Coshocton Hot Air Balloon Festival launches spirits
COSHOCTON — This will be the 33rd year for balloons to take flight over the rolling hills and farms of Coshocton County. The Coshocton Hot Air Balloon Festival, sponsored by Frontier Power, is one of the longest-continuously running hot air balloon festivals in Ohio. This year, the event will be Thursday, June 5, Friday, June 6 and Saturday, June 7,with launches and fly-ins taking place (weather permitting) at the Coshocton County Fairgrounds located at 707 Kenilworth Avenue in Coshocton. Admission, parking, and musical entertainment are free.
A full slate of fun and entertainment will also take place over the weekend at the Fairgrounds. Visitors can enjoy midway attractions, craft booths, antiques flea market, carnival rides, fireworks, nightglow, musical entertainment, food vendors and many other family-oriented activities.
Thursday night kicks off the festival this year with the midway opening at 4 p.m. and the Coshocton Elementary Choir will perform at 6 p.m. Then, DeCosky Ford presents Sticks and Stones, an oldies band from Newark, Ohio, starting at 7 p.m.
On Friday night, Edward Jones Investments – Mike Remington and Raymond James Financial – Shane Pyle are providing free musical entertainment including the Chestnut Ridge Blue Grass band at 6:15 p.m. and Tristen Smith from Nashville will take the stage at 7:30 p.m. The popular balloon ‘Night Glow’ takes place around 9:15 p.m.
Saturday, the midway opens at 11 a.m. There will be a Kiddie Pedal Tractor Pull at 1 p.m. sponsored by Mowry’s Concession and is free for all children. Safety Saturday will be from 1 – 4 p.m. which offers the opportunity to get up close to safety equipment and meet some of the local fire fighters and EMS personnel. Musical Mark will stroll the grounds entertaining the crowds along the midway. Jeff Drennen Dealerships are proud to bring Coshocton-native Danielle Peck home to perform in front of the grandstands starting at 8 p.m. Timothy Paul, another hometown boy, will provide warm up music starting at 6:15 p.m. and the Magic of Jeff Leonard will keep kids and adults alike entertained while the stage is reset for Danielle. COTC is sponsoring a fireworks display at 9:30 p.m.
Balloon launches and fly-ins will take place (weather permitting) on Friday, June 6 around 6 p.m., Saturday, June 7, around 6 a.m., and again around 6 p.m.; and Sunday morning, June 8 around 6 a.m.
Sponsors and supporters of the 2014 festival include Frontier Power Company, Jeff Drennen Dealerships, State Farm Insurance – Doug Marmie, SanCasT Inc., RockTenn, R. Dale Smith, Central Ohio Technical College, Olde Town Realty, Frontier Propane, Jones Metal/Jones-Zylon Co., AAA Ohio Auto Club, Kraft Foods, WalMart Super Center, Clow Water Systems, Dr. Todd Salmans, DDS, Ember Complete Care, Roscoe Motor Inn, and Coshocton Trucking.
To learn more about affordable and fun things to do in Coshocton including the Horse-drawn Canal Boat Ride, Historic Roscoe Village, Unusual Junction, Coshocton’s five wineries, family-fun events and more, call 1-800-338-4724 or go to www.VisitCoshocton.com. For more information about the Coshocton Hot Air Balloon Festival, go to www.Coshoctonhotairballoonfestival.com, or call (740) 622-4877.
Category: Arts & Entertainment
