WHERE CAN I BOOK A BALLOON FLIGHT DURING THE EVENT?
Balloon flights can be booked through Windward Balloon Adventures in Northam:
www.windwardballooning.com, Phone: 08 9621 2000

Where & Where can I see the Balloons
For information, please click here.

What is happening at the Balloon Glow, Fiesta & Flight Discovery Zone?
For information, please click here.

BALLOONING COMPETITION:
The Championships consist of a number of competitive hot air balloon elements including 5 days of competitive flying including morning and afternoon flights, a specialised balloon event known as a Key Grab and a private awards ceremony/dinner.
Balloon Competition challenges the skill of pilots where an experienced international director sets tasks requiring the pilot to fly to targets using only the varying winds at different altitudes. These tasks are set for each flight based on the prevailing conditions and could involve several target locations and activities.
The Key Grab is again a highly skilled ballooning event requiring the balloonists to select a take-off point that will allow them to fly a minimum distance targeting a foam key mounted atop a 10 metre pole. The key represents the key to a prize. This requires skill, nerve and a highly competitive spirit and provides a magnificent spectator event.

IS THE COMPETITION A RACE?
No, most balloon competitions are a skill based accuracy contest.
Each event has a director that set tasks that require the pilot to assess how to utilise the winds to navigate from the launch field to a target point. Competition points are accumulated according to how close the pilot drops a marker to the target point.
Each competition flight can consist of up to 5 tasks and can include 2D tasks, 3D tasks, pilot declared goals, hesitation waltz.
A 2D task requires the pilot to navigate to a particular geographic location and drop a marker on a target.
A 3D task is similar to the 2D task but involves the pilot to be at a specified height and the pilot registers his best position on a special logger.
The pilot declared goal is fairly self explanatory, the pilot decided a position that can be achieved, registers the co ordinates and tries to fly to it..
A hesitation waltz involves attempting to reach 1 of 2 goals so traditionally the pilot targets the 1st goal then if he achieves that one flys onto the next task, however if the pilot is unsuccessful in at goal 1 he can try to get to goal 2. The success at either goal is counted but not both.

HOW DO YOU STEER A BALLOON?
There is no mechanism to steer a balloon in the traditional sense. The pilots do have control of climbing and descending and will use the wind directions at different altitudes to manoeuvre the balloon using the air movement or wind.
The air currents or wind generally travels in different directions at different elevations. By skilfully using these changes in direction the pilot moves up and down to catch a wind travelling in the appropriate direction.
Usually a pi ball, a small helium filled balloon, is released before takeoff and monitored as it gets higher allowing the pilot to get an understanding of the speed and direction of the winds at the different elevations.
Balloons take time to react to increases in heat (to rise) or releases of hot air (to drop) so another important skill is knowing how long to travel at an elevation and judging how much heat to add or drop to get the elevation change they need and how long it takes to get the reaction needed.


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IMPORTANT FACTORS IN COMPETITION

Catching the wind
Pilots must accurately gauge the speed, direction, and strength of the winds, and be able to predict forecast changes. The direction of the wind is usually associated with altitude.

Reading a Map
The pilots must have a good understanding of the competition area based on the rules of the competition. They must be able to gauge the effect of wind drafts resulting from topological conditions and other factors.

Teamwork
Hot air balloons are piloted by one person but teamwork is an indispensable part of the competition. It comes into play during pursuit by a retrieve crew on the ground during the competition, and as the race develops accurate information from the ground crew is very important for the pilot.

Self-Control
The only ways to control a hot air balloon are by operating the burner and vent. Operation of the burner is very easy, so any nervousness or emotional tension resulting in over-control have an immediate and dramatic effect on the balloon's flight. Pilots must control their emotions so they can demonstrate their abilities with an even temperament at all times.

Scoring Points
Points are awarded for each task, and the balloon with the highest aggregate score wins. Therefore, it is important that crews do not fail by trying to score too many points in any one task instead of achieving a good average over all tasks.

Results
Results of competitors are calculated by the distance between their markers and goals or targets. A pilot who drops his marker closest to the target will be scored 1000 points. Scores of the top 50% of pilots in the competition will be calculated by comparing their results with those of the winning pilot. This means if a competitor's result is close to the first placed pilot he will be awarded points close to 1000 points. The mid fleet pilot will score about 500 points and pilots in the lower 50% of competitors will be scored by evenly dividing the remaining 500 points. The scoring system advantages pilots in the top half of the fleet.


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