RENO, Nev. – Even though the sun wasn’t up yet, Cindy Heinrich and her launch team were at Rancho San Rafael Regional Park setting up her balloon, Chromatica, to be one of the first to ascend at the 43rd Great Reno Balloon Race. 

“After the national anthem, they’re allowing the women in aviation to launch next,” said Heinrich. “So, we kind of get a little bit of the spotlight since we get to take off before everybody else does.” 

This year’s theme is Women in Aviation. 

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“I hope to inspire girls to know that they do have a place in aviation,” Heinrich said. “And you can do it when you’re young. It’s possible.” 

She said the key is to find the right mentor. 

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“I think ballooning is amazing,” Heinrich said. 

Currently, there are a growing number of women in aviation. There’s a new pilot in the Reno area and three or four other women student pilots in ballooning. 

“It’s super awesome we’re getting recognized this way,” said Heinrich as Chromatica ascended with the other female-piloted balloons. “It’s cool to look around and see ‘these are the women in ballooning right now.’ It’s pretty special.” 

At 26, Heinrich is special herself. 

She started coming to the Great Reno Balloon Races at 8 ½ months old. It is the world’s largest free hot air balloon event.

“I fell in love with ballooning coming to this event,” Heinrich said. “I haven’t missed a single one my entire life … I’m 26 years old. This is my third year flying this event. This is my 26th year here.” 

Heinrich balloons for fun. She graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno in 2020 with a double major in electrical and biomedical engineering. 

Then she got her commercial pilot’s license. 

Heinrich does private balloon rides mainly near Prosser Reservoir in the Tahoe National Forest, Gardnerville, and Carson Valley. 

She charges $300 a person and does 30 rides a year. 

In addition to her technical skills, Heinrich is a tour guide in the sky. 

“Ballooning is a sport to share. I love sharing it with my loved ones, my friends, and my family,” Heinrich said. “I’m so excited to be sharing it with you.” 

Heinrich’s Chromatica is one of about 100 in the Great Reno Balloon Race. Chromatica is the former Olympus Camera balloon. This year, her event sponsor is Claggett & Sykes Law Firm.

“When we’re flying around this many balloons, we have to keep an eye out for each other,” Heinrich said. “So, if you see a balloon below me starting to climb up toward me, let me know. Even if you’re not sure, I’d rather see it than not see it.” 

Then Heinrich explained how she uses Chromatica’s shadow as one of many tools to help gauge safety. 

“I don’t see a shadow balloon right over me …” Heinrich said. “There’s probably no balloon right above me right now.” 

Heinrich explained the rules of the sky. 

“I have the right of way over balloons above me, but you don’t want to cut them off or anything and have them have to climb super fast,” Heinrich said. 

She has three rules for her passengers. 

“Rule No. 1, don’t get out of the basket,” Heinrich said. “Whether or not we’re in the sky or on the ground … because if I lose a bunch of weight unexpectedly, I’m going to start climbing super fast. And that could be dangerous for everyone involved.” 

“Rule No. 2, when we come in to land this thing … I’ll have you take care of yourself.” 

In calm weather, riders can hold on to the edge of the basket and the uprights with both feet on the floor, knees slightly bent and face the direction the balloon is going. 

During a fast landing, riders should hold the handles inside the basket or the tanks. 

“Rule No. 3, ballooning is a sport to share,” Heinrich said. “If you see something cool, point it out because I want to see it, too. If you see something that scares you, let me know. I want to be afraid right along with you.” 

Heinrich encouraged riders to enjoy the scenery and point out power lines. 

“So, if I’m flying low, please feel free to point them out to me,” Heinrich said. “I’m 99.999999999999999% most likely already seen them, but I’d rather see them twice than not at all.” 

At that, Heinrich flew Chromatica at 4,940 feet near Peavine Elementary School. 

“They’re all out there cheering for us,” Heinrich said waving back to the students. “It’s cute.” 

Throughout the flight, Heinrich continually turned the propane tank on and off. 

She said this circulates the propane to the burner, which allows it to expand into vapor. When it hits the pilot light, it creates a flame that controls the altitude. 

Then Heinrich heard, “Good morning!” 

She looked down at people gathered in the street. Heinrich returned the sentiment. 

“You don’t get that flying around in a plane,” Heinrich said. “This is a special type of aviation.” 

At that, Heinrich heard a familiar voice. 

“Hi Cindy, thanks for dropping by to say hi,” said a balloon pilot next to her. 

As they exchanged greetings, Heinrich scouted out a place to land. She needed an open area that the ground crew could access in addition to being clear of power lines, light poles, and big trees. 

Heinrich pumped hot air in short bursts to descend slowly and land smoothly. 

At that, Heinrich’s crew was at Jester Court and King Edward Drive as she landed Chromatica. Laura Heinrich, Cindy’s mom, and the rest of the crew followed the balloon on the Glympse app. 

“This looked like a nice place to land,” Heinrich said. “And people came out and had friendly faces.” 

Resident Billie Irvin said this is the 5th or 6th year a balloon has landed outside her front door. 

“It’s so exciting,” said Irvin. “And usually there’s a lot of people in PJs and robes. But I’m the only cat, who cares!”

To contact Heinrich, email EarlyBirdBallooning@gmail.com.