I never miss an opportunity to take a great photo. Years before we were married, my husband and I ventured out to take photos of the hot air balloon race during the St. Paul Winter Carnival. We froze our fingers that subzero day but took some awesome photos of colorful hot air balloons. Of course with the warm spring weather, I jumped at the chance to photo the RE/MAX balloon as it took off from Benson Airfield just north of White Bear Lake. Little did we know that we were going to be more involved in the launch than just showing up and snapping a few pictures.
I thought I had missed out on the flight as it was suppose to fly over the Governor's Fishing Opener on White Bear Lake this past weekend. I had been busy showing homes in Chisago County on Saturday so figured the balloon fly over was just a memory.
On Sunday afternoon, my colleague Rose Hildebrand dropped by my Wyoming open house. She also was holding an open in the same neighborhood and had dropped by to preview my listing. When she casually mentioned the RE/MAX balloon was a go for Sunday evening, I couldn't believe I hadn't missed out!
The takeoff point was Benson Field just south of Hugo in White Bear Township. It was a beautiful evening. It was a good thing my husband was there, the balloon team needed a bit of help to get the balloon off the ground. There is a bit of work to getting the balloon set up and put away. My fellow RE/MAX Specialist REALTOR®'s Julie Jarvis and Rose Hildebrand were allowed to go along for the ride of their lives. I chose to keep both feet firmly on the ground and capture the adventure in photos.
When asked where they planned to land the balloon, the answer was, wherever the wind takes us. (This wasn't a joke.) We followed the van to assist the team in putting the balloon back in the van and had to chase after the balloon; stopping and assessing along the way. They tried to set down in the Mahtomedi practice field but the wind had other ideas.
They literally ended up landing on the front yard of a home in Mahtomedi. Before landing, the van driver did ask the homeowners permission...Her teenager thought the hot air balloon was amazing and took out a cell phone to snap a few pictures of his own. But their dog, Daisy, who is afraid of regular balloons, was having her worst nightmare. For me however, it was just a fabulous adventure! If you ever have a chance to assist in a RE/MAX hot air balloon adventure of your own, don't turn it down. It was a great way to spend a Sunday evening!
Looking for REALTOR® that goes above and beyond? If you are buying or relocating to Minnesota and need help from a professional REALTOR®, give me a call or visit my website for a FREE Relocation Packet, Homebuyers Success Packet or sign up for Listingbook Twin Cities Home Search. I specialize in acreage and lakeshore properties in the north and east Twin Cities metro area including Ham Lake, Lino Lakes and all communities in the Forest Lake School District! Serving Anoka, Chisago, Ramsey and Washington Counties in Minnesota..JPG)
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Copyright 2009 Teri Eckholm http://www.terieckholm.com/
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