66th Gordon Bennett Cup Distance Competition Update #7

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media contact: media@balloonfiesta.com

Albuquerque, NM – The 66^th Coupe Aeronautique Gordon Bennett, sponsored by BayoTech, is underway. As of the latest update at 5:00pm MDT from the Gordon Bennett Command Center, there are currently 12 balloons in flight. Team France 1 (FRA-1) is still leading the way, making a direction change to the northeast at Shreveport, Louisiana, heading towards Arkansas. Second place team USA-1 makes a similar turn northbound at Texarkana, AR. The top five teams appear to finally be reaching the strong East-West jet winds that will send them flying across Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina at much higher speeds than we’ve seen so far. This afternoon, six teams passed the 1000 km (621.3 mi) mark in distance.

Tomas Hora, Event Director, predicted that the teams could cross the Mississippi river tonight. Each balloon was given 1000 cubic meters of hydrogen gas, but it’s up to the teams to decide how their ballasts are distributed: heavier equipment with fewer ballasts, or lighter weight equipment and more ballasts. Hora noted that with the demonstrated strategies so far, the race could last another two days. 

More landings are expected around sunset this evening, as teams usually avoid landing during the night. Weather forecasts remain calm across the flight path. Competitors of this prestigious long-distance gas balloon race launched on Saturday evening, October 7^th from the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.  

Team Updates (5:00pm MDT 10/09/2023)

Team #	Position	Country	Distance (km)	Distance (miles)	Landed?
FRA-1	1	France	1225.15	761.27
USA-1	2	USA	1182.84	734.98
ESP-1	3	Spain	1136.97	706.48
GBR-1	4	United Kingdom	1091.75	678.38
USA-2	5	USA	1089.91	677.24
GER-1	6	Germany	1040.19	646.34
USA-3	7	USA	1006.06	625.14
FRA-2	8	France	993.79	617.51
AUT-1	9	Austria	977.02	607.09
POL-1	10	Poland	960.8	597.01
GER-2	10	Germany	890.47	553.31
POL-2	2	Poland	872.48	542.13	Landed
AUT-2	13	Austria	850.95	278.68
GER-3	14	Germany	494.20	307.08	Landed
LTU-1	15	Lithuania	395.76	245.91	Landed
SUI-1	16	Switzerland	293.33	182.27	Landed
FRA-3	n/a	France	n/a	n/a	No start

For the most up-to-date information and to track the balloons in real-time, please visit the official Gordon Bennett Cup website at https://balloonfiesta.com/Gordon-Bennett-2023 and our dedicated tracking site at https://live.gordonbennett.aero. Don’t forget to tune in to Gordon Bennett TV for exclusive coverage and insights. 

The next update will be provided at 9:00pm 10/09/2023 MDT.

About the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta & Gordon Bennett Cup

The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, powered by ExxonMobil, is the host for the 66^th Gordon Bennett Cup.  The Balloon Fiesta is a festival of hot air balloons that takes place in October in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA. For details on events, schedule, entertainment and photographs visit our website www.balloonfiesta.com and follow us on Twitter @BalloonFiesta and Facebook.