ASHLAND – A wish came true Thursday for 11-year-old David Wood.
The West Salem boy was given the ride of his life, sailing above Ashland in a monster-shaped hot air balloon with his family.
Though the smile on Wood’s face as the basket left the ground made him seem carefree, Wood has had a rough road since his 2016 leukemia diagnosis.
Balloonfest pilot liaison Sue Kelley said Wood’s flight was made possible through the Make-A-Wish Foundation, which learned about Wood’s interest in flying and wanted to grant his wish.
“It’s just cool that he gets to do something he’s wanted to do,” Wood’s father, Randy, said. “He’s been through a lot in his short little life.”
Each hot air balloon ride is special, not only for first-time flyers like Wood but also for veteran pilots like Walt Rudy.
The Wadsworth man pilots a colorful balloon called “Hour Big Bundle of Joy,” and he’s been piloting for about 34 years.
Rudy described the serenity he feels each time he takes to the air.
“If you closed your eyes, you’d swear you never left the ground,” he said.
But Rudy’s favorite thing about ballooning is actually the people it allows him to meet.
“There’s a lot of camaraderie in ballooning,” he said. “We’re a small group, so chances are you know someone at every event. But what’s really neat is when we come in contact with the public. You’ll see the excitement as we fly over, and especially when we drop in to land.”
Dozens of local residents have caught that same love of hot air ballooning, regularly signing up as volunteer Ballonfest crew members. Crew members help the pilots and crew chiefs inflate their balloons, see them off the ground, and then they follow them to help ensure pilots find a safe place to land and to help them pack up after landing.
One such crew member is Tim Hershey of Ashland, who crewed for the balloon “Carpe Diem” Thursday.
Hershey has gotten to know a fair amount about balloons in his 10 years as a crew member.
He said this weekend’s weather forecast looks promising for getting balloons in the air — but not necessarily for keeping them there.
“It’s looking good,” he said. “The hotter it gets, they don’t like to stay up a long time because of the heat. There will probably be a lot of short flights.”
But as long as the balloons take off, they create a wonderful show for spectators. And luckily, Hershey said, this weekend’s weather looks great for one of the festival’s biggest draws — the balloon glows.
- Media and sponsor flights: 6:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday. Watch as pilots and crew inflate their hot air balloons and take off from Freer Field.
- Balloon competitions: 7 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. Saturday. Watch hot air balloons attempt to fly over Freer Field (morning) or take off from the field (evening) as the pilots compete for cash prizes.
- Balloon glow: 9:15 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday. See hot air balloons line the launch field and glow against the night sky, choreographed to music. For a closer look, purchase Balloon Glow Encounter Tickets.
All Hot Air Balloon activities are weather permitting and subject to delay or cancellation. Follow Balloonfest on Facebook for updates leading up to and during the event.
General admission is free. Parking is $6 at Freer Field and Ashland University Lot B (Samaritan and Phillips avenues).
Friday, June 29
7-8 a.m. Fun Flight
4-9:30 p.m. Kids Fun Zone
4-10 p.m. Food Concessions
5-7 p.m. Disney Princesses
5-9 p.m. Live Musical Entertainment by Kokosing River Surf Club
5-9 p.m. Bumper Bubbles
5-8 p.m. Merchant Area
6-8 p.m. Live Radio Remote
6:30 p.m. Sponsor Flight
8:15 p.m. Balloon Glow Encounter (Tickets here)
9:15 p.m. Ashland Times Gazette Balloon Glow
Saturday, June 30
7-8 a.m. Balloon Competition
11 a.m. Cornhole Registration & Warm-up ($20 per team)
12 p.m. Cornhole Tournament (Double Elimination. 70% payout.)
12-9 p.m. Bumper Bubbles
12-10 p.m. Food Concessions
1-8 p.m. Merchant Area
1-9:30 p.m. Kids Fun Zone
1-2:30 p.m. Pilot Meet & Greet (Park Street)
3-4:30 p.m. Safety Fun including Metro Life Flight (3 p.m.), K-9 demonstrations, fire truck display and child fingerprinting
4-8 p.m. COSI on Wheels
5-9 p.m. Live Musical Entertainment by Jimi Vincent
6:30 p.m. Balloon Competition
8:15 p.m. Balloon Glow Encounter (Tickets here)
9:15 p.m. Balloon Glow
