2015 Lincoln Balloon Festival LINCOLN DAILY NEWS.COM September 1, 2015 Page 39
V
isitors to the Lincoln Balloon
Festival on Saturday may have
noticed one major change on the horizon
– the oversized kites that flew over the
Airport on Friday, courtesy of Chicago
Kite
), were
moved to the nearby Lincoln Christian
University campus. The kites were still
visible from the airport, but professional
kite fliers had moved their base of
operations a few blocks away in
order to comply with federal
guidelines governing civilian
airspace.
At the airport, a Chicago
Kite tent sold small kites and
other wind-powered works
of art, and directed visitors
toward the LCU campus for
the large-scale display.
At the LCU campus
families gathered to watch
the professionals launch
massive kites into the air, and
parents brought their own
kites to teach their children the
fundamentals of kite flying. Kites
took the form of giant seahorses,
kittens, and a variety of aerodynamic
gliders trailing long tails, and windsocks.
According to one professional, many
more kites were held in reserve, but limits
on the space at the LCU campus and the
changing weather conditions meant that
only a selection would fly over Saturday’s
festivities. The “character” kites must fly
at a low altitude, which meant
both that these were not visible
from the main airport areas,
and that lagging winds
around 2 p.m. left these
friendly fliers slumping
toward the ground,
ready to be packed up
for the next event.
Long-time kite
enthusiasts will be
glad to learn that the
change of venue is only
temporary, and the
kites will return to the
airport for next year’s
Balloon Festival.
Balloon Festival kite
flight moved to LCU
campus on Saturday
Story and Photos
by Ben McBroom
