Rajordan - Balloon Flight!

On Tuesday, September 26, 2006 at 5:05 a.m. I got a call from Dave of Austin Aeronauts, Inc. We were flying today! Mom and I drove to Old Settlers Park at Palm Valley and arrived before sunrise. We were just west of Dell Diamond in Round Rock, Texas, USA. I had talked to Dave, our pilot, several times by telephone, but this was the first time for us to meet. He brought Ron as a student pilot, and Chuck as the ground crew slash chaser.

These are the burners silhouetted by the sunrise.	Mom and I helped by holding the balloon open while a fan filled it with air. I took these shots of the inside of the balloon looking towards the top.				This is inside looking from the top back to the basket and car.
Chuck and Ron at the top of the balloon	Ron and Mom at the top of the balloon		Dave, Ron and Chuck		Trailer, basket, balloon
still expanding	top of the balloon from the inside		still expanding		Texas flag on top line
heating the air
Texas flag on top line	Texas flag		The basket is up!		Mom is entranced.
we floated over water and saw our reflection
I kept trying for the perfect shadow shot
This is Texas Highway 130 being built over 79.	Most of this is flat farm land.		Dave and Ron seemed really interested in this derelict.		We landed west of the Taylor Municipal Airport at Taylor, Texas.
Mom	It still has some hot air inside, but it comes down. Slowly.				No problem. It just looks like a tangled mess.
the photos above were taken by Rajordan - the photos below were taken by Chuck
Me, Mom and Ron	Mom, me and Dave		Ron, Mom, me and Dave		Ron, Mom, me and Dave
Ron, Mom, me and Dave		Ron, Mom, me and Dave		Ron, Mom, me and Dave

After landing, packing up the balloon and basket, we went back to our starting point. Dave served us champagne and croissants. After I broke a glass (that has got to be bad luck), we were both given a "Certificate of Ascension." Dave, Ron and Chuck were wonderful. They were silly at times and professional where necessary. I want to go again! Maybe as part of the chase team....

Hot Air Balloons
Austin Aeronauts
Lighter than Airlines
Promotions Rides Training

Here is a map of our approximate starting and ending points of our flight of about ten miles.
No, we did not go in a straight line.

Rajordan (rā'-jər-dăn')

Hot Air Ballooning with Austin Aeronauts, Inc.