40th Barneveld Balloon Fiesta with 40 balloons

The 40th edition of the Balloon Fiesta will be celebrated with extra festivity on August 21, 22, 23, and 24, 2024. For instance, exactly 40 balloons will take to the skies every evening. And naturally, cake and beer in the air cannot be missing! It will require careful fitting and measuring on the Koewei, but we have done enough calculations to welcome 40 balloons every evening. Do you know the history of the hot air balloon? For what historical reason is Barneveld known in national history?

Jan van Schaffelaar jumped from the tower of Barneveld (1482)

The story of Jan van Schaffelaar is one of the most famous stories from the time of the so-called Hook and Cod Wars, a period in which two factions within the elite of the County of Holland were at odds with each other. Actually, very little is known about Jan van Schaffelaar. For example, it is unclear where and when he was born. It is suspected that Van Schaffelaar was stationed as a cavalry commander at the end of the fifteenth century. Rosendael Castle in Rozendaal. In the conflict between the Hooks and the Cods, the commander sided with the Cods. On July 16, 1482, he is said to have captured the tower of the present-day Old Church in Barneveld with about twenty men. However, the tower was soon after bombarded by Hooks from Nijkerk and Amersfoort. The Cods were surrounded, and after several of them had been killed, it was decided to negotiate a surrender. However, the Hooks made it known that they would only accept the surrender if Jan van Schaffelaar were thrown down by the other men. The Cods refused this. To prevent all the men from being killed, Jan van Schaffelaar then decided to throw himself off the tower instead. Before he did this, according to tradition, he spoke the following words: “Dear companions, I must die eventually, I do not want to cause you any trouble.” (Dear companions, I must die someday anyway, I do not want to cause you any difficulties)

Jan van Schaffelaar survived the fall, but was killed by the Hooks below.  

Air balloon

A hot air balloon or balloon is a manned or unmanned aircraft that ascends using a relatively large, more or less spherical reservoir of a light and flexible material, with lifting gas (heated air or an otherwise light gas). The entire assembly is propelled by the wind. The horizontal movement of the balloon depends on the wind direction; only the vertical movement (ascending and descending) and a turning movement (rotating) can be influenced. With a wind direction that depends on altitude, the horizontal direction can be indirectly steered to some extent by ascending or descending.

In a manned balloon, a basket or gondola hangs from the reservoir to accommodate the passengers. In an unmanned balloon, (measuring) equipment may be attached to the reservoir. An airship differs from a balloon in that it is rigid and cigar-shaped. Furthermore, it is motorized, allowing it to move actively horizontally as well. In 2004, there were approximately 9000 balloon flights in the Netherlands. A number of regulations apply to the use of balloons, such as flight altitudes, avoiding sensitive areas, and the manner of landing and recovering the balloon.

The hot air balloon was on June 4, 1783 by Joseph and Étienne Montgolfier A public demonstration was held in Annonay, the small town where their paper factory was located. Their balloon was made of cloth and lined with white paper. The paper was coated with alum as a fire-retardant layer and held together with approximately 2000 knots. The balloon was unmanned and covered a distance of 2 km. On September 19, 1783, the brothers launched the first balloon with passengers. The flight of a sheep, a rooster, and a duck departed from Versailles and lasted 8 minutes. The balloon, covered in wallpaper, reached a maximum altitude of 500 meters and flew 3,5 km. The proposal to launch a cow, so that there would still be meat if the “machine” crashed, did not succeed.  

40th Barneveld Balloon Fiesta (August 21, 22, 23 and 24, 2024)

If anyone is a huge ballooning enthusiast, it is Ben Bläss. The godfather of the Balloon Fiesta has more than 750 flights (!) to his name and, as a professional photographer, visits balloon festivals at home and abroad. Naturally, he will be there for this edition too! Barneveld resident Ben Bläss and balloonist Hans Zoet were instrumental in the creation of the first Balloon Fiesta in Barneveld. Fond memories? He has countless of them. In 1987, for example, to mark the fifth anniversary of the Balloon Fiesta – which takes place just behind Schaffelaar Castle – a special shape balloon in the form of a castle took to the skies. “A great deal of preparation went into that, but thanks to good connections, we managed to bring this very special balloon to Barneveld. The behemoth measured 50 by 30 meters and caused a traffic jam on the A1 because all the motorists looked up speechless, with their mouths open.”

The Balloon Fiesta was not only the first balloon event in the Netherlands. It also often featured firsts, such as the first parachute jump from a balloon basket. This year, too, marks a wonderful milestone: the aim to launch 40 balloons into the air in a single evening. This is a number that normally exceeds the maximum standard. “That would be amazing, so many balloons in the skies above Barneveld. Then the highest honor awaits the board and everyone involved: a standing ovation.”

The Jeppa Bear balloon has been a guest at the Balloon Fiesta before, but starting with the 40th Barneveld Balloon Fiesta, it will have a new name: KiKa Bear! The change regarding the bear balloon is the result of a collaboration between Barneveld balloonist Edcar Vermeulen of Hot-R Ballonvaarten and the International Balloon Fiesta Barneveld Foundation (SIBB). The Balloon Fiesta donated nearly 5.000 euros to have text applied to the balloon in support of the Children Cancer-Free Foundation (KiKa). Jeppa Bear came into existence two years ago and is the spitting image of his then two-year-old son's favorite stuffed animal, Edcar explains. “Last year at a street fair, I suddenly saw dozens of identical copies standing in a KiKa stall. That got me thinking about a collaboration.” Source: Barneveld Balloon Fiesta News.

<strong> More info: </strong>

40th Barneveld Balloon Fiesta: https://www.ballonfiestabarneveld.nl/ Postex, November 1 and 2, 2024: https://postex.nl/