The Flying Lollipop

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Yesterday we enjoyed a calm evening flight with Peter and Amy from Hampshire! We launched with Midwest Ballooning Advent...
07/13/2024

Yesterday we enjoyed a calm evening flight with Peter and Amy from Hampshire! We launched with Midwest Ballooning Adventures from a private air strip to a landing in Hampshire about 3 miles away in the neighborhood near Hampshire Middle School. Winds aloft offered lots of β€œsteerage” due to varying directions at different altitudes!

Thanks to Mike Reid and the Village of Hampshire for the warm welcome and help packing up our system, and to Peter and Amy for flying with us!

We were thrilled to ring in the 2024 ballooning season with a static ground inflation at the Lake In The Hills Airport! ...
04/16/2024

We were thrilled to ring in the 2024 ballooning season with a static ground inflation at the Lake In The Hills Airport! Many thanks to Liz, Tony, Devin, and Thomas for the assist with some interesting wind gusts.

If you're interested in flying and willing to help crew we'd love to hear from you. We're excited to have our best season yet and share it with you!

Tuesday found us presenting at another event, our fourth in two weeks! We were excited to be invited by Squadron Command...
10/04/2023

Tuesday found us presenting at another event, our fourth in two weeks! We were excited to be invited by Squadron Commander Elizabeth Barkmann of the Illinois Wing - Civil Air Patrol at Lake in the Hills 3CK Airport to present to her cadet group on lighter than air flight operations. We covered standard inflation and deflation procedures with cadets joining hands-on at various steps in the process, as well as running a short night glow with the opportunity to get hands on running the burner inside the basket. After packing up the system we returned to the office for a very engaging Q&A session.

Thanks to Elizabeth for having us and to the cadets of the Lake in the Hills Composite Squadron for offering us such a warm welcome!

If you or someone you know in the area is interested in an organization that offers opportunities to learn about aerospace / STEM, engage in civic service, and be part of an 82-year legacy of providing civilian auxiliary support and emergency services to local communities consider checking out CAP! You can find IL-282, our local squadron, on Facebook at Lake in the Hills Composite Squadron, Civil Air Patrol.

Hot on the heels of Girls in Aviation Day and Carpentersville Fall Fest last weekend we were pleased to return to Lake i...
10/01/2023

Hot on the heels of Girls in Aviation Day and Carpentersville Fall Fest last weekend we were pleased to return to Lake in the Hills 3CK Airport for the Sycamore District Boy Scouts event "Planes Trains and Automobiles"! Unfortunately, "And Hot Air Balloons" did not make it onto the event title πŸ˜‚ We had the opportunity to show scouts of all ages how hot air balloons work, what the inside of the balloon looks like, and even how to fire off the burner!

Thank you to 3CK airport and the Scouts for having us!

This past weekend was busy with a double header on Saturday! We spent the morning at Lake in the Hills 3CK Airport as a ...
09/27/2023

This past weekend was busy with a double header on Saturday! We spent the morning at Lake in the Hills 3CK Airport as a featured presenter for our local Girls in Aviation Day hosted by the fabulous ladies of Chicago's Leading Edge. It was a full day of education on topics ranging from aircraft maintenance, aerodynamics, a variety of aircraft types, and of course how to walk through the inside of a hot air balloon!

From there we had enough time to grab a snack and then it was off to Carpentersville's own Carpenter Park for their annual Fall Fest where we put on a gentle night glow in nice, calm conditions while enjoying a talented band and scrumptious festival food.

Thank you to Chicago's Leading Edge and Carpentersville Public Works for having us, and we look forward to participating again! And thanks to our crew for the weekend, Thomas and Liz!

This week we had a relaxing flight with Bianca and Alex in nice calm conditions with a perfect stand up landing. Started...
09/21/2023

This week we had a relaxing flight with Bianca and Alex in nice calm conditions with a perfect stand up landing. Started at Goebbert's Farm - Pingree Grove and landed near Hampshire in sunny skies. Couldn't ask for better conditions 🌀🎈

This is our second season flying regularly from Goebbert's and we're grateful for their generosity in accommodating us! Their Fall Festival is in full swing featuring camel rides, apple and pumpkin picking, rides, a haunted house, and more. Please consider stopping by and supporting them if you're in the area and looking to bring home fresh produce, apple cider doughnuts, or want to plan a fun family trip or date!

Ballooning is a team sport, so networking is key! When we dropped in on Sara at her workplace during a landing and she e...
08/19/2023

Ballooning is a team sport, so networking is key! When we dropped in on Sara at her workplace during a landing and she expressed interest, naturally we invited her and her husband Doug to come on a future flight! We enjoyed a calm, slightly hazy flight from Goebbert's Farm to The Landings airport in Huntley! Who says hot air balloons can't land at airports?

Thank you Sara and Greg for joining us in flight, and for sharing these fabulous photos with us!

We enjoyed a slightly hazy flight on June 14 with Maddie and Julia! Launching from Goebbert's Pumpkin Patch we flew for ...
06/21/2023

We enjoyed a slightly hazy flight on June 14 with Maddie and Julia! Launching from Goebbert's Pumpkin Patch we flew for an hour contouring along the landscape and getting some great views from the sky before landing just east of the Burlington Prairie Forest Preserve in Burlington, IL. Thanks to Maddie and Julia for joining us, and thanks to Thomas, Taryn, and Limb'rin for their work as crew on this flight!

Our 2023 flying season has officially commenced! We enjoyed a beautiful flight from Goebberts Pumpkin Patch to the Tall ...
05/21/2023

Our 2023 flying season has officially commenced! We enjoyed a beautiful flight from Goebberts Pumpkin Patch to the Tall Oaks Subdivision block party! We felt so very welcomed and were able to take quite a few families on their first tethered balloon rides. Thank you for the warm reception and maybe we'll see you again on a future flight!

Thanks to John Belcher, Limb'rin Ostergaard, and Thomas Parikka for making this a great flight!

Beautiful flight today, 1.2 hours from Goebbert's Pumpkin Patch to Hampshire with Shalini and Andrew! Landed in an adora...
09/30/2022

Beautiful flight today, 1.2 hours from Goebbert's Pumpkin Patch to Hampshire with Shalini and Andrew! Landed in an adorable subdivision and took a few folks up for tether rides before the sunset. Thanks everyone who came out!

First actual flight of the season is in the books! We launched from Burlington Airport and made it all the way to Elkhor...
05/17/2022

First actual flight of the season is in the books! We launched from Burlington Airport and made it all the way to Elkhorn. It felt so good to be back in the sky! Thanks to my great crew Connor, Micah, and of course Thomas πŸ’œ

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