What’s It Like To Ride In A Hot Air Balloon?

With the Spirit of Boise Balloon Classic well underway, you can see some true beauty and wonder over the Boise skies. But what's it like to ride in one? See this awesome video!

It sort of feels like you're living on the wild side to a degree, ya know? You meet a guy who happens to be a pilot, five minutes later you're in the basket of a hot air balloon, he's giving you the run down and says, "now... If I die..." and immediately your brain starts spinning... I didn't even think of that, what happens if the guy who knows how to run this thing dies? We're going to fly up over Ann Morrison Park. Am I going to have to, with no experience whatsoever, land this hot air balloon on the connector heading into Downtown Boise? Can I figure a way onto the blue at BSU? What about power lines? "well", he says, "it's unlikely but if I die, press these two buttons and the balloon will slowly make its way down to the ground." Here I am hoping I don't land in someone's pool.

Anyway, you get in the basket and you head up into the air and all the sudden, it's quiet. It's beautiful, and the worry of "what could happen" seems to go away. Now you just get to enjoy the view. Lucky for me, I had the awesome pilot Greg Lindsay from AZ Air Ventures and his balloon, "Flying Away-sis". His family run business is so cool. They do daily rentals in their hometown but they also fly to different cities and do events like the Spirit of Boise Balloon Classic. Check out this awesome video from AZ Air Ventures. This obviously isn't our flight over Boise, but it gives you a great idea of what it's like from the air in a hot air balloon!

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