Reasons to Become a Top Gun Member
The first and main reason to consider joining Top Gun is for the camaraderie, friendship and fun from meeting new people. By getting out and enjoying the wonderful sport of Hot Air Ballooning, you will be creating memories and friendships which could last a lifetime. If you fall into one of the following groups, we might be worth exploring becoming a member.
Pilots – Student Pilots, New Pilots, Experienced Pilots or Sport Competition Pilots
Participating Crew – Already know about being on a balloon team but want to participate at a higher level.
Photography Interest – Let us get you up close while participating and enjoy two hobbies at once.
General Public – Looking for a new hobby or social outlet? We can help you with that! You do NOT have to even know balloons! We have opportunities to assist with scoring, event management, safety, and more. But don’t be surprised if you quickly find yourself helping crew, chase, navigate, or applying for your student pilot certificate! It’s addicting.
PILOTS
If you are considering learning to fly a balloon, already a new pilot or an experienced pilot and want to enhance your skill level, then we are the club for you. Our members learn the sport of ballooning and more specifically the skills required to be a better airman. Everything from safety, wind reading, navigation, aircraft control, pilotage and map reading are but a few of the skills that you will improve. Yes, if you are interested, we will help you discover competition as a means to develop your pilot skills. Our members vary in skill level from beginners to experts in this area. But, the most important part is helping you to find a level that you are happy with and flying for the right reasons or putting purpose into your flying.
Learning to fly friendly competition is nothing more than a game where precision flying at your level becomes the goal. Unlike going to just float around, this is flying with a purpose of being able to plan a flight and attempting to navigate using winds at different altitudes. It isn’t just you flying with a purpose but an entire group of people trying to accomplish the same thing through a sport. Friendly Competition has targets, time constraints and other aspects that you will be learning to accomplish.