High Tension

[AUG. 26, 2000]  Friday evening’s Balloonfest crowd was witness to a spectacular and frightening sight as one of the launching balloons had an untimely accident with local power lines.

At about 6 o’clock pm Friday, there were 5 or 6 balloons already launched and going up into the warm night's sky, a peaceful and rewarding sight.  At the northwest end of the fair ground track, two other balloons were preparing for launch.  “Big Red,” flown by George Norman {sponsored by Verizon} took off, cleared the fence and the road, but failed to continue the necessary rapid assent.  Instead of gracefully taking to the air, the balloon came toward the earth.

[click here for pictures of the event]

Dave Campbell, director of the Balloon Festival, said that both the pilot and his one passenger climbed out of the basket when it came down and made first contact with the ground.   As soon as the pilot and passenger were out of the basket, the balloon, now lighter without a payload, went aloft again, tangling in power lines several time before twisting for a final landing across Lincoln Parkway; in front of Greyhound Lube.  

The crowd was excited, stunned and horrified as they watched this aerial ballet and the demise of a favorite balloon.  A bright flash was seen as the balloon first made contact with the wires.  Brown smoke poured from the envelope.  Another explosion was heard as a gaping hole appeared in the side of the balloon.  The balloon went skyward again before it finally settled to the ground.  Emergency crews were said to have arrived just as the basket touched down.

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Fellow balloonist Dave Reineke had just started to take-off in his balloon when he saw that “Big Red” was having trouble. Reineke said, "He was doing a perfect rapid climb, and then started to fall."   

Utility crews turned off power to Lincoln’s west side for a time on the high-tension lines while mooring lines were untangled from the wires. 

Campbell went on to explain how proud he was of the volunteers and emergency personnel for the response.  "We have planned and practice for years in case anything like this would ever happen.  They responded in 2 minutes." 

FAA investigators have impounded the craft and they will attempt to make a determination of what went wrong. Pilot error is suspected.

Campbell finally said, "I'm am so proud of all the workers."

Going with the flow

[AUG. 26, 2000]  No wheels, no rudders, or steering wheels, how do you steer a balloon?  Basically you don’t.  You are at the mercy of the airflow.  You go where the wind takes you.  Air currents influence the direction a balloon moves.  At one level the winds may be going one direction and at another level an entirely different direction.  So by rising and lowering you can nominally guide the balloon.

So say veteran balloonists, Jerry and Mary Ann Garcia.  The Garcia’s have been ballooning nearly 20 years.  This is their sixth year in Lincoln.  They have the same people wanting to crew for them year after year.   Their sponsor, Lincoln Iron and Metal, wants them to keep coming back.  After spending some time with them it is perfectly understandable why. 

At home in Albuquerque, the Garcia’s fly every weekend. Their 7 year old black Labrador ‘Dusty’ often goes up with Jerry when it is just him flying, while wife Mary Ann loves the chase.  Figuring out where to be ready and waiting can be quite a trick.  This is what Mary Ann loves figuring out, and she has learned all the tricks.  “If there are other balloons out, you can learn to read the balloons by observing what directions they are moving at certain heights.  It takes some practice, she says, but I’ve become pretty good at knowing just where he’ll land.”

Where they fly at home they have a unique phenomenon not found on the plains.  There is a valley with box airflow.  At upper heights winds flow in one direction and at lower heights the winds move in the reverse direction. Jerry may be heading in and change his elevation and go back out. So, Mary Ann just sits and waits until she knows Jerry is coming all the way in before maneuvering for position.

They attend and compete in many festivals throughout the year. Festivals draw balloonists in a number different ways.  They offer awards and trophies, cash prizes, and sometimes-even merchandise.  Most find ways for balloonists to accumulate points, something like dropping numbered beanbags on a target.  A couple of the more unique competition’s the Garcia’s have attended offered keys to a new car to be found in one of several helium filled balloons, or if you could just grab the keys to a new home in a mock cardboard chimney. While Jerry likes to win competitions, “he will do all he can to win”, his wife Mary Ann respectfully admires his ability to not care if he doesn’t win. Jerry can rattle off quite a number of first places he’s taken in competitions.

The Garcia’s favorite aspect of hot air ballooning is donating their services.  They regularly donate rides to be auctioned off at fundraisers for many causes.  From local sports teams support to charity benefits, they have provided rides as part of Make-a-Wish Foundation, United Way, and other charitable causes.  They have also taken a number of special people up including Belarussian kids, World War I naval officers and their wives, and many others.  

The Garcia’s have Lincoln ties.  Born and raised here, Mary Ann (Ellis) went to Northwest school and is the sister of Diane Turner. When asked what her favorite memories of Lincoln are, she responds easily, “I miss Christmas here.  It just isn’t the same in Albuquerque. ”   She also misses the seasons changing.

The Garcia’s have been coming to the Lincoln Festival about 6 years now.  Smiling, Mary Ann recalls, “The most memorable experience coming to the Lincoln festival was the year the winds took Jerry over LDC.  Jerry had a short landing for a passenger exchange there and all the kids came pouring out to see the balloon.  They were so excited.”

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During the week Mary Ann works as a legal aid while Jerry works with computers, setting up and maintaining extensive networking systems for GE Card Services.  Both work in Albuquerque. They schedule their vacations to travel to the longer distance festivals, sticking mostly to the Southwest region with Lincoln being their farthest destination.  They usually travel with some good friends from Albuquerque.

Some balloon memories shared by the Garcia’s:

The most beautiful competition they attend occurs in the bluffs of Utah.  The balloons are gracefully propelled by air currents around red, spiky peaks and mountainous escarpments.  “It is just stunning” recounts Mary Ann.

The most challenging has been a flight in below 20 -degree temperatures.  Heat tapes are necessary to keep the propane heater warm enough to ignite. Beyond that, Jerry recalls being a little nervous as his hands stiffened from using the cold bare metal propane handles.

The most startling experience was the flight Jerry was on with a youngster in the balloon when a freak rain occurred.  They heard the ping and sizzle noise created by raindrops hitting the taut, hot fabric and echoing in the balloon.  “That’s not a noise a balloonist is familiar with, Jerry recounts,  “balloonists generally don’t fly in the rain.”  It was just this one lonely cloud let loose of some rain right over us.”  They couldn’t even see the raindrops or the cloud as the balloon canopy blocked it for quite some distance outward.  

The most humorous experience was the time they landed almost near dark just over a ridge, so that the chase car couldn’t see where they were.  They were mistaken for ceremonial dancers as they waved their flashlights atop the hill for over an hour.
    Thursday evening the Garcia’s played host to two first time riders, LDN’s managing editor Jan Youngquist and a Carroll Catholic fifth grader, Kyle Brown.  Brown and Youngquist both enjoyed the beautiful evening aerial view of Lincoln.  While riding they saw deer, deer trails, several blue heron, a large turtle on a Kickapoo Creek sand bar, and a blue haze tinted landscape for miles and miles.  Their dream-like ride was concluded by a quintessential soft landing on the lawn of the Jim Phelan farm just west of Rt. 121.  “It was just gorgeous.  I couldn’t believe how Elkhart Hill stands out in the landscape” Youngquist marveled.  Later she was treated to the traditional first time balloon ride Champaign toast.

[LDN]

[AUG. 24, 2000]  It’s rare to find a high school senior who takes an interest in flower and vegetable gardening. It’s even more unique to see a young man who has worked side by side with his grandparents to establish a business centered around gardening. Yet for Zac Tibbs of New Holland, producing flowers, fruits and vegetables is a labor of love.

Zac was one of the 54 Logan County 4-H’ers who showed off their projects at the Illinois State Fair. It wasn’t a plate of cauliflower, carrots and cucumbers that Zac was discussing with a judge. (He’s won most of the awards ever established in the horticulture divisions.) Instead, he competed in the Leadership project area. Zac is discovering his leadership skills by teaching other youth the fine points of gardening.

[Zac Tibbs conferences with the 4-H leadership judge about how he is transferring his knowledge
to younger gardeners.]

Zac’s leadership skills have already emerged through his mature attitude about being a champion gardener. "I’m not out there to win, only to do my best," says Zac of his long-held status as a top 4-H trophy winner. The nine-year member of the Middletown 4-H Club knows that his dominance in the 4-H horticulture project is nearing the end. "I’d be happy if someone else beats me," declares Zac, "because then I know that someone else is there to carry on."

Although he did not compete in 4-H division horticulture projects at the state fair, Zac did earn several top ratings for his vegetables in the open horticulture class at the 2000 Illinois State Fair.

So how did a personable young man like Zac Tibbs ever catch the fever for gardening? Zac believes the passion started when he was just a little boy and he helped his mom in the flower garden. Then he started helping his grandparents, Clarence and Virginia Spurgin, with their large garden. The Spurgins and their grandson were some of the original vendors when the Lincoln farmers’ market started up six years ago.

Zac soon found out that big-time gardening is hard work. The initial planting of a garden is a big task, but weeding and harvesting a garden are tasks that last all summer long. 

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Zac devotes his Tuesdays and Fridays to picking and washing fresh produce for the Wednesday and Saturday markets. He can be found in Latham Park on those days greeting customers and discussing the finer points of his trade. However, if the market day yields a low turnout, Zac and his grandparents pack up their produce and sell the remaining perishables along a Sherman roadside.

Pumpkin blossoms are a unique offering on the Tibbs/Spurgin display table. Zac has cornered the market with these Logan County delicacies meant to be dipped in egg and saltine crackers and fried. These high-maintenance edibles require picking every morning of the week.

Zac calculates that his half-acre garden yields $1,300 in profit a season. Of course, that does not include what his personal labor has cost. "You’ve gotta like what you do to work that hard for that little profit," says Zac.

Having already achieved many of his 4-H goals, Zac admits it would be nice to win a 4-H scholarship. He doesn’t yet know where he will attend college or what he will study. But Zac does know that he wants a job where he can work outside, perhaps in landscaping.

[Zac Tibbs has extensive knowledge about growing all vegetables. His okra display was awarded top honors in the state fair's open horticulture competition.]

Not only has Zac gained a wealth of knowledge through his extensive 4-H horticulture and floriculture projects, but the modest son of Bev and Dennis Tibbs has learned a lot about hard, backbreaking work. Those are qualities that will certainly take him far beyond his Logan County garden patch and into a successful life.

[Marty Ahrends]

Click here for more articles about 4-H'ers at the state fair.

Rubber Duckie to float in Lincoln skies

[AUG. 24, 2000]  Rubber Duckie will float in the skies—not the bathtub—during the upcoming Lincoln Art & Balloon Festival. The event, sponsored by the Lincoln/Logan County Chamber of Commerce, will be Aug. 25-27.

"The excitement is building," says Bobbi Abbott, executive director of the Chamber of Commerce. "We’ll be seeing our perennial favorites, such as the Rubber Duckie and Fred B. Rabbit, and we have a couple of appealing new special-shape balloons as well."

The 12th annual Balloon Festival will feature 48 hot air balloons launching from the Logan County Fairgrounds infield on Friday evening, Saturday morning and Saturday evening. Pilots will test their skills as they compete in the popular "fly-in" over the fairgrounds infield on Sunday morning. Night glows, a simultaneous lighting of the balloons, will be featured on Friday and Saturday nights at dusk "Oggy" the Dragon, new to the Lincoln festival, will inflate between the launches and glows.

The Lincoln Art Fair returns for its 27th year, with 90 juried artists in downtown Lincoln’s Latham Park. "This is a favored art fair with artists and patrons alike," says Deb Short, volunteer Art Fair coordinator. "The advance patron purchases help us attract the highest quality of artists. The beautiful, shady park setting and the artist-patron party all contribute to its success."

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The art and balloons are just the beginning of a weekend of fun and excitement for the entire family. Traditional festival activities include a craft fair, Big M Amusements carnival rides, food concessions, grandstand entertainment, children’s activities and more. The U.S. Navy Band, The Zoot and other musical entertainment will perform in the grandstand. Additional activities include an antique and flea market in downtown Lincoln’s Scully Park, Classic Car Show, the Public Library’s used book sale, a 5K run, and Early American craft demonstrations featured in downtown Lincoln.

Lincoln is located in central Illinois on Interstate 55. For a brochure, map or more information about the Lincoln Art & Balloon Festival, contact the Chamber of Commerce, 303 S. Kickapoo St., Lincoln, Illinois 62656, 217-735-2385 or chamber@lincolnillinois.com.

Software company purchases
buildings in downtown Lincoln

[AUG. 23, 2000]  Integrity Data Inc., a technology consulting and computer programming organization, has purchased two buildings in downtown Lincoln. The two buildings, located at 604 Broadway and 108-114 N. Kickapoo, were previously occupied by Schick’s Clothing Store.

Integrity Data designs and develops custom computer software solutions to improve business management processes. A majority of Integrity Data’s clients are Great Plains Software users that are located in all regions of the United States. Integrity Data develops its products using the latest development tools from Microsoft and Great Plains.

Patrick Doolin, president of Integrity Data, says the company plans to renovate the interior of the buildings. The renovations will primarily focus on the Kickapoo Street building. Preliminary plans call for office space to be created on the first and second floors of the building. Integrity Data will locate to the Kickapoo Street building upon completion of the renovations.

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In addition to establishing its corporate office at the downtown location, Integrity Data has plans to develop a Technology Center on the premises. The purpose of the center will be to share technology information with the community and provide technology-based solutions to local businesses.

Doolin, born and raised in Lincoln, looks forward to making improvements and preserving the historical qualities of the downtown property as well as adding a technology-based organization to the Lincoln economy.

[AUG. 23, 2000]  Fifty-three Logan County 4-H’ers had their day at the Illinois State Fair on Thursday, Aug. 17. All were selected to compete on the state level because of their excellent ratings at the Logan County Fair. Superior ratings are awarded to those youth who are ranked among the top two in their respective project areas at the state fair. Following is a list of 17 Logan County 4-H’ers who achieved this honor.

(Click here for Logan County Junior Livestock winners at the state fair.)

Click here for Monday's article,
"Logan County 4-H’ers have their day at the fair."

Click here for 4-H pictures from the state fair.

Click here for more pictures from the state fair.

Rocketry project teaches
principles of physics

[AUG. 22, 2000]  Could you find the center of gravity of a model rocket? Chris Ackerman was challenged with that question during his judging session at the state fair.

He answered by gingerly running his thumb and forefinger along the horizontal length of the rocket. When the rocket balanced, he knew he had found the center.

[Chris and his judge investigate the gravitational center of his rocket.]

Chris listened intently as his very knowledgeable judge explained the importance of gravitational balance in building a model rocket.

The son of Debbie and Ron Ackerman of Lincoln, 12-year-old Chris is a seventh grader at Chester-East Lincoln and a four-year member of the Clovers 4-H Club.

This is only his second year in rocketry, and Chris says he has already learned a bunch from it. "4-H has introduced me to a lot of new stuff," boasts Chris of his experiences in the rocketry, entomology, electricity and forestry projects. He feels that his 4-H project participation has really given him an edge in school, especially when it comes to aerospace studies.

Future rocket scientists like Chris begin each project year by building a new rocket, installing an engine pack and launching it over and over.

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Although rockets generally shoot straight up, the wind determines how far the parachute will carry the rocket to its final landing spot. Chris and his brother Craig have learned the hard way how the fierce winds of the Logan County countryside can quickly blow a rocket off course. Craig lost his rocket in a cornfield the day before the Logan County Fair, while Chris’ state fair rocket hung around in a willow tree for a few days.

[Rocketry is a very fulfilling project for Chris
and other 4-H'ers.]

Each year of experience in rocketry means building a more complex and more powerful rocket than the year before. Instead of using a pre-cut rocket kit next year, Chris plans to design and cut out some of the wing pieces himself.

"These rockets are really fun, and they can be used over and over," exclaims Chris.

Chris plans to check out some of the rocketry websites recommended by his judge. "Someday, I hope to know as much as he does about rockets."

Chris will be able to advance that goal this October as he and other 4-H’ers from Illinois attend Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala.

[Marty Ahrends]

Click here for a list of Logan County 4-Her's who won awards at the state fair.

[AUG. 22, 2000]  ^"She said it was the best zucchini bread she’d ever tasted!" exclaimed Abrigail Sasse as she met up with her parents, David and Gail Apel-Sasse, following her judging session.

Although Abrigail is an experienced 4-H cook, she credits the judge’s compliments to her grandmother’s recipe that includes cinnamon as its secret ingredient.

[Abrigail Sasse's seven years of experience in 4-H foods brought rave reviews from the judge.]

This year, Abrigail has focused her 4-H foods studies on preparing fruits and vegetables as part of a meal. Yet the fair books list only a quick bread made with a fruit or vegetable as an acceptable project for competition.

The judge in this category asked Abrigail about the four food groups and what she does to keep her bread from burning on one corner. Then the loaf is cut open. The judge checks for an even texture with no air tunnels. The final test is for taste.

The seven-year member of the Beason Ag 4-H club is no stranger to picky questions from judges. Abrigail quickly points out that "judges are a lot pickier at the state fair because there is a lot more competition." This is her seventh year studying foods and her fourth year to exhibit at the state fair.

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The LCHS sophomore also works hard with her sewing, horse and rabbit projects. Her enjoyment of the livestock projects has encouraged her to pursue a future career involving animals.

Perhaps her commitment to animals is why Abby’s group of three Californian rabbits earned Junior Champion Meat Pen honors at the Logan County Fair. Californian rabbits are all white, except for their black feet, ears and noses. To determine the top place winner, judges examine how close the three are in size and weight at the time of showing.

Abrigail and her Californians were awarded 12^th place out of 32 entries in the state fair Junior Rabbit competition.

[Marty Ahrends]