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| - Expensive, but so worth it! My husband and I took a sunrise flight to celebrate my 20th anniversary of my 21st birthday. Other than having to be at the airport by 6:30 am, it was great!
Mike was our pilot (yes, they do have to get a pilot's license or "balloon driver license" as I called it). Prior to lifting off, he comically gave us the rundown on what to expect, especially at landing. An "A" landing is touching down like an elevator stop (not likely to happen today), a "B" landing is the basket skipping a few steps and a little bumpy (what we would most likely experience), and a "C" landing is not so pretty.
Our basket only held 8 passengers in 2 compartments. I was thankful since I was not looking to share the ride with 14 people! As we were lifting, it was cool to see all the other balloons above and below you. We drifted and rose to an elevation of over one mile. Does that make me a member of the mile-high club? We spotted an abundance of rabbits and a coyote below although another balloon supposedly spotted a bobcat.
Our landing was the real entertainment. Didn't get that "B" landing thanks to the wind picking up. Instead, our basket landed on it's side so that our compartment was against the ground (we were essentially lying on our backs now) and the second compartment was above us, taking out a path of trees and vegetation along the way. It was better than any 6 Flags ride, and we all laughed through the whole thing, while we prayed the partition between compartments didn't collapse. I was never really frightened, maybe because I never heard our pilot yell "oh shit," or anything like that (although I did see a diamond drop out of his pants). He did tell us later that the baskets don't usually land in any position other than upright.
We were greeted at landing with mimosas and a fabulous little breakfast catered by Vincent's. We were also presented with flight certificates. My husband had let them know in advance of the occasion, and they had a breakfast cake for me as well. My only wee little complaint was that they should give you the souvenir champagne flute instead of charging 5 bucks for it considering the price of the flight.
As Michael C noted, they were very nice and professional. And I, too, felt very safe, considering...In all seriousness, the trees we hit were used to help us stop, and it was a controlled landing, I think:)
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