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Sunday, September 19, 1999

Balloons: Fiesta Known Around World

Journal Staff Report
Hot-air balloons put New Mexico on the international map.
There are few festivals bigger or more colorful than the annual Kodak Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, held each year in October.

JOURNAL FILE

One of the many scenes of balloons during the annual Albuquerque balloon gathering.

Sid Cutter and Tom Rutherford started it with 13 balloons in 1972; the 1998 fiesta attracted 873 balloons. People from 41 states and 16 countries were among participants, and there were slightly more than 1 million spectator visits. This doesn't count all the people who stop along roadways to watch or the untold millions who have seen the fiesta on television.
What draws the spectators is the sight of hundreds of balloons floating at the same time, of all colors, sizes and shapes.
During the early morning mass ascensions, hundreds of balloons take off at a time, and by the time the sun breaks over Sandia Crest the sky is filled with color and motion.
The event is a natural for photographers, both on the ground and in the air. This led Kodak to sponsor the event in 1992 and dub it the most-photographed event in the world.
Organizers have said the Balloon Fiesta State Park, north of Alameda Road off Interstate 25, can handle 1,000 balloons and they hope to eventually hit that mark.
How about 1,000 in 2000?