On December 17, 1903, two bicycle makers from Dayton, Ohio, with what today can only be called a primitive aircraft—it was constructed from canvas and wood—accomplished what no one had ever done before. They executed the first controlled, aircraft flight.

Looking back, flying off the ground for a distance shorter than the cargo hold of the Air Force’s C5-A doesn’t seem too impressive. But ‘you’ve got to start somewhere.’ The pair are today considered the ‘fathers of flight.’

This weekend, September 27-28, at Pueblo Memorial Airport, the seeds planted by the Wright Brothers will be on full display when the city hosts the ‘Pueblo Wings of Pride’ air show. For aviation buffs or anyone else, the two-day affair will be worth the wait, said Herb Gillen, of his eponymously named air show company. “This (Pueblo) has everything you’re looking for…the perfect aerobatic box,” Gillen told LaVozColorado last February when the show was first announced.

Now, with only days from the first roar of an aircraft engine, Pueblo Memorial Airport Director of Aviation Greg Pedroza said the ‘heavy lifting’ is just about done. “Preparations are going well,” said the California native. 

No surprise, the stars of the show will be the Air Force Thunderbirds. Formed in 1953, the Thunderbirds are the first military precision flying team in the world. The team performs its amazing aerial maneuvers in the F-16 ‘Fighting Falcon.’ 

Spectators will see the precision flying team perform a variety of what may seem like ‘death-defying’ maneuvers. Of course, while spectators witness what seems other worldly, the pilots are so well trained that little to nothing is left to chance. They train at Nellis Air Force Base year-round.

Before being selected for the honor of becoming a Thunderbird, candidates are tested for everything from physical ability, including a challenging G-force testing, mental acuity, review of personal flight records, leadership, teamwork and ability to represent the Air Force in public. 

While five F-16 jets perform the aerial maneuvers, there is an entire team that makes up the Thunderbirds, from aircraft mechanics to administrative personnel. For pilots, actually performing as a Thunderbird is a two-year commitment, though it may be extended for a year. For ground personnel, it’s a four-year term. 

But the Thunderbirds are just one draw for spectators, said Pedroza. The Army’s Golden Knights Parachute team will also perform. Like the Thunderbirds, the Golden Knights perform year-round, both nationally and internationally. While unconfirmed, one senior city leader hinted that the Golden Knights could make a surprise ‘Friday Night Lights’ appearance. 

Along with the two military attractions, Pedroza says there will a variety of other attractions at the show. People can see “box shuttle planes, a mini-jet air show, a P51 Red Tail—one of WWII’s workhorse aircraft—and a Red Thunder Air Show.” 

There will also be plenty of vendors selling everything from food and drink to aerial memorabilia. One show vendor will be Colorado native and former Air Force Major Graciela Tiscareno-Sato. 

Graciela-Sato has been making stops at air shows across the country as “Captain Mama,” for the last two years. The University of California-Berkeley graduate joined the Air Force and served as a navigator for more than a dozen years on the KC-135, the Air Force’s refueling plane.

Tiscareno-Sato’s appearance, she said, is two-fold. “I want to introduce young girls to aviation,” she said. “I also want young Latinas to see a Latina, someone who looks like them, wearing a flight suit and letting them know what a wonderful career aviation can be.”

In addition to the air show, the Weisbrod Air Museum, also located at the airport, will be open. It, however, is not part of the airshow and normal admission prices will be in effect.

The Pueblo Memorial Airport is located about eight miles east of the city. Pedroza said because of the expected crowd, it would be wise to arrive early. 

For more information of the Pueblo ‘Wings of Pride’ airshow, visit pueblowingsofpride.com.

Do not let the calendar fool you. Just because it is now September, it is not cooling off…at least in Pueblo. In fact, this coming weekend, the heat’s on! It’s time for the 31st annual Pueblo Chile & Frijoles Festival, an event that has grown into what may be the largest party of the fall in all of Colorado.

The festival began in 1994. And not unlike an early spring chile plant, it made little impression. The late Pueblo Chamber of Commerce president Rod Slyhoff once estimated—and very generously—its first incarnation may have attracted a ‘couple of thousand’ visitors, most from Pueblo. But how things have changed, said Chamber Vice President Donielle Kitzman. 

“It’s incredible,” said Kitzman. From a few chile roasters and an equally modest list of vendors, the festival has blossomed into something no one could have imagined. The three-day festival run, September 19, 20 and 21, now even has a corporate sponsor, T-Mobile Fiber. Corporations apparently like the idea of getting their brand in front of 150,000 unique visitors. 

While there will be more than 200 vendors lining the city’s historic Union Avenue, with a few more on adjacent streets, a number of bands, dancing, a few chihuahua races, a jalapeño contest and a farmers market, the main purpose of the festival is to promote Pueblo County agriculture, a southern Colorado jewel that grows what Kitzman says is the nation’s premier chile. 

“It’s the whole purpose,” she said of the festival. Sure, chile may be the sexy crop, the one that gets all of the attention, but Pueblo County produce, said Kitzman, whether it’s corn, pumpkins, melons, beans or squash, is as good as any anywhere in the state or nation. Colorado State University agronomists don’t disagree. 

Pueblo, often called the buckle of Colorado’s ‘banana belt,’ so called for its temperate seasonal climate, is situated perfectly for great agriculture. It stretches from Cañon City to the west to the Arkansas Valley to the east.

The soil, agriculture experts say, is “mineral rich.” But there’s also a nice complement of hot summer days and cool nights. The Arkansas River provides the water. Also, winter temperatures do their part by killing off insects that might threaten the harvest.  

To make it easy for out-of-towners who make the trip for the festival—and the chile—Kitzman says organizers have created a system allowing you to get your chile brought to your car “so you don’t have to lug the heavy loads.” But she still encourages people to “go to the farms and buy your chile there.” Experience all of Pueblo, she says. 

The festival, Kitzman promises, will have something for everyone. There’ll be both country and Tejano music; a hot air balloon glow, comedian and actor George Lopez will have a performance on Friday night at Pueblo Memorial Hall. 

Come for the chile, Kitzman says. Stay for the fun. General admission tickets are $8, children under 12 are free. Military personnel with valid ID are free. 

For more information visit the Chamber’s website: pueblochamber.org.