'We can't steer. We just literally go with the wind': Hot air balloonist on taking to the skies in Ireland
Ireland's first female hot air balloon pilot Carol Davis during a flight in one of her hot air balloons (right).
Carol Davis has always gone wherever the wind takes her, which is not surprising, given that she was Ireland’s first female hot air balloon pilot.
Thirty-six years after making history as the first woman to receive a balloon pilot licence, the 64-year-old is looking forward to another milestone: Taking to the skies with her family for the 54th Irish Hot Air Balloon Championships.
They take place on Friday, September 25, at Lough Key Forest and Activity Park in Boyle, Co Roscommon. Established in 1971, the event is the longest running initiative of its kind, bringing together balloonists from all over the world to participate in flying challenges.
Second-generation balloon pilot Carol will be welcoming her son Mark home from Canada for the competition.
“It’s a real family affair this year for us as my son and grandson are on the team, as well as my brother and nephew and my sister and her son,” she told the .
Carol, who grew up in Dublin and now lives in Cavan, was first introduced to ballooning by her father.
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“I didn’t have the opportunity to fly near my home in Dublin growing up because we were within a controlled zone. My dad used to fly around Naas and Blessington a lot so I would have been flying with him as a little kid.
"He was a member of club where a syndicate had their own balloon that pilots took turns flying.
"It was so exciting. I loved flying but I used to like going out with them even when I wasn’t flying. For some reason I always hated the city. In the countryside I could run around in fields and just embrace the freedom of it all.
"As a child I just didn’t realise how lucky I was to have this opportunity. It was only years later that I was able to acknowledge what a golden childhood I had.
"It wasn’t just hot air balloons either. My dad flew gliders and fixed-wing aircrafts so he would take me up in those as well.”
Carol’s accounts of her extraordinary childhood were often dismissed by classmates.
“I sometimes told my classmates that my dad had a balloon but they thought I was crazy.
They started making fun of me so I kept my mouth shut after that.”
The teasing did little, however, to dampen her passion.
“It wasn’t until I got married and had kids and missed out on ballooning for a few years that I realised this was something I wanted to do myself.
"I went to an air show that my dad was involved in. You are more limited with the weight you can carry on a hot day. I happened to be the lightest person so I was able to fly with them.
"That was 1987 and my first flight for a while. My dad asked me if I wanted to have a go at operating the burner with the taps and turning the gas on and off. As soon as I tried it, something clicked inside of me.
"Even though I loved flying I never really had the desire to be a pilot until that flight. Three years later I got my pilot’s licence.
"Ballooning is like getting behind the wheel of a car. You can sit in the passenger seat forever, but it's only when you start getting behind the wheel that you realise this could really be possible.
“I have a Lindstrand lightweight balloon which is a regular looking balloon with a basket, but it's small which restricts you in the number of passengers you can carry. My other one is specifically a one-man balloon because it doesn't have a basket, but rather just a harness.”
Carol was glad to pave the way for other women in Ireland.
“I've been flying for 36 years and while I was the first, I’m not the only female hot air balloon pilot in Ireland. There is currently another lady in Trim and one in Belfast.
"To be honest, there are not many men involved either. Ballooning is a very small sport in Ireland because the Irish weather is not conducive to ballooning at all. You have to be extremely patient. You don't get very many flights during the year. I’ve stuck with the sport because it’s in my blood.
"I’m glad I was able to pass it on to my son Mark who got his licence 20 years ago and later emigrated to Canada. He now operates as a commercial balloonist and is teaching his own son to fly. Soon enough we will have a fourth-generation balloonist in the family.”
Conditions in Ireland can often be challenging for balloon pilots in Ireland.
“You can never really plan for where you’re going to land. When you take off you just have to wait and see where the wind is going to take you. We can't steer. We just literally go with the wind. When you're looking to land, you're just looking for a nice big open field without any livestock, preferably on a road with a gate to make it easy for access.
"I can launch the balloon in my garden so this is often where I fly from. I live close to Lough Sheelin and if the wind is taking me towards the lake it’s a short flight. You always need to check the forecast before you go out to make sure that the weather is going to be calm and dry. You have to be very careful about the weather.”
Carol enjoys the reactions from spectators.
“People are always delighted to see you, wherever you land. My neighbours love the balloon as well. You’ll often see them shouting up to me as I fly overhead. Another neighbour of mine flies a paramotor. His house is higher than mine so when he sees that I’m inflating my balloon and it’s visible over the trees, he gets out his paramotor and flies around with me.”
Carol, who is also a bookkeeper, is delighted she can share the sport with her children.
“When the children were little they loved coming out with me. Katie never had the interest in learning to fly herself but her younger brother Mark was a very technical person.
"He had trained as a mechanic before going to Canada and he really wanted to give this a go. He always wanted to try things and make them work. Ballooning was something he wanted from the get go.
"Coming to the Irish Hot Air Balloon Championships is going to be like a bus man’s holiday for him. He’s basically taking a week off from commercial flying to come and fly my little balloon.”
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