 made a number of visits to the Bristol Balloon
Fiesta during the weekend of the event in August, with some friends from work and on
my own. It was a tremendous event, hosted at Ashton Court country park, which is
just South of Bristol City in North Somerset.
The Bristol Balloon
Fiesta at Ashton Court, sponsored by The Discovery Channel
The Balloon Fiesta
openene on Thursday 11th August with undisputedly the best concert in the South
West. A whole host of the UK's best pop acts performed live from Ashton Court at
the GWR FM Free Music Concert with First Great Western Trains
Monster Balloons
The Bristol
International Balloon Fiesta always hosts a Special Shapes Rodeo - a mass ascent
of magical, comical and bizarrely shaped balloons - filling the skies above
Bristol with colour and intrigue.
Special shape balloons are an example of not only complex design skill in their
production, but also admirable flying skills from the pilot involved. These are
more difficult to make and fly than round balloons. They require more manpower
and technical design knowledge in the production stage and a more experienced
pilot to handle the balloon in flight, which makes witnessing them an exciting
experience. Ultimately, a special shape balloon is distinctive and memorable,
but most of all, it`s fun - and that`s the point of the Fiesta!
The huge 15 metre
GWR FM orbit stage with it’s impressive sound and lighting system created a
fantastic atmosphere and acted as a focal point throughout the Fiesta weekend
with different entertainment each day
Girls Aloud
A little closer
  
This was one of the
biggest free music concerts across the UK and from 2pm till 9pm all your
favourite GWR Presenters were on stage to introduce the fantastic line up. The
likes of Bush and Troy, Pitstop Paulina, DriveTime’s Simon Ross, Music Control’s
Sally & Kevin and not forgetting the Black Thunder Crew were warming up the
crowd with games and competitions and introduced over 20 great acts... and
Chesney Hawks
Some of the guys
from work
The start of the
firework display and the Nightglow
The first night of
the Fiesta is famous for the breathtaking spectacle that is the Night Glow,
attracting crowds of around 100,000 people.
As night falls on the first day of the Fiesta, people of all ages flock to watch
the striking Night Glow. Some 30 tethered balloons illuminate like giant light
bulbs using their liquid gas burners, creating magical patterns against the
darkening night sky. Under coded instructions via radio communication, the
pilots create a variety of dazzling effects from only three main commands: burn,
flicker and flash. These astounding sequences are set to a special music mix
which was produced last year by GWR Fm.
An impressive array of sequences are expertly choreographed to the rhythm of the
music and the atmospheric display leads to a dramatic finale - a magnificent
firework display, put together by Bristol-based Skyburst. Energetic and
awe-inspiring it's a night to remember!
BT
Nightglow
Nice ass!
Discovery
Fairground
Ashton Court
The history of
Ashton Court starts many thousands of years ago when bronze age people lived
here. The first written evidence comes from the Domesday Book which shows that
the manor of Ashton was clearly a wealthy estate
Ashton Court Mansion has developed over the centuries from its earliest period
around 1390 , when Thomas de Lyons married heiress Margaret Blanket. The cloth
industry flourished at this time and Bristol became a major sea port for the
export of woollen cloth
The Cabot Tower
amongst the trees
Robert at Ashton
Court
Riding high
Some Classical Music
The Air Show
Long day
Free Entry
Helicopter Rides
Some of the talent
on show...
Spectators
Tropicana
The view from the
Cabot Tower
The view of Ashton
Court
First Balloon
Mass Launch
The Balloons over
Somerset
Heading for Bath
Over Ashton Gate
(Bristol City FC)
Hotwells
Low level flying
Bristol University
The Sun Balloon set
Over SS Great
Britain
High flyers
Unfortunately the
evening that I decided to take my photographs of the Mass Balloon launch, the
wind direction was not in my favour, and prevented the Balloons from flying over
the City Centre, and restricted them to just passing over the South of Bristol
Balloon launch times
during the Fiesta weekend were planned for:
Thursday 11th August - 6.00 pm 'Special Shapes' launch and tether
Friday 12th August - 6.00 am and 6.00 pm
Saturday 13th August - 6.00 am and 6.00 pm
Sunday 14th August - 6.00 am and 6.00 pm
South Bristol
Skyline
Portishead
Bristol Balloons
Bristol Balloons have become an integral part of the Bristol skyline and their
pilots were the first to fly from Ashton Court, Bristol in 1975.
Imagine seeing the historic City of Bristol from a completely different
perspective! Floating gently aloft and viewing it's well known landmarks such as
Brunel's famous Clifton Suspension Bridge, the Harbourside and the S.S Great
Britain.
Flights are normally arranged from their main launch site at Ashton Court
Estate, also the home of the annual Bristol Balloon Fiesta where more than 100
brightly coloured and special shaped balloons take to the skies!
The GWR Balloon
Solo
I have run out of
things to say about Balloons now...
...apart from it was
a load of hot air
All photographs were taken in Bristol - England from the
11th to 14th of August 2005
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