Article Contributed on: 8/26/2008 8:56:15 PM
By Cadet 1Lt. Byron Gray
The weekend of August 22-24 was a busy, exciting, and somewhat sleepless time for many cadets in the Civil Air Patrol's Mustang Cadet Squadron. Mustang has been invited by Major Sellers of the Dakota Ridge Composite Squadron for the past few years to assist at the Rocky Mountain Balloon Festival doing various duties to make the event run smoothly. The festival is held annually at Chatfield Reservoir where more than fifty hot air balloon teams from around the country come to fly.
The cadets from Mustang Squadron joined with cadets from four other squadrons this year to facilitate parking for the patrons and serve as balloon crewmembers. Cadets reported for duty on Friday afternoon, set up their tents, got acquainted with members from the other squadrons, and were briefed by the Chatfield Park Rangers so that they would be prepared for the weekend. This year had the unexpected surprise of a rain and lightning storm Friday evening.
Saturday was the big day of the event. The cadets woke up at 4:30am to get ready for the day. At 5:30 they headed out to do the traffic duty for the event. Thousands of people come out to see the balloons so park security staff put most of the cadets to work directing traffic. Those that weren't directing traffic got to help crew the balloons. Regardless of their assignment everyone's favorite part of the day was when the balloons went up for the morning mass ascension. The balloons go up shortly after sunrise which is the best time to fly because the air is usually calm and the temperature cool.
After the morning mass ascension the cadets went off duty for a few hours. During their free time they were able to visit the various vendors, talk to the balloon pilots, view an oldies car show, and attend a class to learn more about hot air ballooning. At 6:00pm they were back on duty directing traffic and assisting balloon crews for the evening glow. The evening glow event is when the balloons fill up after dark and turn on their burners so they look like lanterns.
Unfortunately this year the winds were uncooperative and only three balloons were successfully inflated. The mass exodus of cars and people at the end of the evening was the greatest challenge of the weekend for the cadets as they once again directed vehicle and pedestrian traffic. After the park emptied the cadets went to bed, very tired from the day's hard work. On Sunday they woke up again at 4:30 to help with the last ascension of the event.
Everyone worked very hard to make the event run smoothly, and all agreed it did. The cadets received praise from the park rangers, the balloon crews, and even from the public who attended the event and appreciated their volunteer work. All the cadets that participated are already looking forward to doing it again next year. One cadet summed up his experience as, "I have always enjoyed this event. It is a great balloon show. And I also enjoy this event because of the opportunity to work with my squadron and to get to know some great people from other squadrons, too."
The Civil Air Patrol's Mustang Cadet Squadron meets on Wednesday nights from 6:30-9:00pm at the Department of Military Affairs. 6848 S. Revere Pkwy, Englewood. For more information go to
www.mustangcadetsquadron.org or e-mail Major Ilya Winstien at
cc@mustangcadetsquadron.org.