Weather deflates Pahrump balloon festival attendance

Though the final attendance numbers are still up in the air, Pahrump Valley Chamber of Commerce Chief Executive Officer Chris Erwin noted that community participation for this year’s Pahrump Balloon Festival was down.

The culprit he noted, was none other than Mother Nature.

“I would have to say it was the lowest attendance that we’ve had in the three years since I’ve been overseeing it,” Erwin said on Tuesday of this week. “On Friday we never opened, because of the weather, and I think the cold weather kept some people indoors throughout the whole weekend. That’s not to say that our non-profits and other organizations didn’t do well.”

Opening Day aborted

Pahrump Valley Chamber of Commerce Event Coordinator Donna Corey said she saw the “writing on the wall,” on late Friday afternoon, shortly before the balloon festival was scheduled to open.

It was Corey’s first time attending the event.

“I thought it was wonderful, considering the weather,” she said. “On Friday we had some snow flurries and very high winds, which shut us down just minutes before we were set to open at 4 p.m. It was also my first time seeing the “Glow Show,” which I thought was just wonderful. It was really great to have a time where everyone in the community could come together and witness something really neat.”

Empathetic vendors

Additionally, Corey said she was thankful that all of the vendors attending this year’s event, were very understanding.

“We had a total of 78 vendors,” she said. “Even they had a feeling the weather would put a damper on the balloon festival, and they were all very gracious about it. They understood that there was nothing anyone could do about the weather. Fortunately, we were able to we were fly on Saturday, and of course on Media Day, which was Thursday.”

Meteorological conditions aside, Corey raved about the fourth annual event, and all of the peripherals at Petrack Park.

Community fellowship

“I thought all of the balloon sculptures in the park did really well for the first time this year,” she noted. “People really enjoyed getting their pictures taken, so we are going to expand on that. The rodeo also went really well for a brand new event and I heard that everybody wanted another day to see the car show. A lot of people came and took pictures and really enjoyed it. We don’t have the overall attendance numbers but overall, it was very well attended. Even the carnival by Davis Amusements here in Pahrump was very busy up to the final day on Sunday.”

Contact reporter Selwyn Harris at sharris@pvtimes.com. On Twitter: @pvtimes