2019 Balloons Over Rockbridge Bands, Food, Vendors & More, July 5th & 6th   Lexington, VA (June 27, 2019) - The 3rd Annual Balloons Over Rockbridge Hot Air Balloon Festival will be held on Friday, July 5th and Saturday, July 6th at the Oak Hill property of the Virginia Horse Center. Bring a chair or blanket to sit on and join in the fun. There will be local bands, food and merchandise vendors, a Pizza Eating Challenge sponsored by Papa John’s, children’s activities and of course….BEAUTIFUL HOT AIR BALLOONS. Balloons Pilots will begin preparing for launch at 6 am and 6 pm on both Friday and Saturday, weather permitting. All piloted balloon flights have been booked at this time but spectators are welcome to attend the launches. Tethered balloon rides will be will be available to the public on a first come first served basis on Friday from 6:30-8:30 pm and on Saturday from 4-7:00 pm. Costs for tethered rides are $15 for adults and $10 for children under 10. The event will conclude with the spectacular light show of the Ed McDaniel Memorial Balloon Glow. On Friday evening parking and vendors open at 5:00 pm and our entertainment will kick off with local blues men JoJo Stockton and Daniel "Mojo" Parker. Get ready to be amazed by these talented musicians who frequently play around town. JoJo is the 2019 winner of the Roanoke Voice and hosts many musician nights locally. Mojo is the 2019 winner of the River City Blues Society competition and heads to Memphis to represent the Commonwealth.  After Saturday morning’s balloon flight, Balloons Over Rockbridge and Team RWB are hosting a 5k over the beautiful rolling hills of the Virginia Horse Center property. Participants can register in advance through the link on the Balloons Over Rockbridge website or at the event which begins at 8:00 am. On Saturday the venue opens at 2:00 pm with more music, food and children’s activities. From 2-3:00 pm, get ready to boot, scoot, and boogie to Waynesboro band Kowboy Jax. Joe Knott and his band will play all your classic rock and country favorites.  Elvis is alive in Stewart Chapman and will hit the stage Saturday 3:15-4:15 pm! Stewart is an award-winning Elvis tribute artist who has been performing for 6 years and is the 2019 winner of the Elvis Pro Early Years competition in NY. He recently auditioned for America's Got Talent, and is recognized by The Elvis Enterprise.  Next up is our local celebrity and favorite farm girl SJ McDonald Saturday 4:30-5:30 pm. SJ has been performing locally since she was 10 years old. She is a junior year song-writing student at Belmont University in Nashville, TN and made it to the Hollywood round of American Idol this past spring.  New this year is a pizza eating challenge sponsored by Papa John's from 5:45-6:45 pm Saturday. 6 people will be chosen from the festival to compete. Be sure to visit their food tent to sign up! The final music act will be our very own Keith Bryant and Steve Hoke 7-9:00 pm Saturday evening. Keith Bryant is a Rockbridge native and nationally known singer/songwriter who is best known for his Earnhardt tribute song "Ridin with the Legend". Steve Hoke is an established guitarist from Fairfield who created, and is the only one to play, a trimeister - a guitar, mandolin, and violin all in one.  Proceeds from the will be distributed to local Rockbridge area charities. All event information can be found on the Balloons Over Rockbridge website www.balloonsoverrockbridge.com or call 540-251-7973. * * * * * Balloons Over Rockbridge Hot Air Balloon Festival 2019 Schedule Friday, July 5th:      6:00 am     Pilot Meeting and Balloon Flight*                      5:00 pm            Parking and Event Open                 Food, Beer, Wine available      6-9:00 pm       Music by JoJo Stockton and MoJo Parker                  6:00 pm            Pilot Meeting and Balloon Flight *                               6:30-8:30     Tethered Balloon Rides                                   8:30 pm      Beer and Wine Tent closes      9:00 pm     Event Closes     Â                Saturday, July 6th:       6:00 am            Pilot Meeting and Balloon Flight*                              8:00 am            Balloons Over Rockbridge/Team RWB                         5K Trail Run/Walk      2:00 pm            Parking and Event Open                          Food, Beer, Wine and Vendors Open      2-5:30 pm     Kids Zone Open      2-3:00 pm      Music by Kowboy Jax           3-4:00 om     Elvis Tribute Artist Stewart Chapman     Â                      4-7:00 pm     Tethered Balloon Rides*                 Â                  4:30-5:30 pm Music by S J McDonald      5:45-6:45     Papa John’s Pizza Eating Challenge      6:00 pm            Pilot Meeting and Balloon Flight*            Â               7:00-9:00 pm  Music by Keith Bryant and Steve Hoke      8:30 pm      Beer and Wine Tent closes      9:00-9:30        Ed McDaniel Memorial Balloon Glow Finale      * Safety and Weather personnel may delay or cancel flights as deemed necessary

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