AUBURN — When chasing a balloon, don’t stop on the Bernard Lown Peace Bridge, even if your husband is the pilot.

If you do, the police will appear in your rearview mirror and ask you to kindly move along.

That’s what happened to Ellen Varney, who was driving a chase vehicle following Dick Varney’s balloon, Blacky, during the Saturday morning launch of the Great Falls Balloon Festival.

The Varneys, of North Brookfield, Massachusetts, are festival regulars. Their passengers were Eric Perron of Monmouth, Ray and Rebecca Conway of Bucksport and Teddy Doughty of Cape Elizabeth.

Perron, who works at the Wal-mart Distribution Center, was a first-timer at the festival.

“I’ve been watching the balloons for a while coming to the festival,” Perron said. “I decided this was the year I was going to try it out.”

Riders were gathered at Ness Oil before the sun was up. Just before 6 a.m., a parade of trucks and vans hauling balloons and baskets pulled in.

Riders were assigned balloons and rode to the fields with their pilots.

Varney was one of seven that took off from a Lewiston High School field. Not all of the balloons fit at the Simard-Payne Memorial Park, especially considering the vast amount of space the Darth Vader balloon commanded.

In his van with his riders, Dick Varney introduced himself and shared the question he asked on his first ballon ride: “Where are we going?”

“Truly, I have not a clue,” Varney said. “We’ll go wherever the breeze takes us today.”

An auctioneer and real estate agent, Varney has flown at the festival since it began 24 years ago. He said he used to be afraid of heights. His fear was so bad, “I couldn’t climb a ladder to paint the house,” he said.

His wife bought him a hot air balloon ticket. The ticket sat in the kitchen for four years.

“One day, she said, ‘Use this darn thing or give it away.’”

He finally used it.

“I was one of the most nervous passengers that I’ve ever flown,” he said.

But, 10 minutes into the flight, he relaxed, declaring the ride “kind of neat.” A half hour into the flight, he decided to become a pilot. Two weeks later, he took his first lesson.

“And as soon as I had that first balloon ride, I had to paint the d*** house!” Varney said to laughter.

When his balloon was filled, the four passengers climbed in the basket. The balloon lifted as burners whooshed.

The ground crew scurried into the van and started their chase. Ellen Varney was at the wheel.

On East Avenue, about a dozen balloons dotted the sky. The van proceeded to Lisbon Street, then stopped on the bridge to watch Varney dip his balloon a few feet off the Androscoggin River.

After police asked her to move, Ellen drove into Auburn and on Broad Street until residential homes gave way to farmlands and pastures.

Ellen explained she tries to anticipate where the balloon is going to stay ahead of it.

“That way, if he finds a landing spot, we’re just about there,” she said.

The chase crew lost sight of the balloon a few times.

“It’s amazing how he hides from us,” Ellen said.

By now, on outer Broad Street, a bunch of hot air balloons floated above. Cars were pulled over. People were taking pictures with their phones.

Looking for her husband, Ellen and her crew continued driving past Prospect Hill Golf Course, through side streets.

“If the trees don’t open up, we won’t be able to see him,” she said.

Varney called to say he was drifting toward the Hackett Road. On Ipswich Street, the ground crew got a visual. The chase team drove to the Witham Road. There was a beautiful sight — eight or nine colorful balloons floating over pastures.

Ellen Varney parked the van. The chase crew jumped out and ran across fields still wet with dew. They grabbed a line from their pilot as Dick Varney made a gentle landing.

“Textbook,” a crew member said.

The passengers in the basket were all smiles.

David and Christine Bishop own the land where Varney landed. The Bishops watched from yard chairs, drinking coffee.

Christine joked that they didn’t even have to go to the balloon festival.

“It comes to us,” she said. “One year, we had three balloons almost at the same time. We love it when people land.”

Varney shook their hands and gave them a bottle of champagne.

Moments later, passengers and crew raised glasses of champagne as Varney made a toast. “God has joined them with laughter, and set us gentle back into the loving arms of Mother Earth.”

He thanked volunteers, passengers, and was grateful for gentle winds.

“Cheers,” the group said as they sipped.

After the balloon was wrapped and stored, passenger Teddy Doughty said he wanted more.

“I’m going up again tonight,” he said. “I’m caught up in it pretty bad.”

Editor’s note: Sunday is the last day of the balloon festival. Balloons are scheduled go to up at 6 a.m. and 6 p.m.

bwashuk@sunjournal.com

Balloon humor

LEWISTON — Veteran hot air balloon pilot Dick Varney and his wife, Ellen, have flown at the Great Falls Balloon Festival for years. They seem to enjoy meeting people and are quick to joke and laugh.

As they worked on the field early Saturday, they joked:

When passengers get into the basket — including some nervous, first-timers — some ask: “How long have you been flying?” Dick Varney said. “‘My crew tells them, ‘This is his first flight!’”

Crew chief Ellen Varney rolled out tarp and balloon getting it ready to be inflated.

She paused and said to onlookers: “There are some rules. No taking pictures of us girls when we’re bent over. It doesn’t look good.”

On women after men: “Ballooning is the only time my wife chases me,” Dick Varney said.

 

 

More online at SunJournal.com/BalloonFest

The Sun Journal is covering the Great Falls Balloon Festival with:

• Livestream video of the 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. launches Friday, Saturday and Sunday at SunJournal.com
• Facebook Live video and photos from festival at Facebook.com/SunJournal
• Stories, photos and videos at SunJournal.com/BalloonFest
• Status updates at SunJournal.com/BalloonFest, Facebook.com/SunJournal and Twitter.com/SunJournal

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