BALOON FEST '93 COMBINES SPORTS AND SPECTACLE

Humans first flew free of the earth 210 years ago when two French aristocrats stayed aloft for 25 minutes in a hot air balloon designed by some papermakers. Francois Pilatre de Rozier and Francois Laurent were true adventurers who defied gravity and the prevailing belief that there was no air above the treetops.

De Rozier, who could be an ancestor of the many Rozier families in Ste. Genevieve, was killed two years later trying to fly from France to England.

From this daring beginning evolved a form of flight that today is both the safest form of aviation and a spectacle that seems to stir something in both participants and spectators.

Thirty-five balloonists from 14 states will compete for more than $10,000 in prize money during Balloon Fest '93, which sets off at 6 tonight at the Show Me Center.

Tethered balloon rides also will be offered at 8:30 p.m. at the West Park Mall, along with an opportunity to watch a "balloon glow" the burner being fired against a setting sun.

The Balloon Fest will continue with flights at 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday. These are the times when winds are the most calm.

A change in the schedule has all flights beginning at the Show Me Center. Originally, some were to start from the Cape Girardeau Municipal Airport, but planners were concerned about flooding coming into play.

The Show Me Center parking lot should be the best location for viewing the balloons, and balloonists say the morning flights provide the most dramatic sights.

Rob and Jetta Schantz of Jacksonville Beach, Fla., are the organizers of the event. As the balloonmeister, he will make the crucial decision of whether to fly.

Balloonists do not fly if the wind is over 8 knots. They also don't fly if a storm is within 50 miles. "It's a fair weather sport," says Rob, a former financial consultant who now operates a balloon events consulting company.

Jetta holds nine world records for distance. Last January, she flew farther in a single flight 292 miles in 7 hours, 1 minute than any woman in history.

This weekend's events will consist of two contests: a "Hare and Hounds" competition in which the balloons chase a single leader. The other event is called a Convergent Navigational Task, and it requires the balloonists to find a launch site that will bring them back to the landing zone.

A great deal of experience and planning are behind a successful balloon racer. A ballooning pilot's license has the same requirements as a 747 pilot's license, Rob Schantz said.

After nearly disappearing when gas-propelled balloons proved a failure during the early part of the century, modern-day ballooning was born in the late 1950s with new parachute-inspired designs. But in 1962, there were still only six in the United States.

Since then, the interest has, well, ballooned.

One hundred balloonists will compete in this year's national championships in Middletown, Ohio. The championships will be held in Columbia, Mo., in 1995.

If Balloon Fest '93 is a success, it will become an annual event, Rob Schantz says.

One of the balloonists competing this weekend is Jodie Smith of Chino, Calif. He has brought along a three-man crew that will help with the launch and stay in radio contact with him.

Some of the balloons advertise the name of a sponsor. Smith pilots a balloon that doesn't have a sponsor but does have a message Just Say No.

Going aloft in a balloon is a peaceful and calm experience, but Smith says floating on the wayward wind also offers challenges.

"One thing you learn to develop in ballooning is patience."

A manufacturer and general contractor, he took his first balloon ride four years ago and was hooked. Now he's ranked No. 5 in the National Balloon Racing Association point totals.

Another of the competitors this weekend will be Bill Bussey of Longview, Texas, in the Schlitz balloon. He recently set a number of world records.

Though balloons can vary in price Smith bought his second-hand for $19,500 how much financial backing a competitor has doesn't seem to matter much. "Everybody's equal," said Rob Schantz. "Where's the wind going to blow you?"