Floating above Kanab

My wife Claudia and I awoke early on Friday committed to see the hot air balloons launch despite the early morning chill. We were not alone. Each year, thousands of spectators come from all around southern Utah to enjoy Kanab’s Balloons and Tunes Festival on the third weekend of February.

When we arrived, we parked and headed toward a crowd of people listening to the balloon organizer recite the morning’s weather forecast. To me, it seemed like perfect weather, a little on the cool side, but with no wind. When the hot air balloon pilots and their crews left the orientation session, one of the Kane County Office of Tourism staff members, Lannell, called for volunteers to help with the balloon launch and landing. We hesitated for a few minutes and then volunteered. We were directed to one of the two Stars and Stripes Balloon operators. We introduced ourselves to the crew and waited for our assignment. A fellow volunteer, Bryce, joined us and we chatted for a few moments as the crew took the basket, balloon and other gear out of the trailer. Listening to Bryce, I was reminded of something I have encountered often since moving to southern Utah that still surprises me. He looked to be in his teens, presumably in high school. That was not uncommon, Utah is full of young people. What was noteworthy was that Bryce, like almost every other young person I have met in Utah was exceedingly polite and comfortable talking to strangers. I have been around a long time, lived in a lot of various places, Kanab for the past two years and I’m still in awe on how well-mannered and engaging young Utahans are.

Our pilot Zac, more on him later, directed Bryce and I to open the balloon skirt as wide as we could so he could direct an industrial sized fan and begin to fill the balloon. Soon, as it started to fill with air and began to inflate, Zac turned on the propane burner attached to the basket and hot air replace the fan-blown cold air. Before long, the balloon started to elevate, and Zac and his crew turned the basket upright. Bryce and I were done, I thought. The balloon quickly inflated and already the crew held on to the basket so it would not float away.

Bryce and I stood back and watched the pilot give some last-minute instructions. And then Zac did something completely unexpected. He invited Bryce and I aboard. I turned to Claudia and saw the terror in her eyes. She was not going, but I knew I was. I turned to the ever-polite Bryce and I saw in his face uncertainty. I was not sure he was fully committed, but either because of his excessively good manners or youthful curiosity, Bryce climbed into the basket with me just behind. Now I have seen the outside of a lot of hot air balloon baskets. What I had not seen was the inside. Zac, the pilot, Bryce, and I now occupied the balloon, but we were not alone. Each corner had a tall metal cylinder I assumed was filled with propane. My mind quickly started processing what this meant, but not quickly enough. This oversized wicker basket was basically the same as a bomb; there was a lot of explosive material packed in an enclosed space. But already, this bomb/basket already started to rise. I turned and looked at Bryce. He smiled at me, and I smiled back. I am not sure what was behind his smile, but behind mine was unbridled anxiety. I thought, I just needed to calm myself the best way I could. I first rationalized that Zac was a great name for a hot air balloon pilot. I would never have climbed into an explosive basket with a Zackary. Zac, on the other hand, seemed like the perfect name for a pilot. As I listened to the short bursts of flames just above my head, I repeat the mantra; Zac can do this, Zac can do this, Zac can do this. And also, to his credit, Zac had a beard. I am not sure why that made me feel better, but it did. The mind can do amazing things when it is bargaining with fear. I finally hoped he was a non-smoker. I did not see an ashtray perched on the canister beside me, but I did check all four. Everything was going to be just fine, I concluded.

We lifted quickly and slowly floated toward Jackson Flat reservoir.

“Hey Zac,” I asked. “Didn’t a hot air balloon land in the reservoir last year?”

He replied yes but assured me he was a very skilled pilot. I looked at Bryce and wondered if he was thinking the same thing I was. For the first time in my existence, I wondered if I would be able to tell the difference not that it really mattered at this point.

I will admit as we slowly moved south, that Zac seemed to have the skills necessary to pilot a balloon hundreds of feet above the ground. I do not think Bryce was thinking about that, but I did notice he was holding on to one of the vertical burner supports tightly. As we floated above Kanab, Zac directed his chase crew to meet us in a large field just south of Crosby’s Hardware. He started the descent and before long we gracefully landed in the field. Claudia, who was chasing us in our Jeep, joined the ground crew and once again Zac asked her if she wanted to head up. She did not, but I think she was happy that I had survived my first balloon ride in one piece.

Later, we joined the chase crew and after the second touchdown in another field near the La Quinta Inn, Claudia, Bryce, and some others helped the crew secure the balloon and repack it.

As we left the landing site, I briefly looked at the few photos I had taken during our ride. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but in this case, it was more like a thousand feet.

#Kanab #KanabUtah #SouthernUtah #HotAirBalloon