This commercial was shot by Bob Gordon for Djarum Super! It was a representation of the first ever hot air balloon highline walk staring Sketchy Andy Lewis. Hayley Ashburn, Sylvan Christensen, Brent Cain, Alex Mason, and Felix Carrera also played influential roles in the production!~
Written By: Sketchy Andy Lewis
Bob Gordon called me and invited me to repeat the hot air balloon stunt we loved creating. I couldn’t wait to plan and try to successfully walk another balloon highline! It was a dream come true the first time, and I couldn’t wait for another attempt.
I gathered a group of Monkeys and we headed to Las Vegas to film the next attempt. My friends-- Doug and Doug-- a father and son hot air balloon pilots from the first success came and met us. The first day it was a bit windy but we were going to try anyway.
As we lifted off the wind started to pick up. It got a bit crazy and started to pull the balloons over jagged rocks and steep hillside. There was no worry until a jolt startled us as one of the balloon tethers recoiled towards its anchor! All of a sudden the free balloon ride for me and my friends became a heart pounding adventure. If the other tether broke we would be going for a ride without much of a landing area for miles!
Now I was wearing a parachute, but we were too low to jump and the pilots made it very clear we had to stay in the basket. They were also clear that if the other tether broke, we would just be going for a ride. The Dougs yelled back and forth and the wind just played with us like a child running through the park dragging a balloon behind him. After an exhilarating 20 min ride, we safely landed back on earth, got the envelopes under control, and moved the shoot to the next day.
On the second day, everything went perfectly smooth. Our anchors were perfect (helped with a couple of my brand new ropes), our angles were perfect(tied down our biggest cars), and despite staying in Las Vegas-- we all had gotten a great nights sleep! The stage was set.
As we inflated the balloons early in the morning I remember watching the sunrise with my team, all of us smiling ear to ear. The air was crisp, not a cloud in the sky, and the sun scattered into a million colors. As the day went on everything went perfectly, and this video Bob Gordon made embodies it perfectly. ;)
Huge thanks goes out to Brent Cain, Sylvan Christensen, Hayley Ashburn, The Dougs, Alex Mason, and Felix Carrera
