Xer, I saw your comment (and pictures) about wishing to go Hot Air Ballooning in your lifetime.  You should do it!!!  

 

Back in 1987, I met a man who owned his own Hot Air Balloon, and was looking for someone to work for him as Crew Chief.   When I got laid off from my consultant job in El Paso, TX, I decided to take him up on his offer.  I moved with him to Evergreen, Colorado,  and we spent the next 18 months travelling all over the country with his Balloon "Higher Love" (and we'd CRANK that song on the stereo when we'd be coming back into the Launch area after a successful flight.....)   We did an "International Flight" (flying from Juarez, Mexico, back into El Paso, Texas.)  We did a "Continental Divide Flight" (flying over the Continental Divide in Colorado.)  We spent one Fourth of July in Montrose, Colorado (LOVE the people there, and wanted to move there someday....)  Another Fourth of July in Columbia, SC (also very friendly people, but the weather there isn't as nice as Colorado.)   We did a "Balloon Rodeo" up in Clayton, NM (where the Balloon had to fly from point "A" to point "B" with a "postal bag" aboard.  When we landed, the horses (with riders) would grab the bag from the Balloon Pilot, then race back to point "A" with the bag.  First one back gets the prize!)   Sure got a clue about how horses don't like that noise the propane burners make!!! 

 

I was also with him during two Fiesta's (the 10-day Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque every Columbus Day is the BIGGEST Balloon Fiesta in the World - with over 600 balloons trying to compete....)  That chunk of time sure put a dent into my resume, but I wouldn't trade the experience for anything.  

 

Anyway, the point in sharing some of my history with you is to tell you to keep an eye out for local Balloon get-togethers.  Some of the Pilots will take a person for a short ride in exchange for helping "crew" (helping pull the envelope out onto the ground to get inflated, holding the throat open while the huge fan blows the cold air into the envelope, and helping pack everything up when the morning is done.)   The Professional Pilots usually have a hired crew, and will charge riders up to $200 for a 20-minute or so ride.  The other Pilots (like the dude I worked for) are doing the Flying for FUN, not money, and will use local folks for Crew and take riders for free in exchange.  Crew Chief's job is to round up these volunteers, teach and watch them do the work so neither they nor the Balloon is damaged, then drive the chase vehicle to be wherever the Balloon eventually lands.  There's no steering these Dragons, you know....they just float wherever the wind blows, and the Pilot must learn to navigate the winds at various levels to go various directions..... 

 

There's no sensation of movement while you're in the basket, since the balloon is moving with the wind.  You look at the ground below to verify that you are moving!   The only problem comes when the landing is rough (I got dumped completely out of a basket once on a "hard landing" - only bruises, but I've seen broken bones....)   MOST landings are "soft" however, so no need to worry.   Just don't fly anywhere there are lots of Power Lines.  I swear Hot Air Balloons gravitate toward them like they're magnetic or something!    

 

So, I say - GO DO IT!  Take pictures (and videos) and be able to brag that you "Rode with the Dragons!"