Annual hot air balloon festival returns to the Gulf Coast apr.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from apr.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
APR news feature - Lofty memories at the Gulf Coast Hot Air Balloon Festival
Tethered balloons lifted off the ground just after dawn last Friday at the start of the Gulf Coast Hot Air Balloon Festival. After being called off last year during the pandemic, pilots and visitors flocked to the OWA Amusement Park.
”It was a wonderful turnout,” said Rachel Spear, events coordinator for the South Baldwin Chamber of Commerce. “It was a wonderful weekend there. The weather was perfect.”
Balloonists prepare for flight at the Gulf Coast Hot Air Balloon Festival in Foley
Credit APR s Guy Busby
The festival drew more just visitors from a wide area. It also attracted fifty five balloonists and crews from as far away as Utah. It was a chance for them to get together with old friends and another adventure in the air.
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.”