Professional hot air balloon pilots from all over the country will gather May 7-9 for the Gulf Coast Hot Air Balloon Festival in Foley. Now in its 17th year, the weekend event expects to draw 100,000 visitors to its new setting at OWA amusement park.
“We love the Gulf Coast area. We love the town of Foley,” said Tom Warren, a balloon pilot based in Pasco County, just north of Tampa. “The people that put on the event are absolutely awesome people.”
Warren will be piloting his shaped balloon “Laska the Unicorn” along with dozens of other invited balloonists.
“We do it for the crowds, for the fun of it,” he said. “Because it’s a unicorn the kids go nuts.”