First the bad news, from the Journal's weather maven and Renaissance Man, John Fleck: The National Weather Service issued a flood statement Thursday morning for northern and eastern New Mexico after a fall storm dumped rain across the entire state of New Mexico.

By 9 a.m., the National Weather Service office at the Albuquerque airport had received 1.32 inches of rain since the storm began Wednesday afternoon, the biggest one-day rain total in the city since July 2004.

The sun briefly burst through over Journal Center around 9 a.m., only to be smothered by clouds again, reminding us how fickle New Mexico's skies are. But officials at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta 2005 were confident the weather would hold this weekend and that the field would be dry enough for the Fiesta Challenge race at 5 p.m. Friday.
"Everyone's working around the damp right now," said fiesta spokeswoman Kathie Leyendecker. "I think the field's going to be fine."

Besides, she said, "balloonists are eternal optimists."

Meanwhile, the Balloon Fiesta kicks off at 7 a.m. Friday with "Albuquerque Aloft" -- with some 130 balloons ascending from 50 to 60 area schools, Leyendecker said.

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