Inside the Basket - Dylan Winn, Balloon Fiesta Navigator

May 15, 2025

It has been said that the volunteers of Balloon Fiesta are the heart of the event! Each year, hundreds of Navigators volunteer their time to guide guests and ensure a great event experience.

In this month’s Inside the Basket, we hear from Dylan Winn, an Albuquerque native, who has been involved with Balloon Fiesta as a Navigator his whole life.

1. Please provide a brief overview of your background and experience with Balloon Fiesta.

Hi! I’m Dylan Winn, and I’ve been a lifelong volunteer with the Media Hospitality Committee! I’ve done almost everything when it comes to Media Hospitality. I’ve been volunteering for Fiesta my entire life!

2. What is a Navigator at Balloon Fiesta? How many years have you been a Navigator, and what is your favorite part about the role?

Being a Navigator is much more than being a volunteer! Navigators are the lifeblood of Fiesta, and this event doesn’t run without them!

When it comes to my total years being a Navigator, that’s a bit harder to narrow down. I would say I’ve been a volunteer anywhere from 20-23 years. I have been a volunteer ever since I learned how to walk. Anything from stocking the fridge to wiping down tables, I did around the age of 3 or 4. I quite literally don’t know a life outside of volunteering at Fiesta every October.

This may sound childish, but my favorite part about being a Navigator with Media Hospitality is driving around media in the golf carts. Every single year, I can never get over driving around media from all over the world, and seeing the childlike awe and wonder in their eyes. It feels like you’re a chauffeur, and it’s a unique experience not everyone gets to have! I also enjoy getting footage for the social media team, and getting up close and personal with ballooning.

3. What is your favorite Balloon Fiesta memory?

There are almost too many to count! The annular eclipse in 2023 was amazing, and I got to meet Jim Cantore of the Weather Channel, which was special. During the 50th Fiesta in 2022, a massive storm developed suddenly over the park during a balloon glow, and a ton of people had to seek shelter in the Media Hospitality tent, which was an intense experience to say the least!

Doug Gantt, the pilot of Hamlet, as well as Barry Ballinger, pilot of In The Buff, as well as their crews have been like family to us since I was a kid. Being a Piglet with the Hamlet crew was a highlight of my childhood!

Other highlights include meeting Bryan Cranston, taking photos with Star Wars Characters when the Darth Vader balloon premiered, and being on the Fireworks Fire Line

4. What is your favorite/most prized piece of Balloon Fiesta merchandise?

The pins! In 2007, when I was 8 years old, I worked SO hard to get four pins. That year, the event was titled “Rainbow Skies”, and most of the official pins were rainbow-related. Well, if you got the four pins from Weather, Scoring, Safety Officials, and Launch Directors, in that order, they make a very pretty rainbow, and look great in a pin book. Unfortunately, I was unable to find a Safety Official pin that year, as they were low in stock and none of the safety officials had any by the second weekend. I was very bummed. But wait, this story has a good ending! That Christmas, Santa got me the Safety Official pin in my stocking, and I was ECSTATIC. I think I might have gotten a Nintendo DS Lite that year (Red and Black color scheme, Wreck ‘Em Tech!) and I was more excited about the pin!

In 2013, when Breaking Bad was in its peak popularity, there were Breaking Bad pins for sale at the Plano Pin Company’s tent. Well, those pins sold out super fast, and were the hot item of that year’s Fiesta. My parents waited in line for hours to grab some pins for the whole family.

I have also collected THOUSANDS of Balloon Cards since 1999. I have them sorted in multiple binders, organized by name and year. I would say that balloon cards are the greatest part of being a kid in Albuquerque; While other elementary schoolers all over America were trading Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh cards, Burqueno boys and girls also traded more rare special shapes cards on the playground. I distinctly remember being at an advantage in the trading circles, since my mom volunteered all 10 days. I was able to get more cards to trade than the other kids!

5. What advice would you give to a first-time guest at the event?

Arrive earlier than you need to, as the traffic gets bad around 4 AM, sometimes even earlier. Don’t skip the weekday events! In my opinion, competition events are just as fun as the Mass Ascensions, and the crowds are more manageable than on the weekends. Don’t be afraid to get up close to the gondolas, but follow instructions from the crews to stay safe. Always have a breakfast burrito and a cup of coffee right before sunrise. Dress in layers, as it heats up really fast once the sun comes up. If you come across someone with a Media badge, ask to trade for a pin, as Media Hospitality has the best ones. Keep your head on a swivel for golf carts and chase crew vehicles! Have good, comfortable walking shoes, as the launch field is equivalent to 65 football fields.