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As launch position had been previously drawn by lot, the Cayton-Knapp team was the fifth balloon to launch. Early on the evening of the 10th, Cayton handed two bags of ballast to the balloonmeister, Stefan Handl, and they were in the air. The race was on! Knapp remembers many “good luck” calls from the crowd; the chase crew mounted their vehicle and departed the launch field not knowing they would have a role in one of the most controversial events in years
Cayton-Knapp tracked more easterly than the balloons that had previously launched and stayed well north of highway I-40 as they crossed the Sandia Mountains. Their altitude was well above 10,000 feet the first night and averaged 30 miles per hour (mph) with the temperature in the low 30’s. Cayton and Knapp spent most of the night colder than expected and shivering to keep warm. They established radio contact with Lubbock, Texas Approach at 0630 Wednesday morning and shortly after experienced the magic of a sunrise from the air.
Most of Wednesday was spent flying over Texas, averaging 36 mph. Another team, that of Phil McNutt and Brian Critelli, flew 90 degrees directly below them passing to the north just before they reached the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex. [Figure 11-13] Cayton-Knapp could see other balloons in the distance, but it was unusual to see another team’s balloon so close in flight. Dallas Approach directed them to fly over the Class B airspace above 11,000 feet; at that altitude, they started tracking a more southerly direction.
Wednesday evening found the team over northern Louisiana. Most of the night was spent above 2,500 feet flying less than 12 mph. The strategy was to stay behind the weather system ahead and to position themselves for Thursday’s flight. Cayton and Knapp fell behind several teams during the night, but that served to let them know they were where they needed to be.
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Figure 11-14. Panama City Beach, Florida, as seen from the Cayton-Knapp balloon, 25 miles out over the Gulf of Mexico.
Figure 11-15. Tracks of the 2006 America‘s Challenge competitors.
Thursday morning’s weather forecast was not favorable; winds on the surface, as well as at 3,000, 6,000, and 9,000 feet were all going out into the Gulf with no options but to land. Several teams saw this and landed. Meteorologist Day and Cayton had a long discussion via satellite phone, and confirmed the winds above 12,000 would hook out into the Gulf and bring them back to dry land near Panama City, Florida. All the available meteorological information told them it would work. If the team wished to stay competitive, they had to go high and out over the water.
They began their ascent around 10:00 AM and went out over the water just east of New Orleans. It was relatively slow going but Cayton and Knapp finally made it back to land as planned and began a slow descent around 16:30. Equipment was secured in anticipation of a possible landing near the Apalachicola National Forest in the Florida panhandle. After confirming their position in the race, and with no place to land, the decision was made to continue the flight through the night. The weather prognosis was good, the winds would be relatively calm during the night and remaining ballast was good, so they calculated the needed distance and time to win the race. [Figure 11-14]
Early on Thursday morning, it appeared that the team’s patience had paid off. By 0430, they were moving east about 6 mph and were just over Cross City, Florida. At sunrise, they were 13 miles further east, and just north of Old Town and Fanning Springs. Surface winds were calm and there was a thin layer of ground fog. As the sun came up, the balloon experienced solar heating and ascended to just over 7,000 feet. The flight continued in an easterly direction at 15 mph and by 08:00 the team came to the realization that they were in a perfect position to take over the lead.
As the Cayton-Knapp team crossed Interstate 75, just south of Gainesville, Florida, they received word that the German team of Eimers/Winker [Figure 11-15, AC-13] was on the ground, and near Cayton’s home in Savannah, Georgia. Cayton and Knapp elected to continue flying until they had a cushion of 10 miles before beginning their descent.
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With surface winds of approximately 3 mph and knowing the race was won, the team elected to land in Citra, Florida. Their chase crew was waiting for them in the yard of a cooperative landowner. After a 60 hour, 20 minute flight covering 1,478 miles, Andy Cayton and Kevin Knapp had beaten the odds to capture the 2006 America’s Challenge Cup.
Chapter Summary
This chapter provides a short description of the unique aspects of gas ballooning in comparison to hot air ballooning. For more information, a local gas pilot and the Gas Division of the Balloon Federation of America (www.bfa.net) are good resources.
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A-1
Vapor Pressures of LP Gases
Temperature (°F)Approximate PressurePropane Butane –40 2 –30 7 –20 12 –10 18 0 25 10 34 20 42 30 53 40 65 3 50 78 7 60 93 12 70 110 17 80 128 23 90 150 30 100 177 38 110 204 46
　
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