The TC City Commission has approved it. Now, the good wind willing, 25 hot air balloons from around the state will launch – all at once – into the Traverse City sky on Friday, June 17. If conditions allow, they’ll rise again three more times before the weekend is out.

The mastermind behind the mass ascension is Grand Traverse Balloons owner Jeff Geiger. He says his motivation for his Hot Air Balloon Rally is simple: One, this summer he’s celebrating his 25th year of professional ballooning (all but one in the skies over Grand Traverse).

Two, Michigan has a large balloonist population that tries to gather somewhere in the state for an annual group fly-out, and, says Geiger, “It’s just my turn to host.”

No easy task, that. Every visiting balloon pilot will come accompanied by a ground crew of four or five, each requiring lodging, food and propane – necessities that are traditionally the host’s responsibility.

“I’m calling in a lot of favors,” says Geiger, laughing. So far, hotels all around TC are stepping up with free rooms for visiting balloonists.

TC’s Tri-Gas Distributing is not only offering some free propane to fire up the balloons but, along with 9/10 News and Fox 32, it’s also helping to sponsor Geiger’s new balloon, a 210,000-cubic-footer whose nylon fabric alone weighs 650 pounds. The balloon – known in hot air parlance as the “envelope” – is being constructed by the largest hot air balloon manufacturer in the world, Ann Arbor’s Cameron Balloons. The price tag? “Just shy of $100,000,” says Geiger.

Rides won’t be offered during the rally, but the event is designed to offer lots of other thrills to the public. Besides the four mass ascensions – scheduled to launch from TC’s Open Space or the grounds of Turtle Creek Casino and Hotel, depending on wind direction – rally-goers will be treated at both sites to a free balloon glow, where all the envelopes are inflated, then their burners lit right at sunset.

“It’s the icing on the cake,” says Geiger, “just a beautiful sight.”

In the dark of the morning of and the night before, Geiger will do as he always does to check wind speed and direction, and so determine the mass launch location: He’ll let loose a small test balloon equipped with a strobe light to see if it lifts and how fast (a smooth, steep angle is best). He’ll also consult the FAA’s weather briefs, NOAA’s National Weather Service, live webcams around the area, plus Great Lakes buoy reports and several different Internet sites.

Balloon watchers, you’ll have it much easier. Simply click on the Grand Traverse Balloons Facebook page or website; selected sites will be updated before each launch.