The Balloon Fiesta brought visitors from all over the world to the Land of Enchantment to experience the early morning rush to the park to see the balloons take flight. The event, held between Oct. 4 and Sunday, Oct. 12, featured both new and old crowd favorites that ascended in Albuquerque’s blue skies.
April and Autumn Nieto, Albuquerque locals, try to attend the fiesta every year, they said.
“I like the special shapes day, it’s the best. It’s always great, especially waking up early in the morning,” Autumn Nieto said.
This year, 11 new special shaped balloons made their debut at the fiesta, including “King Capybara,” “Splash Duck” and “Vlad Dracula,” according to KOB.
Familiar favorites also made welcome returns, including the Family of Bees, Darth Vader, Yoda and UNM’s own “Cherry on Top” balloon.
The Balloon Fiesta has grown significantly from its humble beginnings in 1972 with just 13 balloons; it now boasts 600 balloons and 700 pilots, according to the Balloon Fiesta website.
Nearly 200 pilots kicked off Balloon Fiesta week with Balloons Aloft, visiting schools in the metro area on Oct. 3 to inflate their balloons on school campuses and take off as students watch, according to the Balloon Fiesta website.
Unfit weather conditions put a pause to the events four times during the week, with high winds leading to a static event on Balloon Fiesta’s opening morning, a thunderstorm that forced the cancellation of balloon events on Thursday, Oct. 9 and rainy conditions grounding the balloons in the morning on Saturday Oct. 11 and Sunday, Oct. 12.
Attendees who were present during the rained-out Thursday session were able to reuse their tickets for Friday night’s “glowdeo.”
JC Cortez traveled from Los Angeles to see the Balloon Fiesta for the first time on Thursday, Oct 9.
“I have family in Los Lunas, so I’ve been telling myself for years, I have to come out here at some point, and this year was just the time where it all lined up, and made it happen,” Cortez said.
David Reppert, from Canada, was visiting the southwest to catch concerts in Mesa, Arizona and Las Vegas, Nevada, and decided to stop by New Mexico to see the fiesta, he said.
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“(The Balloon Fiesta) is excellent. Came here yesterday to check it out, got some great information from the people, and just coming in and seeing it, it’s amazing,” Reppert said. “Just watching them lay out the balloons, and seeing them go up, it’s very impressive.”
Maria Fernandez is the copy editor for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at copy@dailylobo.com or on X @dailylobo
