Liftoff at a distance

On Labor Day Saturday, I lucked out and looked east while driving down Nevada Avenue. 

From Memorial Park, hidden by two miles of condo buildings, I saw the balloons beginning to rise on the Labor Day Liftoff’s first morning. 

The rush of standing on the field came back. Ballooning does that. 

At the city's Nevada garage, I had an idea. Seven stories high with an open roof, it was the tallest building that far east in downtown. Colorado Springs lacks many tall buildings, choosing to preserve the view of Pikes Peak for most. 

The Liftoff might be free, but you have 50,000 of your closest friends crowded around the balloon field. Memorial Park does not have the system of the Balloon Fiesta Park, where visitors know to get clear when the balloons begin filling with hot air. 

For $1 an hour, I opted for the garage and ran up several flights to the open roof. The roof doesn’t show much of Pikes Peak or its neighboring mountains. The garage puts visitors at eye level with the clock tower of the El Paso County Pioneers Museum, the county’s historic courthouse, and provides unobstructed views to the east. 

Two other people sat up top. I said hello, they looked at me as thought I just dropped in from Mars and left after a few minutes. Their loss, not mine. 

I quickly forgot then as the armada of balloons drifted up from the horizon. Most of the 75 balloons of the Liftoff had crested ground-level obstacles and rose to the east. Space is at a premium at Memorial Park, so the balloons inflate in two waves. I recognized several special shape balloons from past balloon festivals. 

I have not returned to any balloon event since my last Albuquerque fiesta in 2024, but I needed that renewed taste of the ballooning spectacle. Moved by the wind, they rise majestically, even if landings can turn rough. The festival got a good first day, with no heavy winds and balmy weather. A bank of clouds obscured enough of the sun to cast the morning ascent to throw some different light on the balloons. 

 

This would be the only full liftoff for the weekend. Balloon ascents always depend on weather. Sunday morning brought a series of winds that prevented the second wave of balloons from going up. The winds resulted in early cancellation of the Monday morning session. 

The balloon ascent is such a majestic, ephemeral moment that I had no choice but to stop, even if it flooded me with memories of past ascents. Still, none looked like this, and I was grateful for a fresh angle.