First. I can never remember the weight of my balloon envelope. Here. It weighs 232 lbs. Yeesh. Heavy! Propane weighs somewhere around 4.4 lbs per gallon so add 4.4 x 30 gallons in there too.
I said heavy!
Second. The week was a blitz of email and responding emails and rewrites on minor details for no apparent reason of any advancement of action.. but we do as we are tasked. Regardless of its silliness.
Third. This weekend was the AAAA Friends and Lovers Rally. A two day event that is open to the public. I knew in advance that weather was in question for both days. Saturday the winds were going the wrong direction but they made it a fly in task and balloons ( balloons also did statics on the field for the public ) took off South to try and fly in and hit the target which was to the West of the balloon museum ( then land on the field ). 6 balloons made it. It was an extremely fast flight. I didnt fly as I thought it was not worth putting the crew through it for 15 minutes but the son did and he popped up and ran to the field in fifteen minutes and missed the target to the West so not so good but I guess he had fun. Sunday it was so windy leaving the house that I didnt even take the balloon. We went out and then had brunch and listened to all the winners get prizes. Fun. Home and coffee after. Misc shots below.
Fourth. Looks like the pin designing might be taking off. Got some people asking about mine and how, why, what and such. I am waiting for the proof of the third of our four pins to check the updates. I had to remove a bunch of lines as they were blending together due to the ability of the stamping machines quality limits. Hoping I do not have to modify it any more but it happens. I am working on a few but I have so much personal feelings attached to them that it's hard to get them as perfect as I want them to be so I keep redoing them. LOL. I have CDO. Horrible horrible CDO.
Fifth.. is there a fifth? Oh yes... damn..... I started reading on the nets about these.. which are so freaking cool if limited...
http://www.apple.com/shop/product/HKFR2VC/A/roli-lightpad-block?afid=p238%7CsykolMsoy-dc_mtid_1870765e38482_pcrid_163208623866_&cid=aos-us-kwgo-pla---slid--product-HKFR2VC/A
Which after reading everything about it found it was limited to the sounds programmed into it and you couldn't add anything... to finding and freaking out about this...
Which was completely exciting...
https://www.ableton.com/en/push/
Ableton Push 2. Stunning expansion of sound and music. If only I had 40 years to learn enough to squeeze out everything this could do. Okay.. maybe 20. Time to learn the guitar, piano, drums, then this thing.
I mean.. you could just drop yourself into it and go but it would be like a tiger pounding on a box of bunnies... It might sound good at some point but it's still a silly tiger pounding on a box of very pissed off bunnies. The website and tutorials are all excellent... If only I had the time and the want. The want being the want to do things. In reality I am hard to motivate to do specific things. I have to be in the mood and well... I get off on tangents far too much.
I also want and have many many ideas for working with clay and stuff and there is the photography stuff.. CDOCDOCDOCDO.... maybe I'll just sit here and drink my cocoa.
Here are some shots from the weekend......
My favorite crop clip from the Kodak 360 camera. Just over the edge of Fiesta Park of my son in MOJO RGM.
MOJO's Flytec sensor ( Turtle ). The sensor is strapped to the outside of the envelope and the sensor head slips through a small hole into the inside where it sits against the inside fabric to read the temp which it then transmits down to the receiver unit via RF so we can see what is going on up there. Normal max temps for envelopes is about 250 degrees. Varies depending on manufacturer.
Racer up! As everyone tucks into a corner of a local church property and set up and get out as fast as possible. Due to a twisted set of cables we had to deflate and reinflate. No problem. Took 5 minutes.
I got to taking a lot of people pictures this day since everyone was posing so nicely. Cello what?
Posing for a picture in a picture. The kids were having a great time running from balloon to balloon.
Senior Pilots. They watch and wonder. We were requested to not drive all over the grass and the grass was covered in goose poop so everyone moved to the road side edges to pack up and put away. Yuck!
First place winner Craig chats with the crew while the kids pose with another balloon. So very funny.
Lots more happened but to try and show all the shots would be mind boggling and if you really want to get a feel for the surreality of ballooning... you ... just...have...to...come...out...and...CREW!
You can look at videos.. flip through pictures... talk all you want... nothing is like the real thing. Being there.. under the envelope as it rises filling with hot air from those terribly powerful burners and being controlled by the crew as the balloon find equilibrium on the ground.... to the lifting feeling as you climb out of small open areas in the local area.... yeah.. it rocks. Nothing like it in the world.
