RENO — A man like Leroy Coffman doesn’t get a nickname like Captain Scorch just for the fun of it. The Fresno, Calif. resident earned it by burning a hot air balloon as he tried to learn how to be a pilot.

“The guy who was the instructor couldn’t articulate himself very well,” Coffman said, explaining a mishap that occurred many years ago as he was trying to inflate his balloon and its skirt caught on fire.

Now with more than 25 years of experience, Coffman is in town for the 2010 Great Reno Balloon Race. He has been a regular pilot at the event since its third year as well as an avid admirer of northern Nevada.

“I love it,” he said. “I love the size of the event. … Reno has a unique community.”

The Great Reno Balloon Race officially kicked off with a media day on a chilly Thursday morning at Rancho San Rafael Regional Park, but with only a handful of balloons actually launched because winds and overcast skies kept some pilots grounded.

Still, the event has a few new attractions for the public to enjoy this weekend, according to event manager Dixie Craig.

“One of the things we’re most proud of is baby bee Joelly,” Craig said, referring to a new balloon. “Lily Bee and Joey Bee had a baby. (Jolee’s) debut flight is at our event. She will be providing tethered rides to the Children’s Cabinet.”

Craig said the event will hold its first Love Is in the Air wedding at 7:30 a.m. Saturday. A local couple won a bidding war this summer and will have their nuptials in the air.

The event this year has about 85 balloons and about 89 pilots, some of whom will alternate for a chance to fly, Craig said. Most are from the United States, but there are three who traveled from other countries: Switzerland, Great Britain and New Zealand. Not all the pilots who have come out in the past were able to make it this year because of to the economy.

Like other local special events, the balloon race also has had its struggles in obtaining sponsorships this year, though Craig said there are a few new ones.

“Because of a loss in sponsorships, we are asking the community to support the event,” Craig said. “Since we are a nonprofit, we’re asking people to assist and they can give through the mobile giving campaign. People can text the word ‘balloon’ and dial 2022 through the end of September.”

She said people who would like to donate can also do so by going online to www.renoballoon.com to set up a one-time or recurring contribution, which is tax deductible.

Craig said the event is a favorite in the area.

“It’s a beautiful visual event,” she said. “We’ve never had anyone look at a hot air balloon and go, ‘Oh, so? Whatever, it’s an event.’ People have seen the balloons laying out there, pilots inflating them, then they pop out and launch and it’s an awe-inspiring event and it’s free.”

For Coffman, who has been a hot air balloon pilot for about 25 years, his hobby has become a viable business. In 1987, he founded a business that sold high-powered, belt-driven fans to inflate hot air balloons but in a twist of fate he developed blowing machines used by firefighters to clear smoke from buildings. The fans are now being used in both Bakersfield, Calif. and Reno.

Coffman called the fan an “American ingenuity,” one that branched out of his love for hot air balloons. He still gets excited with every flight, even recalling that he draped an American flag over the basket after the 9/11 attacks.

“I love the fact that when I get in the air in the morning, it’s the start of a new day,” he said. “I love when I fly at sunset, it’s the end of the day. If you’re going to live, you should see the sunrise.”

He’s also brought joy to young cancer patients by showing his balloons for the Make a Wish foundation.

“Balloons create fun, frivolity and laughter,” he said. “There’s nothing like it.”