Hocus Pocus

We've put these pages together to share some of our experiences with you and to help teach people from all walks of life about the joys of ballooning. Perhaps you've found us through a search engine, linked to us from another site, or maybe we landed in your yard. Whatever the case, please take a look around and and learn a little bit about this addictive hobby that has consumed our lives. If you would like more information or think that you might be interested in getting involved with ballooning yourself, please send us an EMAIL and we would be happy to answer any questions you may have.

We've tried to make these pages easy to navigate and as user friendly as possible, so we've broken it down into as many different topics as we can think of. Just click on the links above to get where you want to go, and check back often to see what we've added. We are members of the Great Plains Balloon Club and several of our informational links refer back to the GPBC site so be sure to take a look around there too. Thanks for stopping by!

-Tony & Julie Goodnow & the Hocus Pocus Crew

Mother Nature, our work schedules and other activities allow us to fly Hocus Pocus about 30 times a year. Most of our flights are in the Topeka area, but we sometimes travel to balloon rallies and other events across the mid-west.

We also do demonstrations and tethers for schools and other organizations, sharing ballooning with as many people as we can.

We have a large group of frequent crew members, many of whom have been active in ballooning for several years and we can't thank them enough for all of their help and support.

After a lot of searching for something within our budget, we purchased a used balloon in the spring of 2008 to utilize for demonstrations and glows in an effort to save wear and tear on Hocus Pocus. With it's main purpose being night glows and the fact that it's design is viewed by some as unappealing we decided on the name 'Nocturnal' because "it looks good in the dark."

Julie, in particular, really liked the pattern and colors of Nocturnal so we often refer to it as 'Julie's Balloon' We have had it recoated and plan to use it for tethers and the occasional flight as well as the demonstrations and glows.

In addition to being members of the Great Plains Balloon Club, we are also members of the Kansas Chapter of the Black Sheep Squadron, a group of balloonists who share not only a passion for the sport, but a system of beliefs and goals that encourage anyone interested in ballooning to follow their dreams and keep the true spirit of ballooning alive and well. We also believe that maintaining an active membership in the Balloon Federation of America, a unified voice representing balloonists across the U.S., is a vital step to keep ballooning as an activity that can be experienced by people from all walks of life.

A special "Thank You" goes out to all of the landowners across the country who allow balloonists to launch and land on their property. If it wasn't for your hospitality none of this would be possible. We are at the mercy of the winds and consider ourselves lucky to meet so many wonderful people when we drop in uninvited. We hope you have had a pleasant experience and have some photos and special stories of your own to share with your friends and families.