A group of approximately 40 adults and children lined up between the American Legion Post #261 and the Land O’ Lakes Oil Company Saturday evening for free hot-air balloon rides conducted by Freedom Flight Incorporated of St. Cloud. The Kimball Legion Club sponsored the two-hour event for Kimball Days and gave Kimball residents a hint of what it would feel like to travel through the air in a wicker basket. “The vice-commander of the legion, Mark Orbeck, spoke to me and said it would be good for the community to do this,” said Mike Olk, commander of American Legion Post 261. “I think it’s great people can come and ride (the hot air balloon) for free.” The Kimball Legion Club took care of the expenses for Freedom Flight’s hot-air balloon and services. Freedom Flight is a non-profit corporation established in 1988 to honor and increase awareness of soldiers listed as Prisoners of War or Missing in Action (POW/MIA). That was one of the reasons the Legion Club decided to organize it for this year’s Kimball Days. “The purpose of this is to get kids to have fun and understand the POW/MIA issue,” Olk said. As the crew got the hot-air balloon’s burners ready, the balloon was tied down to three pick-up trucks to prevent it from flying off with the wind. This also ensured that the balloon would land in the same place each time, because steering isn’t easy on a hot air balloon. In addition to the pilot, each ride took a maximum of four passengers. Once the passengers were in, the balloon was raised up to 100 feet above the ground and lingered in the air for a minute to give passengers an aerial view of Kimball. After a quick wave to family and friends below, the balloon would come back down for the next batch of passengers. For Erin Gilpatrick, 12, and Kelsey Vigoren, 12, the hot-air balloon ride was a totally new experience. “We thought we were going pretty high,” Kelsey said. “It was pretty scary when you get near the ground because you don’t know when it’s going to hit (the ground).” “It was fun but a little hot (because of the burners),” Erin added. Both girls are pretty sure they will get on a hot-air balloon again if the opportunity arises. Brenda Carlson and her friend Tanya Dickie liked their first ride on a hot-air balloon so much that they are thinking about hiring Freedom Flight to do personal rides. “He (the pilot) said he does hour rides for $175 per person,” Carlson said. The response to the hot-air balloon rides was overwhelmingly positive and Olk will consider organizing the rides again for next year’s Kimball Days. “Next year we want to get strobe lights in addition to the hot-air balloons,” Olk said. “That way at night, the public knows something is going on.”
