Full Balloon Chaos

The Lincoln Rodeo grounds was the site of "full blown chaos" as nearly 16,000 water balloons, 40 or 50 kids, a couple dozen adults and two fire trucks came together for a wet and wild water balloon fight Saturday, July 30.

Before the melee got underway, adults gathered around several heavy rubber stock tanks filling balloons as the kids waited impatiently in the shade of the large camouflage net by the rodeo grounds snack bar. Several of them pressed up against the arena fence, waiting eagerly for the go ahead to get into the arena and start flinging balloons at one another. The kids presented tempting targets for adults Zach Muse, RJ Keaster and Chad Dietz, who lobbed water balloons in their direction, occasionally scoring a direct hit on them through the fence.

The massive water balloon fight was open to the public and was the second in what the Lincoln Rodeo Club hopes will become an annual family-oriented event for the community every summer.

The blowout started last year for a birthday party, Christ Lewenight said.

"Adriana (Duffy.) wanted a water balloon fight for her birthday, so we made her one," he said. "Last year we only had 4500 balloons. It took us three-and-a-half hours to run out of balloons last year."

It was so fun they decided it should be a yearly thing at the Lincoln Rodeo Grounds.

"We want to try to do it every year at the end of July," Lewenight said. "Hopefully it grows bigger next year. That's the goal; just keep it going. I mean what a perfect place for it."

This year the Lincoln Volunteer Fire Rescue brought out their big tender and a brush truck adding to fun with cascades of water from the bumper mounted nozzles.

"I love the fact the fire department came. I think it's super cool, just having the extra water," said Olivia Dietz.

Once everything was in place, the kids flooded into the arena and began hurling water balloons in every direction, giving one another a proper dousing and occasionally launching volleys at the fire trucks.

Dietz, who brought a couple thousand water balloons to the party herself, estimated they'd filled about 12,000 balloons and still had a couple thousand on hand.

"I think it's awesome, she said. "It gives kids something to do. It's super fun. Even adults have a good time."

A few of the adults actually seemed to revert to childhood as they chased each other with everything from water balloons to full buckets of water.

As the supply of water balloons in the arena dwindled, the kids headed out to find more, eventually taking over a stash set aside for a game of water balloon battleship the adults had planned. Instead, attention turned toward a pair of water balloon slingshots. With the help of adults, kids took turns trying to lob water balloons blindly over the information booth, narrowly missing Lewenight, who was in the arena at that point.

"We hope more people come out next year. It's a good family event and everyone's welcome," Lewenight said.

Since word of the water balloon fight was largely spread on social media, Dietz suspects there were probably people who aren't on social media who hadn't heard about it.

"I just feel like the more we do, you organize a little better every year and come up with more games or whatever, it'll definitely grow every year." Dietz said, adding it was nice to see the rodeo grounds used for a different community event.