Evil Twin Balloon – Wandering Dawgs

I recently returned from the 51st Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. The theme this year was “A View from Above”. This was my first time at the fiesta and the theme for me was “A View from Below” because I chose to stay on the ground and look at the balloons above me and all around me.

More than 550 hot air balloon pilots and their crews gathered in Albuquerque, New Mexico from October 7 – 15, 2023 for this year’s event. For nine days balloon crews, volunteers and spectators got up in the middle of the night to be at the Fiesta Park before 6:00 a.m. I was one of the many spectators there to take part in this magical event.

My brother Joe and his wife Kelli were wonderful hosts while I was there. They live in the Albuquerque area and have been involved with the Fiesta since the 1990’s. Joe volunteers as a Launch Director each year and his wife is a balloon pilot. They are part owners of the Evil Twin Balloon with their friends Don and Connie. I chose a photo of their balloon as my header photo.

My first Day at the Balloon Fiesta

We woke up each day about 3:40 a.m. and left the house around 4:15. Joe had early morning Launch Director meetings and Kelli had pilot briefings.

Tuesday, October 10 was my first day attending the Fiesta. While Joe and Kelli were at their meetings I started the day by meeting the Evil Twin Balloon crew and being wowed by the glow of the Dawn Patrol balloons. What at great way to start the day!

Once the balloon crews started preparing their balloons for flight the field was filled with activity. As I walked around in search of my brother Joe there was so much going on I didn’t know where to look. Balloons were being inflated on the ground as others were launching into the sky. It was sensory overload as the clear blue sky filled with colorful balloons of many shapes and sizes.

Trying to keep up with a Launch Director

The launch directors are called Zebras because of their black and white striped shirts. Their job is to make sure the balloons take off safely. Once I found my brother Joe I had a hard time keeping up with him as he ran around the field giving the pilots the go ahead to launch their balloon.

I turned around to capture my brother Joe at work but when I saw him standing with his hand over his heart I knew they were playing the National Anthem even though I couldn’t hear it.

I was exhausted and my feet hurt at the end of the day but WOW! This day ranked right up there near the top of my list of memorable events in my life.

My second day: Working as a member of a chase crew

Wednesday morning we were up early and ready for another beautiful day of ballooning. I spent the morning working as part of the chase crew for the Evil Twin Balloon. Many thanks to Kelli, Don, Connie, Kelly and the rest of the crew for showing me what to do and allowing me to be part of the team.

*Kelli and Don, the two pilots of the Evil Twin*

Don was piloting the balloon that day. I started out by helping take the balloon out of it’s storage bag while Don and some of the others prepared the basket to be connected to the balloon. I watched as they inflated the balloon by blowing air from a powerful fan into the balloon. I captured a couple of shots of the inside of the balloon as it was being inflated. Don had two passengers that day.

When everything was ready and the launch director gave Don the ok to launch the Evil Twin was up in the air. The chase crew piled into the van to follow the balloon to wherever it landed. Kelli was driving the van and was in radio contact with Don. We were soon at their landing site. We helped get the balloon back into it’s bag, loaded everything into the trailer and were soon back at the Fiesta Park for a celebration and a group photo.