Finding their WayBack: Couple readies the debut of balloons, including special shape cow MilkyWay

Special shapes have a precious place in the hearts of hot air balloon enthusiasts.

For pilot Bill Kinser, MilkyWay is near and dear to his and his wife’s heart. Kinser and his delightful cow head special shape will make their debut at this year’s Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.

MilkyWay was born on July 21 of this year. She was designed by Kinser’s wife, Tiffany. Her vision was brought to life by AirFly, a hot air balloon company in Brazil.

“She loves cows,” Kinser said of his wife Tiffany. “Our house has decorations of cows in every room. And we were fortunate enough last year to attend Balloon Fiesta as an alternate pilot for a friend of ours … We were there at the event and the zebra balloon was taking flight, and we were just giddy about how cute that zebra balloon was … We were just talking to one another, and I said, ‘You know, I think we could make this into a cow balloon’ and that’s just where it started.”

MilkyWay is 90 feet tall and 85 feet wide from ear tip to ear tip.

“She is a 90,000 cubic foot racer (balloon),” Kinser said. “Her daisy, that’s in her mouth, is 40 feet long. Each one of her horns is 14 feet long. She can hold 790,000 gallons of milk. She weighs 475 pounds.”

The Kinsers, who are from Oklahoma, have experienced Balloon Fiesta two times, but this will be the first time Bill Kinser will be piloting their own balloons.

“It’s always greeted with just joy and amazement by most people,” he said. “But to be surrounded by hundreds of balloons at one time, it’s sensory overload. It is just an amazing experience. I think the joy of being around all those balloons and the talent. The artistic talent of designs of special shapes really inspired Tiffany and I to create MilkyWay.”

Ballooning is a family affair for Bill Kinser.

Finding their WayBack: Couple readies the debut of balloons, including special shape cow MilkyWay

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“I first learned to fly in 1995,” he said. “My dad was a hot air balloon pilot, and he was tragically killed in a car wreck when I was 11 years old. And so, in 1995, I was in college, and had always sort of dreamed of being a balloon pilot. And my uncle, who is my dad’s brother, had a balloon and he gave it to us. He gave a balloon to me and my sister, and we learned how to fly in 1995.”

Piloting was put on the back burner when Kinser and his wife started a family. Their oldest of the three was born in 1998 and in 1999 the couple stepped away from ballooning to raise their children.

The Kinsers returned to ballooning in August 2021 and purchased a balloon from a seller in Iowa. The seller coincidently ended up being Brad Temeyer, who is the weather guide for Balloon Fiesta. The balloon is a colorful yellow globe with vibrant bands of white, turquoise and pink. It will also be part of this year’s Balloon Fiesta.

“We named her ‘WayBack’ because it was our way back into ballooning,” Kinser said.

The word “Way” resonates with the Kinsers. Their three children, who are now in their 20s and 30s, came up with the idea of using the word with anything related to the Kinsers’ balloons. The chase crew for WayBack and MilkyWay is fondly called the WayFinders.

It is an understatement to say that Kinser is ecstatic to be flying MilkyWay and WayBack in the Balloon Fiesta.

“I think of Balloon Fiesta, it’s like what the Super Bowl is to the NFL or Oshkosh is to general aviation,” Kinser said. “It’s the premiere event for ballooning. It’s what all balloon pilots have on their bucket list to someday fly at Balloon Fiesta. I am thrilled to have an opportunity to do that. We’re really excited.”