Who Loves A Bunny?

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The Energizer battery company has its headquarters here. Everyone in North America, at least, has seen their ads with the Energizer battery that keeps going and going and going (on the eponymous batteries, of course). One of their publicity gimmicks is an enormous hot air balloon.

The company is the major sponsor of the Forest Park balloon race. They always give away these pink foam bunny ears. You see lots of children wearing them and some adults. I wonder if the woman wore this sweatshirt in anticipation of getting the accessory.

Good Luck

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The main event of The Great Forest Park Balloon Race was held on Saturday afternoon. Well, it's not exactly a race. Everyone has the same wind. The idea is to land as close as possible to the lead balloon but the participants are at the mercy of the breeze.

It was not the kind  of day for classic hot air balloon shots with radiant colors in late afternoon sun. In fact, the sky could not have been more dull. So, work with the materials at hand. Some more of these tomorrow.

The Great Forest Park Balloon Race: The Bunny

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The Great Forest Park Balloon Race took place last weekend. Friday's night's balloon glow was featured here two days ago. The race itself was Saturday afternoon. The setup is "hare and hounds." One balloon takes off several minutes before the rest and lands wherever. The hounds - all the other balloons - give chase. The winner is the balloon crew that drops a bag of birdseed (why birdseed?) closet to the hare (so why not rabbit food?).

The great pun is that the hare balloon is the Energizer Bunny. The battery company's HQ is here. They claim it is by far the biggest hot air balloon in the US, taller that the Statue of Liberty. The sky held only a breath of wind at launch time. The newspaper said that the breeze was so light that the race did not leave the boundaries of Forest Park.

That's no fun, but there are lots more good balloon pictures for the rest of the week.

Balloon Glow

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Don't let anybody tell you there's nothing to do in this town. This weekend's event is The Great Forest Park Balloon Race. The "hare and hounds" race is today. Actually, it's not a race at all. The hare balloon (that looks like the Energizer battery bunny, har har) takes off 15 minutes before the others. The winner is the chase balloon that lands nearest to the hare, all to the surprise of the neighborhood.

Last night was the traditional balloon glow. These are some of the better shots.