By: Tina Heiberg
This morning, I had the incredible privilege of flying in a hot air balloon with none other than Chris Smart, a man who’s been piloting balloons for 33 years, with more than 2,000 flights under his belt. He’s a seven-time state champion, highly ranked in competitions, and the proud owner of his third balloon, Dream Catcher III, made in Michigan.
We lifted off from the Wadsworth Municipal Airport for the media flight, the official kickoff to the Balloons Over Wadsworth festival. The whole experience, from prepping the balloon to our ride, landing, and driving back, took less than two hours, with the wind steering us north. We landed a bit rocky in an allotment in Sharon Center, where homeowners waved and took photos of the landings. Just before that, I was handed the flag to toss on a giant X marking the target, and let’s just say… I missed. Badly. Chris spent the rest of the morning teasing me: “Next time, throw it!”
Ballooning is in Chris’s blood and is a family tradition. In his words, “an easy, inexpensive way to see things.” But it’s also deeply personal. Last year, Chris lost his wife, Amy, to cancer. A ribbon with her name flies on every trip. And he still talks about one of his favorite flights: a 96-year-old woman with a terminal illness who couldn’t stand in the basket. Chris set up a seat in his basket so she could still go up. Three weeks later, she passed away, but her family said it was all she talked about in those final days.
Chris usually flies around 2,000 feet, but Dream Catcher III can soar to 18,000, though anything over 12,500 feet requires oxygen. The highest speed he’s ever hit? An unbelievable 75 mph. And yet, you feel no wind, no rush – just quiet, stillness, and the occasional whoosh of the burner. It’s peaceful, magical, a view like no other.
After we landed, we celebrated with the balloonist’s traditional champagne (or OJ) toast and recited the blessing:
“The winds have welcomed you with softness. The sun has blessed you with its warm hands. You have flown so high and so well, that God has joined you in laughter and set you gently back into the loving arms of Mother Earth.”
If you’ve never been in a hot air balloon, I can tell you, it’s a different world up there. You can talk to someone on the ground, yet hear nothing of the traffic below. Just you, the sky, and that sense of awe.
The Balloons Over Wadsworth competition launches Saturday at 6:30 a.m. from the Wadsworth Municipal Airport, with the Night Glow at 8:30 p.m. You never know, Dream Catcher III might just float over your backyard.
