2020 and 2021 Heritage Award

Honoring the 2020 and 2021 HERITAGE AWARD RECIPIENTS

The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta (AIBF) Heritage Award recognizes individuals who have made signifi cant and longtime contributions to Balloon Fiesta through preservation of AIBF corporate or event history, promotion, communication, or educational activities, or through other innovations that have been shown to help achieve AIBF’s mission statement. The Balloon Fiesta Heritage Committee selects a recipient every year, and is proud to honor two Balloon Fiesta veterans who were chosen as Heritage recipients for 2020 and 2021.

2020: JIM BYRD

Jim Byrd – better known to many as Jimmy -- began his ballooning career in March 1973 when he joined the Albuquerque Aerostat Ascension Association (AAAA), shortly after his dad, the legendary J.W. Byrd. Jim helped club founder Sid Cutter with all of Sid’s projects, so much so that Sid offered Jim free pilot instruction from himself and two of his employees, Gary Higman and Greg Wilson. Jim received his pilot certifi cate from Sid in February 4, 1974, the fi rst FAA check-ride Sid ever did. He was an active pilot for 20 years before largely retiring from fl ying as pilot-in-command, having instructed many student pilots and accumulated about 550 hours.

Jim was an Assistant Safety Offi cer for AIBF in 1984 and 1985, but is best known for his contributions to competition scoring. After receiving a degree in computer science, and with encouragement from his dad, Jim wrote the fi rst software for scoring balloon races in 1990, which was used by both AAAA and the Balloon Fiesta. Since then, the scoring program has gone through

many revisions and Jim has worked with Mike Gilligan, co-developer of the Balloon Federation of America Program, and others to make refi nements. More recently, Jim succeeded his father as the America’s Challenge Gas Balloon Race chief scoring offi cer after his father passed away in 2007, a position he still holds.

Jim is a quiet, non-assuming person whose chief claim to fame is helping other people (he is a retired Fire Department Captain). He is awarded the 2020 Heritage Award for long-standing important and excellent work with AIBF.

Tom McConnell for the Heritage Committee

2021: MARK SULLIVAN

2021’s honoree is one of the most highly respected and honored balloonists in the world. Mark Sullivan is the current President of the Fédération Aéronatique Internationale Ballooning Commission (CIA), ballooning’s international governing body, and a past president of the Balloon Fiesta. He has won the U.S. National Gas Balloon Championships twice and is a former U.S. Team Hot Air Ballooning Champion.

More recently, Mark has become best known as the Ironman of distance gas ballooning, having fl own in more distance gas balloon events than any balloonist in history, a combined 43 Coupe Aéronautique Gordon Bennett and America’s Challenge races. With his current fl ying partner Cheri White, he’s won the America’s Challenge twice and fi nished as high as third in the Gordon Bennett, the world championships of distance gas ballooning.

Mark began fl ying hot air balloons in the early 1980’s and gas balloons a few years later. His fi rst hot air balloon advertised the famed Billy Bob’s Saloon in Fort Worth, TX. Since then, Mark has racked up more than 3,200 hours in hot air and gas balloons.

As a member of the Balloon Fiesta Board of Directors since 1989, Mark was instrumental in establishing the Special Shape Rodeo and founded the Balloon Fiesta’s America’s Challenge distance race to give gas ballooning an international presence on American soil. The race is now in its 24th year and provides opportunities for both American and international balloonists to fl y unprecedented distances in gas balloon competition.

In nearly 40 years, Mark has earned almost every major distinction awarded in the sport, including the Montgolfi er Diplome, the CIA Gold Badge with three Diamonds, the Balloon Federation of America Shields-Trauger and Al Desmond Awards, the AAAA Sid Cutter Award, induction into the Balloon Fiesta Hall of Fame, and now the AIBF Heritage Award.

Kim Vesely, for the AIBF Heritage Committee