The RE/MAX of Texas Parachute Team is scheduled for daily exhibitions that involve jumping out of an airplane, gliding down to the field, and landing in front of thousands of cheering fans. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at 5:30 p.m. you’ll want to make your way to the field for this adventurous experience at the InTouch Credit Union Plano Balloon Festival being held September 21-23, 2018 at Oak Point Park.
This attraction is included with admission into the three-day weekend that also includes a fireworks show, two nights of concerts on the KLUV Main Stage and more than 50 hot air balloons! The full schedule detailing all the activities may be found here on the website. The gates open at 4:00 p.m. on Friday, September 21, kids 36″ and under receive free entry and general Tickets are $10 per person or $20 for the weekend pass.
Watch this beautiful video of the RE/MAX of Texas Parachute Team posted on our YouTube channel! #PlanoBalloon
Good news! The 10K race for 2018 is officially sold out with a maximum registration of 750 runners. Even better news is that the finish line for the 10K ends back at the festival. The course originally had a route that started at the festival, north on Jupiter Road, southeast on Los Rios Blvd, and then a zig zag of more than 10 streets, to finish at Bob Woodruff Park and wait to be shuttled back to the festival.
“We are fortunate to discover a new section of trail that allows the 10K finish at the festival with the half marathon runners. The benefit is the 10K participants finish directly at the festival and don’t have to ride shuttles. They’ll have immediate access to the food, entertainment, and a chance to see the folks who came to cheer when they cross the finish line,” says Eric Lindberg, Chief Running Officer with On Your Left! Marketing & Events.
We’ve given away tickets and parking passes over the years. In fact, there have been a lot of giveaways of t-shirts, posters, and festival items. This contest is for a private ride in a hot air balloon with a pilot here in Plano the week of the InTouch Credit Union Plano Balloon Festival at Oak Point Park. We’re not talking about a tethered ride where you hover above the ground and descend within minutes. It’s a bucket list experience to lift-off and fly in a majestic invention that doesn’t have a steering wheel, motor or wheels. A truly unforgettable adventure that ends with a champagne toast and a prayer.
THE BALLOONIST’S PRAYER
“May the winds welcome you with softness. May the sun bless you with its warm hands. May you fly so high and so well that God joins you in laughter And sets you gently back into the loving arms of Mother Earth.”
~Author Unknown
The contest began last month and ends on Monday, September 17 at 8:00 p.m. CST. The date of the flight will be determined by the pilot but scheduled to take place between September 19-23 depending of course, on the weather. Must be 18 years or older to enter the Hootsuite based campaign that will randomly select the winner to be contacted and announced on Facebook and social media channels. The terms and conditions are detailed within the contest form. Are you ready to take flight?
InTouch Credit Union Plano Balloon Festival was named the Best Event/Festival in the Past Year in Plano by Plano Magazine for 2018. The magazine collected 97,697 votes to get the Best of Plano Magazine 2018 winners in several categories. Plano Magazine staff and contributors nominate events, business and services for the Best Of Awards, which are then voted on by people in the community. See the complete list of winners here. Voters also chose InTouch Credit Union Plano Balloon Festival as in the Best Event/Festival in Plano in 2017 after 239,570 votes were cast.
The airborne balloons and fireworks make InTouch Credit Union Plano Balloon Festival the most visible event in town, and one of the most exciting. But the hot air balloons aren’t the only draw. On September 21-23, 2018, festival weekend also includes the Kids Korner in the Central Market Kids Fun Zone, RE/MAX of Texas Parachute Team Exhibition, live entertainment on two stages, fireworks show, delicious festival food, and the Plano Balloon Festival Half Marathon, 10K, 5K and 1K. Registration for all races is available online only. The festival opens at 4:00 p.m. on Friday, September 21. Find the full schedule of events here.
The InTouch Credit Union Plano Balloon Festival has a launch field for the hot air balloons and the KLUV Main Stage for the entertainment! This year Downtown Fever, an Emerald City Band, will kick-off the opening of the gates on Friday, September 21, 2018 and take the stage at 4:15 p.m. The crowds will make their way to field and see the RE/MAX of Texas Parachute Team Exhibition jump out of an airplane at 5:30 p.m., and Downtown Fever will light up the stage again for two more sets at 7:00 p.m. and 8:45 p.m.
On Saturday, September 22, 2018 we’ve got Texas based Good Question Band in concert on the KLUV Main Stage presented by T-Mobile starting at 4:00 p.m. They have three more igniting sets on stage at 7:00 p.m., 8:30 p.m., and 9:30 p.m. In between those sets we’re going to squeeze in the RE/MAX Parachute Team Exhibition, the Hot Air Balloon Glow, and a Spectacular Fireworks Show presented by Bimbo Bakeries USA at 9:00 p.m. The festival closes for the evening at 10:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.
The schedule of events for Friday & Saturday is detailed below and the full schedule for Sunday is available online: https://www.planoballoonfest.org/events
Friday, Sept. 21
4:00 PM – Festival Opens and Bus Service Begins
4:15 PM – Downtown Fever in Concert on the KLUV Main Stage
5:30 PM – RE/MAX of Texas Parachute Team Exhibition
6:00 PM – Balloon Activities presented by RE/MAX
7:00 PM – Downtown Fever in Concert on the KLUV Main Stage
8:00 PM – Balloon Glow – Balloon Glow
8:45 PM – Downtown Fever in Concert on the KLUV Main Stage
10:00 PM – Festival Closes
Saturday, Sept. 22
6:00 AM – Gates and Parking Lots Open | Bus Service Begins
7:00 AM – Balloon Activities presented by the City of Plano
7:30 AM – 5K Run / Walk
8:00 AM – Balloon Fly-In Competition
9:00 AM – 1K Run / Walk
9:30 AM – 5K Awards Ceremony
4:00 PM – Good Question Band in Concert on the KLUV Main Stage presented by T-Mobile
5:30 PM – RE/MAX of Texas Parachute Team Exhibition
6:00 PM – Balloon Activities presented by InTouch Credit Union
7:00 PM – Good Question Band in Concert on the KLUV Main Stage presented by T-Mobile
8:00 PM – Balloon Glow
8:30 PM – Good Question Band in Concert on the KLUV Main Stage presented by T-Mobile
9:00 PM – Spectacular Fireworks Show presented by Bimbo Bakeries USA
9:30 PM – Good Question Band in Concert on the KLUV Main Stage presented by T-Mobile
The Plano Balloon Festival, Inc. has partnered with the North Texas Food Bank and the City of Plano in the 5th Annual Plano Peanut Butter Drive and will accept donations at the 2018 InTouch Credit Union Plano Balloon Festival. The festival is September 21-23 at Oak Point Park in Plano and collection boxes will be on-site throughout the weekend.
“We invite our attendees to donate a plastic, 16 oz. jar of peanut butter to help us reach this year’s ambitious goal of collecting 50,000 pounds to help feed our hungry neighbors,” says Jo Via, Executive Director of the Plano Balloon Festival, Inc.
Food insecurity often goes unseen but affects 16% of the people in Collin County and one of every four children across North Texas. By raising awareness about this need and, more importantly, giving people in the community an opportunity to meet the need, the InTouch Credit Union Plano Balloon Festival helps to make Plano better for everyone. Peanut butter collected in this drive will be distributed to hungry families in Collin County and the 13 counties served by the NTFB.
Twenty local shutterbugs were randomly selected as winners of a Photographer Badge and VIP parking pass valid September 21-23, 2018 at the InTouch Credit Union Plano Balloon Festival. The badge allows the photographer access to the festival and more importantly the ability to walk onto the launch field with their cameras to capture an up close view of the hot air balloons, crew, pilots, and the thousands of fans in attendance.
The Festival Preview & Photographer Badge Drawing was promoted on Facebook and held on Friday, August 10, 2018 in the parking lot at Central Market located at 320 Coit Road in Plano, Texas.
Congratulations to the following winners of the drawing: Warren Harris, Elizabeth Luse, Shelley D. Franklin, Joe Paul, Dennis Brickett, John Babis, Artist German, Randy Ratzlaff, Alan Daniel, Juan Samuel Barajas, Henry Pereyda, Bob Watkins, Meredith Joyce, John Lightle, Elizabeth Buchanan, Augustin Samson, Lisa Sutherlin, Sandra Young, Millie Hooper, and Kyle Bunch.
Photographers who were present at the time of the drawing received their packages and all other winners will receive their packages by regular mail. For more information please email: social@planoballoonfest.org and thank you to everyone who submitted their photos for the drawing!
On this day, September 19th we wish a happy anniversary to Chris and Heather Ward who graciously shared their story in this letter:
Dear Plano Balloon Festival,
The Ward Family
It was September 19th, 2008; and my boyfriend Chris and I were driving to this hot air balloon festival that I had never been to before. He was a ham radio operator, so he had assisted in past years with the balloon recovery and retrieval chase crews. We got stuck in traffic and his normally very calm personality was no where in site. Chris was getting agitated like we were on some time schedule. He told me he had arranged for a photographer to meet us there and take some “couple pictures” of us. He said I should get my hair and nails done, and wear black and white because the balloons are so colorful.
So, we met Chris Vouras of Dallas Digital Events. He explained that he had a videographer that was new and training for events of all kinds, so I would see him with a camera here and there. My Chris’ best friend, his wife and their son was there taking in all the sites as well.
We got to our pictures. Then my Chris up and disappeared! We could not find him for what felt like an eternity. I was just chatting with the photographer and Chris’ best friend and finally he appeared and said we were going on the balloon field. I am an avid rule follower, so I did not like this plan. I should add, I had just had surgery on my leg that month before and was able to walk some but was in a wheelchair the majority of the time. So, he pushed me across the field to this beautiful balloon, which we now know is called the Chameleon II owned by David and Mary Ann Hawkins.
The photographer turned my chair and said he wanted to get some pictures of just me for a moment because the lighting was beautiful. Balloons were inflating all around us, as they were preparing for the evening “Glow.” All the sudden, my Chris appeared and asked me if I could stand for a moment because he had something he wanted to talk to me about. He had a stuffed turtle in his hand, dressed in a tuxedo. He started saying a lot of wonderful things, I was crying, and then he asked….”Would you be my wife?”
Chris Ward proposing to Heather on the launch field at the 2008 Plano Balloon Festival.
He opened the ring box, I gasped and said YES! Then he said the sneakiest part of all, “And you know what, all of this was caught on tape for us to have!” Stinker! He had arranged all of this, and I was blown away! The balloons went up all around us, we took photos on the field as the balloon glow was happening and I just kept staring at my ring in awe. Chris had it custom made for me to include sapphires, my birthstone, and the month he proposed.
We parted ways with the professional photographer and videographer, and took in the rest of the evening. We bought shirts to help us always remember the 2008 Plano Balloon Festival (like we could forget), he bought a pin and we had junk food. It was awesome. I even saw a lightening bug for the first time that evening!
I created a photo book of our engagement story so we wouldn’t forget anything over the years and our video was given to us when we got our wedding video back. Our engagement video is now on YouTube.
Flash forward now, 8 years later. We got married on 07/08/09 and have been married for 7 years. We have two beautiful children who are the lights of our world. Our 4 year old daughter tells everyone she can that she can’t understand why her mommy and daddy did not invite her to their wedding. LOL! We have an almost 2 year old son, as well.
We plan to come back to the 2016 InTouch Credit Union Plano Balloon Festival so our children can experience this magical place; and for the Hawkins’ of the Chameleon II to meet our kiddos. Thank you for all the planning and preparations you all do to put the festival together every year. You never know when your efforts will change someone’s life and that night in 2008, mine changed.
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