The past 3 weeks have been difficult for me physically and emotionally.

The short version is: Airpup’s production is delayed, preorders must be halted, and I’m offering a full refund to anyone whose summer projects may be affected. String and winders will still ship this month.

Sewing & Sciatica

After my last update, I laid Airpup’s patterns out on my living room floor to verify that all my plans and connections were properly documented and located. On the second day of this process, my back locked up and I found myself collapsed on the floor in pain.

I haven’t been able to sit down for more than a few minutes at a time or use my sewing machine since. I’m doing daily physical therapy and have been getting better, but it’s a struggle. I am hoping to return to sewing soon and am looking to bring in production help.

I am very sorry for any hiccups this causes in your summer projects. My fingers are crossed, hoping the delay will be in weeks, not months, but I don’t have a revised production schedule right now.

I’m offering a full refund to anyone who needs to find another way to fly this summer.

Blimp Works Closure and a Halt to Preorders

The Blimp Works was founded by ballooning legend Tracy Barnes, who passed away in January. I am honored to have met Tracy and worked with his first-class team, but unfortunately, The Blimp Works closed up shop at the end of May. Their absence will leave a hole in the ballooning world that affects a wide range of projects, and the staff have graciously been assisting us all in transitioning to other suppliers.

I have received enough Airpup balloon envelopes to fulfill all campaign orders, rentals, and preorders, but don’t have any spares. Airpup’s balloon envelope is made from a thin 2 mil polyurethane that is a custom product. All of Blimp Works’ 2 mil stock is spoken for, and I don’t have anywhere near enough demand to have more made. Preorders are therefore closed for the time being.

I am exploring other manufacturers and expect that I can piggy back on a large material order for a larger project, but don’t know when that will be possible. Alternatively, I can scale up Airpup or explore some materials concepts of my own, but neither of those are near-term options.

Winders on the way! The winders will be finished this month and prepared for shipping. Thank God for simple things made out of plywood.!