Balloon Race by cupa tea
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The sky looked beautiful. The air balloons floated above the ground like little creatures with invisible wings dancing in the wind that seemed to be picking up from the southwest. There were six of them. The director of the race approached the balloons nodding at the riders who when he waved his hand would run and jump into their balloons and start off the race. “Everyone,” the director called out over his microphone. “Get ready,” the riders moved to the positions they needed to be in at the start of the race. “GO!” The director called out over the microphone. Each rider ran and then jumped up to the ladder floating in the air just below their balloon and beginning climbing. The crowd cheered. The riders reached their balloons and one by one they cast-off into the air. The breeze had been picking up slowly over the last few hours before the race. It had been suggested to close the race due to the rising wind. But, according to the news the approaching storm wouldn’t catch up to the contestants before the race ended. So the race was not canceled. On the ground below the floating balloons a truck followed them recording where each was in the race. Balloon one was red with sparkles of glitter embed around the crown of the balloon. In the center was a picture of God. Balloon two was blue and had images of a blue sky all around it. Balloon three celebrated birds of all kinds. The owl being the owners favor because it was the biggest bird represented. Balloon four displayed a beach with the rising surf showing on all sides and surfers catching that wave heading towards the shore line. Balloon five was a simple orange. Balloon six was purple and celebrated a forest filled with wild animals. None of the balloons had numbers on them but the bottom of each basket told the chasers which balloon it was. The race had started and the chasers were already reporting what was happening. “Balloon six,” a male chaser reported has pulled ahead of the other balloons by just inches right now. The race continued. “Balloon four has dropped several weights and has moved closer to the front of the race. The weights landed near the chasers where they were retrieved and continued on. This caused balloon four to rise higher in the air. Winds had already started to pick up even more. The higher altitude caused the balloon to move faster and twist in odd ways. The crowd watching the footage cheered. In the distance, now growing closer by the minute was the approaching storm. The chasers, watched the fourth balloon as it twisted and turned in the air. They checked for the landing pad they carried just in case any of the racers needed to bale out. Each balloon carried a parachute but sometimes there just wasn’t time to put it on or the balloon wasn’t high enough to use it. But falling without it would kill them. “Balloon number four is in trouble!” The chasers reported into their microphones. The balloon spun around twisting up the ropes and causing the occupant to hold onto the sides like it was life or death. Balloon one, now in last place, rose higher in the sky above number four. The occupant waved at the chasers below assuring them that they were alright. As they rose higher they over took balloon four. In the distance it began to rain. The sheets of rain came down like knives. The chasers were warned of the coming storm. They broadcast the news to the air balloons in the race. Each could choose to continue or go to ground for rescue. Balloons one and three started declining and the chasers knew they were forfeiting the race. Dispatch was called and rescuers were dispatched to help with clean-up. Minutes passed. The storms winds were catching up. The race had another fifteen minutes to the finish line. Balloons two, five and six were neck to neck. Balloon four was still ahead but in poor shape and the fear of the basket breaking was slowly becoming a reality. The race continued. Balloon five didn’t look very good. The balloon itself was bending inward. Strong winds were compressing against it’s sides so strong that it was forcing air out and making the balloon rise and lower with each gust of wind. The occupant waved to the chasers. He was gonna jump. It wasn’t safe to wait any longer. With each gust of wind more air was driven out of his balloon. Soon it was gonna crash. Once again the chasers dispatched rescue to the area. They prepared to catch the occupant. The falling rain was catching up with them. The wind was so strong at this point that even the chasers were having issues keeping their car on the ground going forward following the balloons. Items fell from the sky from balloon four. In the distance lightening began and a burst of thunder warned everyone that the race should be over. The occupant of balloon four didn’t give signs that he planned to jump. The Chasers called up to him suggesting he do so. He waved at them from above stating that he was fine and not going to give up. The chasers continued on. The race continued on. All watchers of the race had returned to their cars and left the area to find protection from the approaching storm long ago. The finish line was approaching. The remaining balloonist kept on going. The knifing rain reached the racers. When it hit the balloons it cut holes in them. Balloons two and six began to fall towards the ground. The chasers alerted rescue and continued to follow balloon four which appeared to be the winner. As they watched the balloon began to rise even higher in the sky. Too high for a balloon to survive. The clouds covered it and it disappeared into them. The chasers waited. The crowd, watching on television waited. The balloon never came out of the clouds. Rescuers checked the ground. Balloon four was simply gone… The storm continued. The race ended and the search for balloon four began….
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cupa tea
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