Insurance issues won’t ground Balloon Festival
Staff photo/Scott Mitchell Johnson
THE EIGHTH ANNUAL Crown of Maine Balloon Fest will be held Aug. 25-28 in Presque Isle.
Rumors have been circulating that the festival will not occur; however, officials with the Central Aroostook Chamber of Commerce, which hosts the event, said nothing could be further from the truth. The misinformation stems from the fact that the insurance carrier that the festival used last year opted not to insure the event this year, leaving organizers to look for a new provider. Officials said that despite the cost, the Balloon Fest will be held and will be bigger and better than ever.
PRESQUE ISLE — Despite rumors to the contrary, the eighth annual Crown of Maine Balloon Fest will occur Aug. 25-28 and organizers say the event will be bigger and better than ever.
According to Theresa Fowler, executive director of the Central Aroostook Chamber of Commerce, formerly the Presque Isle Area Chamber of Commerce, which hosts the event, a change in insurance providers is what started the false idea.
“I’ve been receiving inquiries about whether the COMBF is going to carry on this year, and, of course, we are,” she said. “The difficulty that the committee is facing is that — sort of midstream — we discovered that we may have to pay additional amounts for insurance this year. The COMBF has been without incident and has always been very safely organized and run, and the balloon pilots are very conscientious and safety conscious.
“I’m led to believe that the frequency of litigation is increasing and people are becoming a little more cautious, so the carrier that we were insured with last year decided that they didn’t want to insure the COMBF this year,” said Fowler. “There was no specific reason given; I believe it’s just a change in their policy.”
The committee is actively searching for insurance.
“We’ve been looking in various places and have a few options, but we don’t know what the financial effect is going to be yet,” said Fowler. “No matter what the cost, the COMBF will be flying Aug. 25-28. The unfortunate part is the chamber of commerce may suffer a loss by hosting this event which we can’t really afford to do, but we’ve got so much invested in this festival that it has to continue.”
Fowler said she has received calls from several new pilots who know about the festival and want to participate.
“Either they’ve flown here in the past or they’ve heard about it, and they want to come here,” she said. “We know we’re bringing people here for four or five days, staying in hotels and motels and spending their money, buying meals, etc. It’s a real economic boon for the area.
“We may not see a great impact annually but the promotion of the area that balloon pilots do at other events means more and more people are hearing about central Aroostook, the beauty of the area, the kindness of the people and the great lifestyle we enjoy,” said Fowler. “Each time this story is told it reaches a potential visitor, emigrant or investor.”
Fowler said the COMBF has attracted quite a following over the past several years.
“The tourists enjoy the intimacy of a small balloon festival where there are opportunities to ride, talk to pilots and be part of the action,” she said. “These same tourists have lots of opportunity to support local businesses between flights.
“Balloon pilots and their crews, in the area for four days to several weeks, support a variety of businesses for various reasons. Pilots particularly like to take their crew out for meals so restaurants see an increase in business,” said Fowler. “The fields are full of Canadian cars, as well as locals, and it’s a great event for the area.”
The fun kicks off Thursday, Aug. 25 with a Street Fair on Main Street and the first official mass balloon launch.
FMI, log onto www.crownofmaineballoonfest.org.
