I thought I did something wrong when Mike yelled my name. I stayed out of the balloon basket's path and ran up to help the balloon stand up before takeoff. I came up close and he waved.
"Come on, get in!"
I was going to fly. As I climbed over the side, I beamed - we would take off from the field, a first for me. Dolores got in too. A boost of adrenaline kicked in as we waited for approval to take off from a field official (known as zebras due to their black and white apparel).
The air above the fiesta grounds was still, causing hundreds of balloons to loiter above us and hundreds more waited to take off. After winds called off the morning flight on Thursday, the clear skies and mild winds of Friday had everyone ready to get into the sky.
The bus to the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta Field felt much more crowded this year, with people coming out of the woodwork to get free entry for Saturday's annular eclipse (see next post).
We got approval and Mike hit the propane burner. I forgot how warm it feels on your head and shoulders. While setting up the balloon that morning, the ground was cold enough to numb my toes. Now I needed the shed layers.
After a few anxious minutes, the official waved us up. We waved and cheered as the balloon rose. To avoid the large number of balloons close to the field, we went up quickly.
I knew we went up higher than I expected when my ears popped. Mike had us watch for any balloon that got too close or rose below us. Such crashes are extremely rare but wouldn't end well for anyone.
But there were no worries up here. Be aware of your surroundings and no other balloon will surprise yours.
Worry was the last thing on my mind. However short this ride lasted, every second was precious, floating in the New Mexico sky, the kindly air flows known as the Albuquerque Box nudging us gently.
In a few minutes we found our own place in the sky, a little patch of bliss with tens of thousands of spectators below us. There were few ways to escape a crowd that big, but this had to qualify as the best.
The majesty of Albuquerque surrounded us. The sun appeared above Sandia Peak, casting light across the valley. The extinct volcano cones on the western horizon glowed.
I jumped out but Mike stayed aloft for 90 minutes, a long time for him. The conditions worked in his favor, as the slight wind allowed us to move vertically without forcing the chase crew to go all over Albuquerque to catch us. Landing spots have grown harder to find in the past decade as infill development has taken over much of the green space north of downtown Albuquerque.
Mild air currents allowed Mike the bring the balloon down on a cul-de-sac in a trailer park not far from the field. The trailer park residents poured out to see the balloon, Some residents watched all morning and expected at least one pilot to land. As we rolled up the balloon and secured the basket in the trailer, a few others queued up for spots in the trailer park.
As we returned to the field, the sun suddenly blinked out. I looked to find one of the balloons still aloft cross in front of the sun. I had no clue if it would be a preview of the eclipse morning, but it provided a capstone to a perfect morning above the field.
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