The Story Behind the Bicycle Balloon Race

Since the beginning of the balloon festival at the Warren County Farmers' Fair balloonmeister Fred Grotenhuis talked about having different types of challenging races. There is of course the traditional hare and hound. In this race the first balloon off the ground is called the hare. They carry on board a giant X. The pilot flies as far as he wishes and then lands and puts out the giant X. Meanwhile the other pilots have inflated and like hounds, chase the hare. They try to maneuver their balloon to follow the path of the lead balloon and ultimately have opportunity to drop a bean bag on the target – the giant X. Fred also talked about races like the key grab, the ribbon race and the bicycle balloon race they had years ago at a festival in Bloomsbury, NJ. 

One particular morning Balloonatics & Aeronuts, the coordinators of the balloon fest, had a single passenger scheduled for a balloon ride. So they called a friend to see if he wanted to ride along. It so happened that Kate the passenger and John were both bicyclists. After the flight at the "champagne picnic" the group got to talking about the bicycle balloon race. As the conversation progressed it actually ended up that the 1st annual race was planned, with the fair less than one month away. 

Later that day Fred was asked a few questions about logistics for the race. After several questions he asked, "you're not planning this race for THIS year, are you?" To the others, it seemed simple enough, as was discussed at great length over the mimosas and Entenman’s that morning.

Then the question became what charity would the proceeds go to. When Fred drove by a banner promoting the annual Vreeland Charity Ride the answer was clear. The Vreeland Charity Ride is an annual bike ride that raises money for the ADM Foundation, which benefits the three children of a couple who died in a motorcycle crash several years ago. For more information on this ride and organization visit www.admfoundation.com.

So in 2007 the 1st annual Bicycle Balloon Race at the Warren County Farmers' Fair was pulled off with less than a month of planning. The event was a great success, with 16 daring pilots donating a ride for 16 daring bicyclists.