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A hot air balloon over the Downtown Santa Paula Clock Tower. Weather permitting, the balloons will again fly this weekend. (Photo by Dan Harding) |
Citrus Classic Balloon Festival
July 27, 2011
Citrus Classic Balloon Festival to celebrate 4th year of sky-high thrills
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula News
Not only is the Citrus Classic Balloon Festival celebrating its 4th year of bringing sky-high and ground zero thrills to thousands of visitors, but it’s doing so a day longer with a new expanded full weekend of fun.
And fun is perhaps an understatement: Friday, Saturday and Sunday will see the festival filled with novel attractions, sunrise balloon ascensions or tethers, skydivers and aerobatic planes, Wine & Beer Tasting Pavilion, Glow of the Blue Moon, car show, Indian Motorcycles Display & Rally Ride, Topa-Topa Flywheelers vintage tractor display, Zipline and Rock Climbing Wall, kids’ activity area, arts & crafts vendors, Recycled Art Contest, Plein Air art, Zest for Life 5K Run & 1 Mile Fun Run.
There will be celebrity appearances, a baseball exhibit and clinic led by a famed athlete, a one-day visit of delicious gourmet food trucks, nonstop entertainment and music and a special dinner, all set against the backdrop of dozens of hot air balloons amid the scenic Santa Paula countryside. In fact, festival Founder/Organizer Carla Edwards said she is expecting about 30 hot air balloons at this year’s event, which will feature two of the famous nighttime Glows that brings thousands of visitors to Santa Paula from throughout the west.
Located at 18249 E. Telegraph (just east of Hallock Drive) at the Limoneira Soccer Fields, there is plenty of paid offsite parking close by, as well as free shuttle service from various locations in Santa Paula.
Festivities start off Friday at 5 p.m. with the Sunset Wine Dinner, a reservations only delicious al fresco meal with wine, Limoncello and front row seats to view the Evening Balloon Glow. Spectators watch and mingle with pilots from across the nation as approximately 30 hot air balloons illuminate at sunset.
The Glow, said Edwards, “is simply amazing, just beautiful and an experience that people remember their entire lives. Watching the balloons inflate and the show of colors and special effects are breathtaking. No matter how many times you experience the Glow you never can become blasé about it.”
Friday’s celebration continues in the AfterGlow, with Limoncello specialty cocktails and live music by Juano & Friends. The gates close at 11 p.m.
On Saturday gates open at 5:30 a.m. Sunrise Balloons are presented by Ventura Ranch KOA, including - if weather permits of course! - a major balloon ascension and tethered balloon rides available to the public.
The Zest for Life 5K & 1 Mile Family Fun Run will include celebrity runner and Santa Paula resident Gary Tuttle. The LA GALAXY Soccer Street Team will make an appearance with contests and giveaways for the kids. Zipline rides and a myriad of other attractions - live music, beer tastings, great food vendors, Local Fare Tastings with Rancho Camulos Museum, Topa Topa Flywheelers sponsored by Agromin, arts and crafts vendors, a car show, recycled art contest, and kids activities - keep all entertained until the balloons return to the field for the Glow of the Blue Moon sponsored by Miller Coors. Excitement continues with the AfterGlow, as Shades of Day takes the stage. Gates again will close at 11 p.m.
On Sunday, gates again open at 5:30 a.m. and the Roadstoves’ LA Food Trucks take the field, including the oh-so-famous Grilled Cheese Truck, Baby’s Bad Ass Burgers, The Sweets Truck, Go Country, Takosher, South Philly Experience, Auntie’s Fry Bread, and more. On display will be a beautifully restored 1910 Indian Motorcycle, together with a 1936 Scout raced at Bonneville, a 1946 Chief, and many more as a tribute to the 110th Anniversary of Indian Motorcycles.
Edwards said, “More celebrities will join the festivities at noon for the Jim Colborn Field of Dreams Celebrity Exhibition Game, with Tommy Lasorda, Maury Wills, Brent Cookson, Steve Sisco, the Weaver brothers, Tom Murphy, Ken McMullen, Mark Harmon, and J.K. Simmons.... Jim,” a Santa Paula native, “has a lot of friends!” And Colborn’s friends will be playing a team of mayors from cities throughout Ventura County.
Edwards said old and young alike will enjoy the antics of this friendly exhibition game, followed by a Home Run Derby and skill drills for kids. Festivalgoers can relax with the final afternoon concert by The Long Run - Experience the Eagles, and “reflect on a new summer favorite, the Citrus Classic Balloon Festival!”
But what could be the festival’s biggest attraction and, for that matter, its biggest secret is the support it provides the community nonprofits that provide an army of volunteers before, during and after the celebration. Proceeds are split among nonprofit groups and organizations that handle everything from parking lots to foot traffic control. Last year the festival helped support 14 nonprofits, from the Santa Paula Police Explorers and Future Farmers of America to the Optimist Club and Interface Children Family Services, among others.
Tickets for Friday & Saturday: Adults $10 advance/$12 at gate; Youth (ages 5 to 14) $4 advance/$7 at gate; Children under 5 free. Sunday: Adults $12 advance/$15 at gate; Youth (ages 5 to 14) $5 advance/$7 at gate; Children under 5 free.
Advance tickets are available on-line, via phone and at staffed ticket locations including the Santa Paula Times, 944 E. Main St., 805-525-1890. For details, visit www.citrusclassicballoons.com.
