One of a large number of hearty people who has made it their
livelihood to fly Hot-Air balloons. Usually earning thier keep through the sale of
balloon flights to
groundhogs, (not the
furry ones) although they sometimes also rake in the
cash through
advertising on the balloon, or in the extreme cases, flying a
balloon shaped like a particular product. They are, indeed,
geeks of a different sort and thus are just as
eccentric as any other geek. They usually work out of small, privately-owned businesses in
rural areas.
Balloonists, like any semi-organized group of
professional hobbyists, hold
local,
state, and
national meets all year round, the largest one being the
Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta in
New Mexico. These gatherings are speckled with parties and other smatterings of
wahoo.