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By Eve, April 28, 2010 5:22 pm

Sunday April 25^th 2010 will be permanently etched in my brain as the day that I endured THE most pain, ever, in my life.  I’m sure many novice marathoners will totally agree.

Running a marathon is a full throttle assault on the senses and the body with the mental excitement and anticipation that is the culmination of months of training and the sheer physical endurance that it takes to run 26.2 miles.

This year saw lots of firsts for Virgin, with it being the first ever Virgin London Marathon. Both myself and our friend Bob Fear over at Virgin.com ran our first ever marathons and we had some great support from Virgin Balloon Flights who raised over £225 and £415 for our respective charities; Macmillan and Virgin Unite by holding charity auctions for hot air balloon rides. Thanks Virgin Balloon Flights!

Watch Bob’s brilliant London Marathon Virgin video which really gives you an idea of what it’s like on the day, what to expect and makes you realise that you can do it too!
Virgin Balloon Flights also had the very first Virgin Money balloon commissioned which looked fabulous on the day plus a brand new Virgin Balloon Flights balloon which spent the day bobbing merrily at the start line.

Here’s to the next one Bob?

Virgin Balloon Flights' Eve Ashwell still smiling at the end of the marathon

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By Kirsty, March 31, 2010 10:23 am

So who’d have thought that a London based builder would determine the meet time for your balloon flight?

William Willett - DST Advocator

William Willett, a London builder, was the man behind the idea for daylight saving time (DST) back in 1916 and since then we have changed our clocks backwards and forwards on the last Sunday in March and October to ensure we make the most of daylight!

The clocks have now changed so make sure you double check your meeting time on your confirmation flight line before embarking on your voyage with Virgin Balloon Flights. To give you a rough idea, here’s the approximate meet times according to the time of year;

Mid March to end March: 07:00AM & 15:30PM
Beginning to mid April: 07:00AM & 17:00PM
Mid April to mid May: 06:30AM & 17:30PM
Mid May to end May: 06:00AM & 18:00PM
June and July: 06:00AM & 18:30PM
Beginning to mid August: 06:00AM & 18:00PM
Mid August to end August: 06:30AM & 17:30PM
Beginning to mid September: 07:00AM & 17:00PM
Mid September to end September: 07:30AM & 16:30PM
October: 08:00AM & 15:00PM
November: 07:00AM & 13:30PM

Please note the exact meeting time and location will be provided on your flight line prior to your flight. For any other FAQ’s please visit our website or refer to your brochure.

Happy flying!

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By Alex, March 19, 2010 11:32 am

Virgin Money's hot air balloon is put through its paces prior to the Virgin London Marathon - despite the fog!

They include a 70ft tall Virgin Money balloon, called G-VMVM or ‘ Mike’ for short, which has just been completed by Cameron Balloons. It will be under the control of pilot Kevin Meehan from Shropshire, while Mark Simmons from Bath will be the pilot for the other balloon. Both of the experienced flyers will be competing to see whose balloon is on TV the most.

Kenneth Karlstrom, Virgin Balloon Flights’ director and chief pilot, said: “It is fantastic that Virgin is sponsoring the London Marathon and we are thrilled to be involved in such an incredible event.

“We were delighted to be asked to commission the Virgin Money hot air balloon and we are looking forward to showing it off on the day.”

The London Marathon started in 1981 and, following this year’s race, will have raised over half a billion pounds for charity, making it the biggest fundraising event in the world. Around 36,000 runners are expected to take to the capital city’s streets this year, aiming to top last year’s incredible charity haul of £47.2 million.

Virgin Money are aiming to help runners raise more than £250 million for good causes over the next 5 years and have launched Virgin Money Giving a not-for-profit sponsorship website aimed at improving the way donations and Gift Aid are collected, ensuring more money goes to charities. Virgin Money Giving is the official fundraising website for the 2010 Virgin London Marathon and you can find out more at www.virginmoneygiving.org.uk

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By Alex, March 17, 2010 8:44 am

A Virgin balloon has once again popped up where you would least expect it – this time on Raymond Blanc’s Kitchen Secrets show on BBC2.

The programme, which features Raymond’s top culinary tips, at 8.30pm on Monday night showed our Virgin balloon in Oxfordshire soaring over Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons, the famous chef’s two-Michelin starred restaurant and hotel.

The balloon, piloted by Mark Shemilt, came in to view 16 minute 26 seconds into the show after a feature about water-cress and it is currently available to see on BBC’s iPlayer.

Mark, who holds two ballooning world records, takes lucky passengers on champagne balloon flights from Oxford, Henley-on-Thames, High Wycombe, Alton and Basingstoke.

Mark said: “It was a really nice suprise to hear that we had appeared on Raymond Blanc’s show. Sometimes we do fly over Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons in Oxfordshire and it’s a beautiful place. Perhaps next time we’ll get invited in for a bite to eat!”

This was not the first time a Virgin balloon has appeared on a prime time cookery programme as Gary Rhodes once cooked a full meal onboard a flight with Mark Simmons, our pilot in south west of England.

See our Virgin balloon on Raymond Blanc’s Kitchen Secrets on BBC iPlayer.

If you would like to experience a hot air balloon ride, visit our Virgin Balloon Flights website for locations and latest offers.

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By Eve, February 26, 2010 4:00 pm

It’s the British Heat Foundation’s (BHF) Wear Red Day and Virgin Balloon Flights have decided to get stuck in in the best way we know how…eating!  And wearing red. The office looks decidedly corporate this morning and if anyone walked in they’d think we’d gone a little Virgin crazy, but wait, this very public display of red is for an altogether different reason. Today we’re we’re raising money for Red for Heart which is the British Heart Foundation’s campaign to raise money for heart disease.  The BHF’s vision is:

Within a generation, we will create a world where people do not die prematurely of heart disease. We will achieve this through our pioneering research, our vital prevention activity and by ensuring quality care and support for people living with heart disease. We need you to share our vision because, together, we really can beat heart disease.

And to help them achieve this we’ve had a day of eating cakes beautifully designed and baked by Simply Love Cupcakes, quizzes and bingo.

We hope that the money we raised helps the BHF achieve their vision and wish the Foundation every success with future campaigns.

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By Eve, February 24, 2010 11:37 pm

The 2010 hot air ballooning season is now under way and that’s not the only thing.

The Virgin Balloon Flights Blog has also just launched and promises to keep us very busy whilst we bring all things ballooning to you, whatever the weather.

Our company was founded over 22 years ago and some of our pilots have been flying hot air balloons for over 30 years, having hundreds of thousands of flying hours between them, so yes, we have TONS of ballooning talk to talk.