• Official Notice Board
  • Event Coverage
    • 2016 Coverage >
      • Out West BalloonFest
    • 2015 Coverage >
      • World Air Games - Dubai, UAE
      • Balloon Fiesta
      • US National Championship
      • Battle Creek Field of Flight
      • The Ohio Challenge - Middletown, Ohio
    • 2014 Coverage >
      • Competition Events Guide
      • Western Canadian Championship
      • Tochigi International Championship
      • First Women's World Championship
      • UK Nationals 2014
      • Flag City Balloon Fest - 2014
      • 2014 U.S. National Championship
      • Ohio Challenge - Middletown, OH USA
      • Angola Balloons Aloft - 2014
      • Battle Creek Field of Flight
      • Aloft - Simpsonville, SC - 2014
      • Rio Grande Classic - Albuquerque, NM
    • 2013 Coverage >
      • Tochigi International Championship
      • Balloon Fiesta - Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta
      • Ascension Balloon Championship - Gonzales, LA USA
      • Canadian Nationals - High River, Canada
      • Council Bluffs Field of Flight
      • 18th European Championship
      • 37th Great Pershing Balloon Derby
      • French/UK Nationals
      • German Nationals
      • Great Midwest Balloon Fest
      • The Classic - Indianola, IA
      • 2013 US Nationals
      • Pre-Worlds - Sao Carlos, Brazil
      • Angola Balloons Aloft - Angola, IN
      • Ohio Challenge
      • Lake Red Rock BalloonFest
      • Battle Creek Field of Flight
      • Thurston Classic - Meadville, PA
      • My Waterloo Days
      • Rio Grande Classic - Albuquerque, NM
      • Aloft - Southeast Regional Championships
      • Frankenmuth, MI
    • 2012 Coverage >
      • 20th World Championship >
        • BalloonPong Party
        • Scores
        • Website Links
      • US National Championships
      • Tochigi International Championship
      • Italian Nationals
      • Ballunar Liftoff Festival
      • Baton Rouge, LA
      • British Nationals
      • Creston, IA
      • Great Forest Park Balloon Race
      • Balloons, Tunes & BBQ
      • 56th Gordon Bennett
      • Flag City BalloonFest - Findlay, Ohio
      • Great Midwest BalloonFest
      • National Balloon Classic
      • Lake Red Rock Balloonfest
      • MidFirst Ohio Challenge
      • Angola, IN
      • Field of Flight
      • Ottumwa Pro - Ottumwa, IA
      • Howell, MI
      • Coshocton OH
      • Freedom Weekend Aloft
      • Great Lakes Regional
      • Swiss Nationals
    • 2011 Coverage >
      • Tochigi International Championship
    • 2010 Events >
      • Albuquerque Fiesta
      • Albuquerque Top Gun
      • Angola
      • Ashland
      • Battle Creek
      • Bowling Green
      • Brookfield
      • Canton
      • Carson City
      • Chagrin Falls
      • Coshocton
      • Councel Bluffs, IA
      • Creston, IA
      • Findlay
      • Frankenmuth
      • Gordon Bennett
      • Howell
      • Houston, TX
      • Indianapolis
      • Indianola
      • Kansas City
      • Longview
      • Macon
      • Middletown
      • Midlothian
      • Meadville
      • Natchez, MS
      • Ottumwa
      • Simpsonville
      • Statesville, NC
      • Tochigi Int'l Championship
      • World Championships
      • US National Championship
  • Videos
    • BalloonPong Originals
    • Our Favorites
  • About Us

THurston Classic
Meadville, PA USA
2010
updated 6/21/10  09:45am

Preview
After only one flight in Coshocton last weekend.  Ohio/Pennsylvania pilots will shift northeast and descend on the small border town of Meadville, PA for this weekend's Thurston Classic.  This will be the 22nd year for the event that was started to commemorate the ballooning career of Samuel Thurston.  Thurston was a Meadville lifer who started flying gas balloons in 1860.  Over his 25 years of flying he would share is love of ballooning with the townspeople free of charge at fairs and exhibitions.  His flying adventures and generosity built him a lasting legacy and is still a town legend.

There are three competition flights scheduled for this weekend starting Saturday morning and weather looks favorable for all three. The field of competitors will have many familiar faces from last weekend's event in Coshocton.  Bob Zanella will be calling the tasks and Maury Sullivan (who never seems to take a weekend off) will be doing the weather and aiding in task calling.  

We will have live updates on Twitter and here on the web as soon as possible after the flight.


.
Saturday Morning
The flight was cancelled this morningin Meadville due to fast low level winds that moved in overnight ahead of some weather. Chance of rain and storms this afternoon, but still a chance to squeeze a flight in.  Forecast for tomorrow morning still holding favorable atthis time.
.


.Saturday Evening

Competition cancelled do to some radar echoes closing in on the festival site.
.
Sunday Morning
After cancelling the first two comp flights due to weather.  The pilots in Meadville, PA were finally able to fly a CRT and MJDG Sunday morning.  Perfect morning steerage meant it was going to take two great scores to win.  In the end Jeff Bader won the event with task results of first and third.  Mike Emich came in second with a third and a fourth.  And Mark Yeakle rounded out the top three with task results of sixth and fifth.  
Congrats to Jeff on the win!  And Mike Emich for his third top five in as many events!

.
thurston_classic_2010_standings.pdf
File Size: 12 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

thurston_classic_2010_task_1_results.pdf
File Size: 14 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

thurston_classic_2010_task_2_results.pdf
File Size: 14 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File