Thaindian News

By Gina Gomez
Sep 27, (THAINDIAN NEWS) The much anticipated Gordon Bennett balloon race commenced on Saturday with as many as twenty teams participating this year with the aim of winning the international race. After the event kicked off near Bristol with the teams starting the journey in hydrogen-filled balloons, each of the teams now intend to reach the farthest destination from the site of the launch.

According to the latest reports that have surfaced, following the launch of the event around five balloons already had to make an emergency landing in turn dashing their hopes of emerging victorious by taking the balloons till the farthest distances possible. By Monday morning, the hydrogen-filled balloons which are still in the race are reported to have traveled over France and Spain. French balloonists Sebastien Rolland and Vincent Leys were leading the competition on Monday morning as they cruised over the Mediterranean Sea. In the meanwhile, the 2010 edition of the Gordon Bennett race is indeed special as this is the very first time in the history of the gas balloon competition that it has kick started from the United Kingdom.

Clive Bailey, who is the director of the race has revealed to the media that despite the fact that all the safety measures have been taken by the organizers, there is always a certain amount of risk involved in these kind of events. The director described the participants of the gas balloon race as ‘brave guys’ which is surely not an overstatement given the fact that some of the competitors would remain airborne for about three to four days.