March 19, 2000 - Hare and Hounds from Salmon River airport CLAS Competition Flight [Click on thumbnails to see full size pictures]
	We're in Santo's balloon again this morning. There are six balloons flying this morning, from Salmon River airport in Marlborough, CT. Today is the March competition event for the Connecticut Lighter than Air Society (CLAS), a Hare and Hounds event.
	The hare has left, and we're the second balloon to go. As we head west away from the field, we look back at the remaining four balloons, one of which is already in the air.
	For a while in the first half of the flight, we're playing cat-and-mouse with Erwin Dressel, whose balloon "Michael's Rainbow" is pictured here.
	Randy Riley and Erwin Dressel crest a hill as we look over our shoulders.
	The hare balloon in flight. There is a lot of directional control available this morning because of the hills and valleys over which we're flying, so we alternate altitudes to find wind currents that take us toward the hare. After a time, we decide that this terrain doesn't give us as many options for landing sites as we'd like, so we abandon chasing the hare, and instead practice directional control by homing in on a big suitable landing field a few miles ahead. After almost an hour aloft, we reach our target, landing in Haddam, CT.

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