No weather worries this year as Balloon Classic heads skyward

Ham-let the Pig was aloft and the Energizer Bunny was just standing up Saturday when Jon Maestas  turned to his three kids and said “If pigs can fly, bunnies can too.”

And so they did, along with 61 other hot air balloons that ascended without a hitch during the first day of 34th annual Colorado Balloon Classic at Memorial Park.

The start of the three-day festival drew more than 30,000 people to watch wave after wave of colorful balloons float gently up and to the south in the chilly morning air.

“It’s a gorgeous morning in Colorado Springs,” said pilot Von Campbell of Fort Collins, one of 65 balloon pilots who came from as far away from Oregon.

“Not too much wind. Not too cold. Just a beautiful day,” he added, flicking a burner switch to top his balloon off with hot air just moments before lift-off.

Festival organizer Heather Benavidez said the weather was a big improvement over last year’s opening day when fog kept the balloons grounded.

This year, crowds ringed the lake to watch some of the balloon pilots do a “splash and dash” — lowered their baskets to just above the water before turning on their burners and floating to the sky.

Benavidez said a crowd of as many as 75,000 would return to the park at dusk to see anchored balloons illuminated by their hot air burners during the “Balloon Glo.”

In 34 years, the festival has grown from a smaller gathering of balloon enthusiasts to an event that’s listed in the Top 100 Events of the American Bus Association, a group of about 1,000 bus and tour companies in the United States and Canada.

Carol and Chico Gonzalez first came to the Classic 20 years ago. On Saturday the Falcon couple returned to see the event for the first time with their 2-year-old grandson Canon Orness.

The youngster sat wide-eyed on a balloon basket laid on its side as a crew began inflating the silk envelope with hot air.

In his left hand, he clutched a string attached to a small yellow balloon.

“He doesn’t understand why he can’t get in and fly,” his grandmother said. “He wants to go up in the balloon.”

BALLOON CLASSIC BY THE NUMBERS

5 • People needed to operate the Ham-let the Pig balloon.
63 • Balloons at the event
65 • Registered pilots on hand
26 • Years that Art Walsh served as the volunteer in charge of refueling balloons.
80 • The birthday Balloon Classic co-founder Dewey Reinhard recently celebrated. He’s one of the balloon pilots this weekend.
166 feet • Height of the Energizer Bunny “Hot Hare” balloon is when fully inflated.
1,346 • Miles traveled by balloon pilot Jesse Rafn of Wilson, Ore., to get to the event, which won him 1st place as the pilot who traveled the furthest to get here.
25 • Miles per hour is the cruising speed of the Pikes Peak Powered Paragliders. They are scheduled to perform at 8 a.m. Sunday and Monday.
19,000 • Number of jumps annually performed Air Force Wings of Blue parachute team, which helped kick off the festival Saturday.