During the Dolomiti Balloon Festival in Toblach, teams will take part in the following competitions. Each competition can only take place by suitable weather conditions.

Fox Hunting

In this competition, the competitors have to try and land, or throw down their marker, as close to the fox balloon as possible. The fox balloon determines his own starting time, and you will be told his estimated time of flight. The competitors start 10 – 15 minutes later.

Fly-in

An interesting competition for spectators. The competitors choose their starting place, which must be a minimum distance from the given landing place. As with the competition “choose your own target”, the pilot is able to plan his course precisely. The spectators can enjoy the view of balloons coming in from all directions.

Given target

The pilot flies towards the target and throws down his marker. The winner is the pilot whose marker is closest to the target. In the beginning of the competitions, only one target was given. This has now been replaced by various targets (also called hesitation waltz). The pilot chooses his target once he is in the air. This leads to extremely exact flights. Skilled pilots have been able to throw their markers into the centre of the target.

Self Chosen Target

Similar to the given target, only the pilot chooses his own target. If the pilot watches a helium filled balloon beforehand, it is easier for him to choose his target. Afterwards he is on his own. Even if the wind changes direction, the pilot cannot change his target, and he cannot use the neighboring balloon to determine the wind direction as the other pilot doesn’t know the target. A very difficult competition.

FIFO (Fly in Fly on)

Often used in connection with a given target to lengthen the competition. The pilot chooses a second target once he is in the air and marks them on the marker that he throws down at the first target. Then he flies to his chosen second target and throws down the second marker.

Elbow

In this competition the largest changes in direction must be achieved. After the start, the balloons travel for a predetermined distance, e.g. 5 km and the pilot throws down his marker and flies off on the next course, which should be in a completely different direction. This competition is not very interesting for spectators as the balloons are spread over a large distance. But for the pilots it is very exciting, sometimes they have to rise up high to catch the right wind direction.

Race to a Line

This is the only exception to the rule, as in this competition it is all about speed. The pilots have to reach a given line, and the winner is the fastest balloon. The pilots can gain speed by rising, but the wind might be in the wrong direction. The pilot has to find out how he can reach the finish in the quickest possible time, and the finishing line can lie diagonally to the wind making it particularly difficult. Times can be within seconds, but also minutes.