacemuseumin the
World.
Main speaker was FAI President Eilif Ness. He explained
the FAI role in Air
Sports andpointedout theimportanceoftheBreitling
Orbiter 3 achievementsand itsplace inaviationhistory. He said,
“......This was the last great aeronautical exploit of the20th
century. It rankswiththe greatestin the archives of the FAI. The
men who accomplished it are distinguished ambassadors for air
sports and excellent examples for the children and youth of the
world to look up to......”
EilifNesswasassistedbyCIAvice presidentsJakobBurkard,
who also represented the Swiss Aero Club, and Hans Akerstedt.
The Breitling Orbiter 3 project manager, Stefano Albinati,
explained the reasons for his company’s involvement. Breitling
has a long history of cooperation with the world of aviation,
especially with high performance and high precision projects.
Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones then gave short speeches
with highlights fromtheir flight and explained the aims and
purposes of the “Windsof Hope”Foundation. Thisis created by
Piccard, JonesandBreitling.The prime goalof the Foundationis
tohighlightformsof sufferingthathave beenallbut forgottenor
ignored by the media and the general public, particularly those
affectingchildren, and of doing all in its power to promote their
“healing.”Supportwillthusbe givento concrete projectsprovid-
inglastingassistance for operations in keeping withthe spiritof
the Foundation. Each year on March 21st the Foundation will
award a prize to the associationor promoter of a selectedproject.
Bertrand Piccard has written a 32 page article with photo-
graphs and charts about theflight appearing in the National
Geographic, September 1999 issue.

Balloon FiestaAcademy
TheAlbuquerque InternationalBalloonFiestahasannounced
thatstudents from nine states have been selected to participate in
the1999 Kodak Albuquerque InternationalBalloonFiestaAcad-
emy. The studentswillparticipate in a mentorshipOctober 1-3 to
learn the skills needed to conduct the world’s largest balloon
event. The academy willinclude studentsfrom California, Colo-

rado, Idaho, Illinois, Montana, New Mexico, New York, Okla-
homa and Wisconsin.
The 26 cadetswere selected between the ages of 12 and 14.
To be considered for the program, the applicant needed to be
nominatedandsubmit anessayaboutwhytheywantedto
participate in the 1999 Balloon Fiesta Academy.
“We were so pleased with the overwhelming response that
we increased the number of youth we could mentor during this
year’s Balloon Fiesta,” Dr. Steven Komadina, President of the
Balloon Fiesta Board of Directors toldBalloon Life.
The Cadetswillworksideby sidewithlastyear’s Cadetsand
members of the BalloonFiestaBoard. The tasks include learning
about safety briefings, registration, the launching of more than
800 hot air balloonsin Mass ascensions. It will also include the
fueling and launching of the gas balloons participating in the
Gordon Bennett Gas Balloon Race. Cadets will attend also all
media and social events during the first three days of the 1999
Balloon Fiesta.
FormoreinformationvisittheFiesta’sweb-siteat
www.aibf.org. or contactTom Garrity,The GarrityGroupPublic
Relations, 20 First Plaza,NWSuite 403,Albuquerque,NM
87102, phone 505-765-5380.

MillenniumChallenge 2000
TheNorthAmericanLighterThanAirAssociationhas
announcedthatthedatefortheMillenniumChallenge2000
balloon race from Biminito Fort Lauderdale (seeBalloon Life,
August page 6) has beenmoved uptoMay 21. Thischange has
beenmadetoavoidconflictswithMemorialDayweekend
activities.
For more informationcontact NALTAA at 30520Rancho
Cal.Rd.Ste107-214,Temecula,CA92591orcall909-676-
3968.