At 5:00 A.M. the trucks roared in and their crews began setting up. These folks are like NASCAR crews. They have every move choreographed to quickly lay out the bags, attach the gondolas, inflate the bags and get aloft while the winds are down. For anyone who doesn't know, we tend to have still mornings in Vegas, but the winds begin in mid-morning and build to a peak in the afternoon.
The empty lot is rapidly laid out, the three crews get their balloons deployed and the clients watch. My Phantom watches from above, but the light is weak. Come on, Sun!
Oh rats! One of the pilots greeted me and told me I was welcome to follow his balloon--but the balloon at the southern end took off first. I took the bird in the hand.
By following the southern balloon, the Inspire drone got out of position. Next thing I knew I had the drone above on the far side of the second balloon. Oops. Had to up and over, hoping the elephantine bag wouldn't come right up under me.
Going to take a few mornings to get what I'm after, but I'm learning what NOT to do quickly...
Up, up and away! Oh, wait. I used that in my last YouTube video about ballooning two years ago: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpQarQMG7zU
Some lessons learned. The reflection off the balloon's bag almost blinds the chip in my camera. Also, you see the sky burn out here and there as the ground, balloon and sky are at radically different exposures. Sigh. I have to position differently to compensate.
Secondly, I was on the Sun (East) side, but the balloons quickly went South and flew away from me. Tomorrow I'll get more on that side and try to get ahead of the balloons as they lift.
The bags are filled with hot air from giant blowtorches, which have to be fired regularly to stay aloft. Here's how the Inspire drone saw it.
One of the captains said he'd love for me to fly the drone around inside the bag as it was being filled. The Phantom would be perfect for that, so I'll pursue it.
Hmmm. Have to avoid getting in front of that blowtorch, though...
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