Ready for takeoff! News 12 learns the ins and outs of hot air ballooning
Every July, New Jersey holds the second largest hot air balloon festival in the country.
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Today is National Hot Air Balloon Day. It's a trip that many people have dreamed about but may be scared to try.
News 12 New Jersey’s Rick Holmes visited Solberg Airport in Readington Township Monday where he boarded a hot air balloon. It was a little too windy to fly in the morning, so Holmes learned what it was like to stand inside a hot air balloon. Tom Russo with Brookside Ballooning showed how the hot air balloons get off the ground.
New Jersey has a great history of ballooning. Solberg Airport is home to the New Jersey Lottery Festival of Ballooning which takes place July 28 to 30. The festival's executive producer says it takes a year to plan.
"We spend 365 days making magic of ballooning for the weekend of July 28-30. So when people come out here, the 175,000 balloonatics that we're going to have, they're going to have a great experience with their family," Howard Freeman said.
The first festival was held at a truck stop in Bloomsbury in 1983. This year marks the 40th annual festival.
Tickets are available now. For tickets, visit balloonfestival.com.
