Posted on 07/30/2002 5:33:58 PM PDT by abner
Patriotism Takes Flight
Barry & Teri DiLibero
1776: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The delegates signed the Declaration of Independence. Benjamin Franklin states, "We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately."
1776: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Betsy Ross sewed the first new United States flag for a group of British colonies seeking independence from England. The flag had 13 white stars on a blue field and thirteen red and white alternating stripes.
1783: Paris, France: The Montgolfiere Brothers flew animals, and later, humans in a hot air balloon.
1787: The Constitution drafted by the delegates represented the new United States of America. When asked what kind of government America had, Benjamin Franklin replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.”
1793 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The first balloon flight in the United States was made with George Washington in attendance.
1812 The War of 1812: Some call it the “Second War of Independence,” the United States, a very young country, fought the British for a second time.
1861-1865: The American Civil War threatened to tear apart the union of the United States. Balloons were used for observation.
1939-1945 World War II: The United States is pulled into a war fighting two entities that believe in world domination.
1964-1975 The Vietnam War: Some say it is the most disputed war by the citizens of the US.
The First Amendment is exercised to what some believe is extreme. Ultimately, the strength of the Constitution holds through the stresses once again, allowing people to state their opinions without being squelched. Included in these protests, burning the United States Flag.
2001-??? The War on Terror: Islamist fanatics flew planes into the World Trade Centers in New York City, New York and the Pentagon, just outside of Washington, D.C. Another plane was on its way to Washington, D.C. when it was flown into the ground in Pennsylvania when the passengers fought back. The arguments started over trading freedom for security. Thomas Jefferson once said, "Those who give up freedom for security have neither".
Who knows what the future holds?
It has been 225 years since Betsy Ross displayed the first United States Flag. Tragedy and triumph have made our country great and tested our ability to stay united as a country. Balloons and our country have been intertwined since the beginning of both. At a time when patriotism is needed and appreciated once again, we are proud to present N225YR....
Since I started ballooning in 1991, I always wanted to get a special shape balloon. But what shape to get? I had considered several different things, including a Koala, the logo for one of our companies. We ended up doing artwork on a standard balloon for the koala balloon in the spring of 2000. Later that year, the Presidential election demonstrated how little Americans know about their own country. Every Presidential election has a failsafe called the Electoral College. Yet most people that voted did not understand how it works. We would hear arguments erupt with heavy frustrations on both sides, explaining how it should be without any real understanding why the process works as it does.
My wife Teri and I agreed on the perfect special shape. The American Flag. We thought it would be great to team the balloon with giving out pocket-sized Constitutions. On a quest to put the framework of our country in peoples’ hands to help them understand the basic laws and freedoms granted to us as United States citizens, we shopped around, and figured out the costs and logistics of such a huge project. We realized that if we built it in the spring, it would be ready just in time for the end of the balloon season.
That would be great. It could sit in the bag all winter. As business sometimes does, a few things came up in our companies operations and we put the project on the back burner. On September 11, the United States lost almost 3,000 civilians at the World Trade Centers in New York, The Pentagon in Virginia and in Shanksville, PA.
People with blind hatred for the United States acted on that hatred by killing thousands of innocent civilians.
The Flag and Constitution Project could wait no longer. We had to build this flag.
On September 17, I met with Kenny Schumate of www.balloonatic.com at the Pennsbury Township Balloon Rally in Southeastern PA. He is the representative for a young balloon manufacturer called Aeromagic. I had seen his Clown special shape and loved the workmanship and attention to detail. Kenny and I contacted Aeromagic the next week and went over the project. The dimensions ended up being 78' long, 53' tall and 29 feet wide. In the end, it turned out a little bigger, 124,000 cubic feet! They were extremely excited to do this type of project and were confident they could build exactly what I wanted.
They were right. We closed a deal in just another week.
They started on the envelope in late October. Once in a while, pictures would come over in an e-mail showing the project in progress. Yards and yards of fabric on the floor, the star pattern on the blue, red and white stripes until the photo ran out.
The balloon was top secret. They could not discuss it with any of their customers. We wanted this to be a surprise to the world come springtime. A limited number of people were told about it. Mostly, event organizers were notified so that we could get scheduled at balloon rallies before all the spots were taken.
On January 31, 2002 at 5:00 am, Teri and I were on our way to Washington, D.C. for a political convention where we would be speaking about the balloon for the first time and to raise interest in the Pocket Constitution project. This was our first engagement about the balloon. Teri checked the e-mail just before we left and what shows up? A picture of our Flag Balloon, inflated in a covered stadium. What a beautiful sight! The feeling was exhilarating.
As we studied the picture, the size of the stadium seats and the crew, it just seemed as if the photo was fabricated. Was it really that big? I guess we never thought about how large the front dimensions would be since the depth is so narrow compared to a conventional envelope. That capacity had to go somewhere.
The weather was bad for almost 30 days before the manufacturer could do the test flight. On February 24, we got the good news and photos. It had flown that morning and everything was perfect. Finally, it was ready for delivery. After so many months of getting gray hair, we decided to have it air freighted by Delta for safety reasons. It took about seven days for it to arrive at the Philadelphia International Airport. Imagine my surprise when we started to load it in the truck and discovered the giant forklift tear in the envelope bag! Not only that, the bag had been placed on a pallet with nails sticking out of it. Two of the nails had torn through the bottom. Had the envelope been damaged? No one could tell because of the location of the tears. It would have to be inflated. More rain, more wind, more waiting. After about another ten days, we had a good day and a break in our schedule. Finally... an inflation!
We figured out the rip panels and the side vents, put heat to it and stood back in awe. Well, most of us did. I was still in the basket. Thankfully, I was relieved of the burners so that I could see the masterpiece of hot air, fabric and dreams. Words will never describe the emotions that ran through me at first sight of this balloon. Okay, relief was one word; there was no damage from the forklift other than the envelope bag. Teri has not stopped smiling about the beautiful balloon yet.
The first flight was a test flight for me. I had to become familiar with the flight characteristics of this special shape. Since special shapes all have their own idiosyncrasies, I was, as you can imagine, apprehensive about what this one would do. Would it spin? How would it respond to venting and heating? How much room is needed to land this 80-foot long behemoth?
During our test flight, the reaction from the spectators was strikingly unusual. In our area, when a balloon flies over, children yell, "LAND HERE!” Adults yell, "How is it up there?" and "Are you having a good time?" and "Get outta’ my yaaaard!” The last one of those comments is usually by a 70 year old guy that wears his pants up around his chest. When the United States Flag Balloon flew over, we heard silence. Oh, there were people, lots of them. Awestruck, dumbfounded, astounded, and proud. People said nothing, standing without movement until we were out of sight. The ground crew said that as people driving saw the balloon, they did three things:
1. Slam on the brakes.
2. Pull over.
3. Grab the cell phone.
Not always in that order.
As it turned out, the balloon was docile to fly. It had quick response, even on a single burner. The balloon never pin-wheeled. It simply lined up like a weathervane and flew like a blimp! As the wind shifted, the balloon simply rotated with the wind. That left only one tricky thing. The landing. Imagine having 35 plus feet leading the way and 35 plus feet behind. It took some pre-thinking to keep from dropping in right on the backside of a tree. In all, with three people and pilot on board, in one hour and ten minutes, we consumed 17.4 gallons of propane.
Since that flight the week before Memorial Day, we have done one press inflation, a tether on top of the entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel in Weehawken, New Jersey, the Quechee Balloon Fest and The Big Bear Balloon Festival in Columbus, Ohio. The image of the United States Flag Balloon has been on various CBS affiliates, CNN, MTV, and written about in The Washington Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Tri-County Courier, plus many other publications currently getting ready to go to print. We certainly hope that this balloon strikes pride into the heart of all Americans. Also, we hope to get more media time and recognition for sport ballooning.
We are still working on the funding to do our first printing of 50,000 pocket Constitutions. If you would like to contribute to this project, please contact us at www.usflagballoon.com.
We are always looking for crew and just other patriotic people to come help with the balloon. If we are in your area, stop by and say, “Hello.”
The links on this page are fairly large scanned files from the actual magazine. There are pretty pictures though.
No he didn't.
Fellow FReepers, you have got to go see this balloon in person. I have seen a multitude of pictures of the US Flag Balloon, and not one of them can do it justice. You gotta go see it!
And not only that, you have to witness the excitement and appreciation of the crowd. When we launched Friday afternoon, the spectators went nuts! When we launched Saturday morning, the spectators went nuts (I flew with Barry that morning, and I am here to say that seeing and hearing that crowd was very, very special -- Thanks, Barry, for allowing me the privilege of flying with you. I'll never forget it.) When we launched Saturday night -- well, you get the picture.
This balloon will be, I predict, the most famous hot air balloon in the world in short order. It is breathtaking, and the crowds really do appreciate it.
And here is a link to Teri and Barry's spectacular web site. Scroll down about halfway through the first page to see some spectacular photos.
And help Teri and Barry get the balloon to your area -- you owe it to yourself and your countrymen!
You will have to argue that one with Barry.
I'm still not going to argue the point. I know that FReepers are more educated about these things than most. Ben Franklin sounds right to me too actually. LOL!
What do you think of the balloon?
The "liberty and safety" line Barry paraphrased is often credited to Jefferson, but Bartelby attributes it to Benjamin Franklin, who used it as the motto of his 1759 'Historical Review'. Jefferson was 15 or 16 at the time...
The full quote is "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
FRegards,
I.T.
My next trick is going to be a RC US Flag Balloon... About 18 Feet high. With Uncle Sam in the basket.
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