Toronto’s highly anticipated Van Gogh hot air balloon made its debut at the city’s waterfront on Wednesday, but it wasn’t exactly smooth sailing. Unfavourable weather conditions made it hard for Vincent to take flight, a media representative told Curiocity, who admitted that “hot air ballooning is a tricky business.”
“While at the beginning of the day the wind conditions looked favourable, the winds on the waterfront picked up towards the end of the day,” the rep said. “We were able to inflate the balloon and eventually get it lifted in the air just after 8 p.m., but not have it elevated for the window of time we had hoped.”
The 91-foot balloon needs ideal conditions to stay afloat, otherwise, there’s a risk of it “blowing into a building.” However, the team is hopeful that the famed balloon will be fully elevated on Saturday and Sunday evening.
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Photos of the launch were shared on social media, where it looks like poor Vincent laid vertical on the concrete for quite some time before lift-off.
Looks like a spaceship inflating at Yonge and Queens Quay. pic.twitter.com/dkB0ohWZ1o
— Tim Kocur (@t_kocur) July 28, 2021
To make up for lost time, they’re even working on adding an additional day to the schedule so that as many people can enjoy it as possible. As of right now, it is set to float from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on July 31 and August 1. While you’ll definitely be able to catch glimpses of it from all over the city, the best place to see it will be across from 1 Yonge St. on Queen’s Quay.
This week also marks the reopening of the Immersive Van Gogh experience, which occupies the five-story space at 1 Yonge Street.
