Q - How long does a balloon flight
last.
A - A balloon flight normally lasts about 1 hour. It all depends
on the ambient (outside) air temperature and how much weight is in the basket.
There are a lot of variables that control how long we can fly. some of the most important which are;
outside air temperature
flying altitude
total weight of passengers
amount of fuel
age of the balloon
time of year
Since the lift in a hot air balloon is generated to due the temperature difference between the air inside the balloon and the outside air the cooler the outside air the longer the fuel will last. So flying in the winter can last a lot longer than a summer flight.
One person in the basket will take a lot less fuel than a full load of people.
The material that the balloon is made of is just as porous (lets
air through) before it is treated for use as a balloon. The coating that is
put on the material makes the material block the loss of air (non-porous). As
the balloon ages this coating breaks down and becomes less effective at blocking
the loss of air. So an older balloon will require more fuel than one that is
brand new.
Q - What kind of fuel does a balloon
use
A - We use standard propane that is used in many different applications
and can be obtained at the local hardware stores. We carry 3 ten gallons
tanks.
Q - How does the balloon get back
to where it started?
A - The balloon does does not actually fly back to the place it starts
from (most of the time). Since we fly "with" the wind, we usually
travel in one general direction. (Ex. if the the wind is blowing to the south,
we fly to the south for about an hour or so and then land). There is a
'chase vehicle' that follows us on the ground and is there when we land.
We pack up the balloon and put it back in the chase vehicle and return to the
start point to pick up other vehicles we may have left there.
Q - What should I wear?
A - This mainly depends on the weather. We always advocate wearing
long pants and comfortable fitting shoes (no sandals or open toe shoes) as we
sometimes land in tall grass and may have to walk around in the grass.
In the winter, layer your clothes and in the summer short sleeves are fine.
A hat is sometimes handy because of the ambient heat from the burner.
Q - How much does a balloon ride
cost?
A - See our list of rates for current
pricing
Q - Where can I learn more about
ballooning
A - There are many sources for information about balloons,
Joope DeWilde
maintains a site of MANY other balloon sites.
Also you can join a balloon mailing list that has pilot and crew from all around the world.
- subscribe balloon
in the body of the message. Subject headers are ignored. That's all there is to it. Remember, you may receive quite a bit of mail.
unsubscribe balloon
Q - How many people can
fly in a balloon?
A - The number of people that can fly depends on the size of the balloon
and of course he size of the people. There are balloons that can carry only
one person all the way up to balloons that will carry a dozen or more people.
Our balloon is what is considered a standard sport size balloon and can carry the Pilot and 2 average (150 to 200 lbs) size people. The ambient (outside air) temperature also has alot to do with how many we can carry. On hotter days, we can not lift as much weight as we can on colder days.
Q - What time of day do
you fly and why?
A - Balloons are effected by the wind speed. While it is not a problem
at all to fly in wind that is 10 - 15 mph, the problem is taking off and more
of concern, landing in winds of that speed.
For that reason, we fly the balloons within 1 or 2 hours of sunrise or sunset. This is when the winds are generally the calmest. Watch the winds in the evening one day about an hour or two before sunset. What you will see happen is that wind may start off almost a steady speed, then as time passes, it will normally begin to oscilate between no or low speed winds with gusts in between. The time interval between the gusts will begin to get longer and the speed of the gusts will begin to diminish.
What this allows us to do is launch in some wind and by the time we get ready to land hopefully the wind has become almost calm.
Q - How does a balloon
work?
A - The balloon is transported in a trailer (6 x 10 ft) to a location in
the general area of where we are going to fly for
that day.
We will launch off a couple of helium filled balloons to determine which way the wind is blowing and how fast.
Once we know the wind direction we can then select a launch site that will possibly get us back to our desired landing site.
We then drive the vehicles to the possible launch locations and set off some more helium balloons. Once we have determined the proper launch site the trailer is positioned on the launch field (all other vehicles please stay on the road).
First everyone is given a set of gloves and a safety briefing on the proper handling of the balloon. The basket (what the passengers ride in) is removed from the trailer and set about 10 ft out from the trailer. the envelope (the big bag of hot air above the basket) which is stored in a canvas bag about 4 x 4 x 2 foot big is the brought out and set about another 25 ft down from the basket.
The basket is prepared for flight by attaching the supports for the burner (the engine that generates the hot air) and then attaching the burner. All of the fuel tanks and fuel lines are checked o make sure they are safe and not leaking. Once assured there are no leaks, the pilot light is lit and a main burner test is performed to make sure that the burner is operating properly.
The basket is then turned on its' side ,the bottom of the envelope is then pulled out of the 'bag' and attached to the basket by a set a suspension lines. these lines are made from kevlar and each one alone will support 2000 pounds (there are 18 of these lines).
The remainder of the envelope is pulled out of the bag by pulling the bag away from the basket. Once this is done, the envelope is sometimes stretched out a little.
A gas powered fan is placed near the basket and pointed towards the opening at the bottom of the envelope. Two people will then be instructed on how to hold open the 'mouth' of the balloon and then fan is started.
The fan will force cold air into the envelope causing it to expand and grow larger. The envelope will take on it's normal balloon shape (just laying on its' side). Once enough cold air is in the envelope, the pilot will once again man the burner and this time, using multiple bursts from the burner, add hot air to the balloon. This will cause the balloon to begin standing up. Once enough hot air is put in the balloon will becom light. It's time to fly.
The safety lines are removed and more heat is added to the balloon and it will continue to rise. Once in flight, the altitude of the balloon is controlled by either adding heat to go up, or by opening a vent and releasing hot air, we can make it descend.
We will fly for about an hour and then land. Then the reverse procedure is followed and the entire system is packed by in to the trailer.
Q - Once the balloon is launched,
what does the ground crew do.
A - The ground crew will follow the balloon on the surface roads and
meet the balloon when it lands. Once it has landed, the crew will help
to deflate the balloon and pack it all back into the trailer.
Q - If I cancel my flight will I
get my money back.
A - The initial deposit is NON - REFUNDABLE, if you cancel the flight
prior to the scheduled date, you will receive only that amount above the amount
of the currently required deposit amount that you have paid. If you have
paid only the deposit, then you will receive no refund at all. This is
because we have locked out that date and may have turned down some one else
for that time slot. We have also committed crew to be available during
that time frame and they must be compensated regardless.
See cancellations and refunds for further info
Q - What happens if I don't show
for my flight.
A - Your deposit is forfeited and the pilot is not obligated to reschedule
your flight. This is because we have locked out that date and may have turned
down some one else for that time slot. We have also committed crew to
be available during that time frame and they must be compensated regardless.
See cancellations and refunds for further info