Up and Away and Many Thanks to My Mentor

I can’t tell you how grateful we are to my Mentor for, besides being such a great guy, taking the kids up in his balloon. It was the thrill of a lifetime. The subject had come up in the past, but there was the issue of age. Generally he likes for kids to be of a certain age before they fly, but it really boils down more to a question of maturity and trust, or rather who he feels comfortable flying with. He knows A&N well, and felt they were ready.

The kids were thrilled to pieces, and when I mentioned it to them, they couldn’t wait, not that I could blame them. We got word on Wednesday from my Mentor that there was a chance they could fly, so be prepared. Come Friday morning, my Mentor informed us to be on the green by 6:30, and it was all set.

It was a beatiful evening, we couldn’t have asked for better conditions. We spent a quiet day at home, a rarity, and then around 5:00 we headed over the the farmer’s market to get some supper. I bought a quiche from CS, and it was delicious. We also got a loaf of WM’s killer oatmeal bread for my Mentor, and we were off.

We got to the green a little early and tossed the frisbee around, and before long, several other passengers showed up for assorted balloon rides. It turns out that two other balloons were flying, but when it comes to safety and enjoyment, there is only one: Balloons Over New England. GL has a perfect safety record, and when you learn about some of the crazy stuff that happens, this means everything.

We got to help set up, but my Mentor has an entire crew, so I was essentially redundant and tried to stay out of the way. The plan was for R to join the kids to help assuage our neurosis, even though I trust my Mentor in every way in terms of the safety or our kids. The takeoff was smooth, and pretty soon they were airborne. At first there wasn’t much in the way of wind, so they hovered a bit, but eventually the took off and headed down the Gorge. I followed behind the chase car and took pics.

They ended up over near Clay Hill Corner, and we all ran out to help her land. It was such a beautiful flight, and the evening couldn’t have been nicer. We even landed near our friend’s yard, and they came out to greet us and give us peas from their garden. We packed up the balloon, with JD working hard as usual, and headed home. We got to ride in the back in the balloon carriage all the way back to the green, where we had champagne (sparkling grape for the kids) and all sorts of treats.

My Mentor made a joke that he’d been baking all morning and made treats for the flight, and on the way home, N was telling me how good they were and that my Mentor had actually baked them. Cute.

We got home late, as expected, and then we hit the sack in preparation for a busy weekend. It was a really nice evening, and again, much thanks to my Mentor and his better half JD for making it happen.

Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks again to my Mentor.