Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Taming Twisted Sister Layout

World champion balloon pilot John Petrehn competed in the Columbia Balloon Invitational against one twisted sister, Becky Petrehn. Though Becky, owner and pilot of the balloon, “Twisted Sister,” would argue that her balloon was named for the twisted colors in the pattern, not her.
With seven brothers, four of whom are pilots and one sister, Becky is not only of the few female balloon pilots in her family but in the balloon world as well. Women make up a small percentage of pilots in the world and at the Columbia Balloon Invitational, Becky was one of only three women out of thirty five pilots to compete. Becky, along with her crew member and pilot in training Katie Vogel, manage to do all the heavy lifting and maneuvering it takes to run an AX-6 balloon which can hold up to 56,000 cubic feet of air. And they always come out on top.

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