The 50th anniversary of the International Balloon Festival carries special significance to one family that can now boast of having three generations of pilots taking part in the event.
Shane Shipman took control of a balloon for the first time this year, following in the footsteps of his father Derek Grasspaugh, who followed in the footsteps of his father Bob Grasspaugh. "This one's special because it's the first year my grandson is a pilot flying," Bob said told KOAT. "I'm so proud of him really, I love it and I'm so happy for them."
Shipan is the pilot of a balloon called “I don’t know,” named by his father Derek. The name was fitting last Sunday when the scheduled mass ascension was delayed because of weather and visitors and pilots were left wondering if the hot-air balloons were ever going to get off the ground. If anyone asked, the typical answer was “I don’t know.”
The family named its balloon that in 2006 and it has stuck ever since. "It's definitely fitting cause right now it's just up in the air and we don't know (if we'll be able to fly),” Shipman said on Sunday amid a crowded Balloon Fiesta Park.
Shipman spent last year assisting his father, who was the pilot of the balloon. It helped him prepare for his maiden voyage as a pilot on opening day.
"Last year, he flew with me every day under a mentorship," Derek said. "He definitely can do this."
Beginning with 13 balloons in 1973, the International Balloon Festival held at the 360-acre Balloon Fiesta Park is the premier international ballooning event. Conditions are normally perfect in October due to a phenomenon called the "Albuquerque Box." According to the festival's website, that happens when a combination of weather patterns and geographic landscape allows balloonists to control and even retrace their adventure. It benefits spectators and pilots, who can possibly take off and land from the same location.
Pilots representing 7 countries and more than 70 food and merchandise vendors are hosting the event.