Peakster's "Giant Billboard" Thread

[Peakster]

Attachment 606

Yup. That's the monster.

This is the vehicle that I use to chase after the hot-air-balloon when it's in flight. Sometimes it's interesting because the balloon goes wherever the wind takes it, but I need to navigate gravel country grid roads.

One time the balloon was launched in Biggar SK and it flew North-East. The pilot couldn't land because of swamp, barbed wire, power lines, fauna, etc. and ended up on the other side of the South Saskatchewan River in Raddison SK! I had to travel about 1/2 hour to find the nearest crossing!

I've also quickly discovered how to back up with a trailer. Fun times .

The truck is gassed up quite often. Probably every 3 days or so. Detailed records are kept so making MPG calculations should be attainable. This truck gets horrible mileage (well, in comparison with the Geo), but at least it means I don't have to fill my car often .

[ELF]

Oh, so you are still alive! We were worried

[MnFocus]

LOL ! That's a sweet gig ya got there Peak! Lotsa driving (with someone elses vehicle AND gas !! ) not to mention chasing flying objects . Does this mean your official job title is " Balloon Dog" ?

[Peakster]

Originally Posted by MnFocus

LOL ! That's a sweet gig ya got there Peak! Lotsa driving (with someone elses vehicle AND gas !! ) not to mention chasing flying objects . Does this mean your official job title is " Balloon Dog" ?

I think officially I'm just a 'crew member' as the pilot frequently refers to me as his crew. I've gotten so used to driving the truck these past 2 weeks that when I drove my Geo again, I thought I was sitting on the ground!

The balloon itself is a half-decent size: 90,000 cubic feet in volume if I remember correctly. The burners for the balloon use liquid propane (not vapor) and 4 hours of tethering rides for one town costs about $250 to refill the five 80 litre tanks used. An average barbecue at home will burn at about 50,000 btu, while the hot air balloon burns at about 1.6 million btu. Not exactly a gassaver mode of transportation .

You can see the hot-air balloon in action here.

[MnFocus]

Cool beans! I was just gonna ask for vid footage too !

[repete86]

Yikes! Will they let you aero mod the thing?

[MnFocus]

LOL I am gonna guess you are asking about the truck/trailer combo ?!!

[MetroMPG]

Neat job, Peakster!

[Hockey4mnhs]

that flame was HUGE!!

[Peakster]

Originally Posted by Hockey4mnhs

that flame was HUGE!!

Yeah, it gets fairy warm if you're within about a 50 foot radius of the burners igniting . This morning's weather appears appears flyable, so we're going to do a flight here in town at about 6am.