While Pearce won’t have attendance figures until later this week, based on the number of cars, Saturday was one of the busiest nights in the 18 years of the Ohio Challenge. Last year’s event was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic and the 2018 Ohio Challenge was hampered by wet weather, organizers said.
After Friday’s inclement weather reduced the crowd, Saturday’s dry and less humid conditions were ideal, Pearce said. Plus, he said, people wanted to get outdoors and celebrate with their family and friends,
Those conditions created the “perfect storm,” he said.
Donnie Osborne, owner of The Jug on Central Avenue, brought his food trailer to the balloon event for the first time. He said Friday’s sales were OK, but Saturday’s was “completely overwhelming.”
He ran out of product Saturday and restocked at The Jug. Then he sold out again and he didn’t have enough supplies to open The Jug on Sunday, he said.
“We didn’t know what to expect,” Osborne said. “We’ll be back.”
Friday’s forecast for inclement weather created a dilemma for the balloon committee, Pearce said. After the balloonists and skydivers informed him the unstable weather pattern wasn’t the “desired environment,” he surveyed the food vendors about whether to close Friday or open with free admission.
He said the vendors who had hired staff and started their food preparation wanted to open.
The Ohio Challenge also celebrated the life of longtime community volunteer Ed Dobrozsi, who died last month. He was presented posthumously the Spirit Award and Mayor Nicole Condrey read a proclamation in Dobrozsi’s honor.
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