The pilots inflated all of the balloons for a static tether on Friday and Saturday mornings and half the balloons set up again for a balloon glow at 8 pm Friday night. The other half of the balloons set up for the glow on Saturday night. Anyone wanting to show up at the Mountain Meadow Recreation Complex between 5:45 am and 9 am had the opportunity to see the balloons up close, talk to the pilots and help with setting up and taking down balloons. A few of the pilots who were staged on the perimeter of the field in the mornings, gave tethered balloon rides to the public. One pilot who had a basket with a door gave rides to people with disabilities. The cheerful generosity of the pilots in response to the change of plans imposed by the Forest closure was a wonderfully positive response to their disappointment at not being able to fly.

Balloon pilots are certified commercial pilots who must comply with the Federal Aviation Administration regulations for hot air balloons. It takes a crew of four to six people to set up and take down a balloon. The pilots prefer to fly early in the morning when the weather is clear, the air is cool, and winds are only 4 mph to 6 mph. An inflated hot-air balloon is about the height of an 8-story building and the balloon, its basket and equipment weigh over half a ton and costs at least $20,000. The balloon envelope (the part of the aircraft that looks like a balloon and is attached to the basket) is made of fire-resistant nylon fabric. Each balloon is unique and is named — some descriptive, some are whimsical. The pilots often have a story about the appearance and name of their balloon.

Most of the balloons arrived carefully packed in the back of pick-up trucks and a few brought in on trailers. Part of the flight crew’s job is unloading and unpacking the balloon under the close supervision of the pilot their partner, who is often the pilot’s spouse. I volunteered as part of the crew for one balloon.

We slid the square basket in its cover across the truck bed onto the hydraulic lift gate and lowered it to the ground then removed the cover and attached rope handles to loops on the corners of the basket. It takes four people working as a team to move and position the basket in the correct direction and orientation to attach it to the balloon. While the basket was positioned the rest of the crew rolled the balloon, in its covered bag, onto the tail gate, lowered it to the ground and rolled it into position in front of the basket. The cover and bag were removed and the crew unrolled the balloon envelope to its full length on the ground. The straps that keep the envelope from getting tangled in its bag were removed.

The crew that handled the basket assisted the pilot with inserting the poles that support the burner into the corners of the basket, lifting the burner rack onto the frame. The pilot secured the burner rack and gas connections, tested the burner to be sure it worked properly then the crew assisted with wrapping the frame uprights in zip-on padding. The pilot turned the burners off and the crew laid the basket on its side on the ground so the pilot could clip the balloon onto the basket with large metal clips. The assembly steps that are most essential for safety must be done by the pilot.

Cold inflation of the balloon is done with a large, gasoline powered fan that blows air into the envelope as it is lying on the ground. I ran the fan while two other crew members held the bottom of the balloon open and round so that it caught the blown air. While the envelope was inflating the pilot adjusted the lines that control the balloon. The top of a balloon is a cap of fabric that can be opened and closed to control ascent and descent so it must be seated in the correct position as the envelope inflates. Side vents in the envelope are used for steering. The top and side vents are controlled by ropes inside the balloon that extend down into the basket where the pilot uses them so they must by correctly positioned and tangle-free.

A half-inflated balloon resembles a beached whale lying on the ground. At this stage the pilot fired up the burner and began heating the air inside the envelope and the fan was turned off. As the envelope rose the pilot climbed into the basket to assume control of the balloon as it began to float and lifted the basket into an upright position. It took about half an hour to set up the balloon. The balloons stayed in their static tether for about an hour, or until the wind increased or changed direction. 

When a balloon is in a static tether a nylon strap attaches one corner of the basket to the pilot’s vehicle to keep the balloon from floating away. Crew members are encouraged to lean on the edges of the basket or climb in with the pilot to provide enough weight to keep the balloon grounded.

The pilot pays close attention to the temperature of the air inside the envelope. A balloon flies because of the temperature differential between the hot air inside the balloon and the colder ambient air temperature. The greater the temperature difference the longer the balloon can fly. If the air inside the balloon gets too hot it will melt the fabric of the envelope, with disastrous results.

When a pilot gives tethered rides, the balloon must have three tether straps on three different corners of the basket secured to three points on the ground. The balloon ascends only to the height of its tethers then descends to the ground again. Unloading and loading of passengers has to be done carefully with one person getting off, then another one on, to keep the basket adequately weighted and upright at all times.

Taking the balloon down involved the whole crew and took about half an hour. The pilot selected where the balloon would be laid down. The pilot turned off the burner and gave one of the crew members a long rope that is attached to the top of the balloon. Sometimes the entire crew is needed to keep the envelope away from hazards while pulling it down with the rope. When the balloon is on the ground again it is disconnected from the basket. The rest of the air is squeezed out of the envelope by the crew and wrapped with straps, working from bottom to top of the balloon. The envelope is then folded into its bag, top first. The last of the air is removed from the envelope by having the crew jump on or sit on the bag until the balloon can be shaken down into the bag and the bag closed. The bag is covered, rolled back to the truck and loaded.

Meanwhile, the pilot and the rest of the crew have disassembled and covered the basket so it’s ready to load. After everything is secured in its proper place on the truck the crew is invited to a traditional post-flight, tail-gate breakfast provided by the pilot. The White Mountain Balloon Festival was a success in spite of the Forest closure. I heard the pilots say they were looking forward to coming back next year as I left to go to work.