Great Pershing Balloon Derby
Encyclopedia
Hot air balloon festivals
Hot air balloon festivals are held annually in many places throughout the year, allowing hot air balloons to gather and participate in various activities. They can include races; evening "night glows", in which balloons are fired while remaining tetheted to the ground; and rides.- External links...
named in honor of General John J. Pershing
John J. Pershing
John Joseph "Black Jack" Pershing, GCB , was a general officer in the United States Army who led the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I...
and held every year since 1977 over the Labor Day weekend near Brookfield, Missouri
Brookfield, Missouri
Brookfield is a city in Linn County, Missouri, United States. The population was 4,542 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Brookfield is located at ....
.
The balloon derby is held in conjunciton with many other festivities in nearby Brookfield including beauty contest
Beauty contest
A beauty pageant or beauty contest, is a competition that mainly focuses on the physical beauty of its contestants, although such contests often incorporate personality, talent, and answers to judges' questions as judged criteria...
s, concert
Concert
A concert is a live performance before an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, a choir, or a musical band...
s, parade
Parade
A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually celebrations of some kind...
s, and a fly-in
Fly-in
A fly-in is a pre-arranged gathering of aircraft, pilots and passengers for recreational and social purposes.Fly-ins may be formally or informally organised, members of the public may or may not be invited, the gathering may be at an airport or in a farmer's field.Fly-ins can be aimed at specific...
at the local airport
Airport
An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...
.
The derby itself is held at the Myron Peacher Memorial Launch Site, an open field on State Road FF about two miles north of U.S. Highway 36 between Brookfield and Laclede, Missouri
Laclede, Missouri
Laclede is a city in Linn County, Missouri, United States. The population was 415 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Laclede is located at ....
.
Launches are generally at dusk and dawn on Saturday and Sunday and at dawn on Monday (Labor Day). A night glow
Night glow
A night glow is an event that is often held as a climax to a hot air balloon festival. The balloons are set up at sunset in the launch area, an open field, or a football stadium and are inflated as if they are going to take off. But instead of being allowed to ascend, they are held down by the...
is usually held at sunset on Sunday evening.