CREATING AN ACCOUNT

Before you can buy / gift / activate a balloon you must create an account here otherwise we do not know who you are if your balloon wins a brilliant prize! Each balloon costs just 3 GBP and you can buy as many balloons as you want to increase your chances of winning, and of course, indirectly donate more to your favoured charity, Vista.

RACE DETAILS

The Vista virtual balloon race launches at 10am on Monday 4th October, at the end of National Eye Health Week ( 20th to the 26th ) from Vodafone, 28 The Square, Market Harborough, LE16 7PA. You are advised to enter all your balloons by 09:30am at the latest to ensure all transactions go through smoothly. The race finishes at 10am on Monday 11th October 2021.

* First prize for the balloon that travels the furthest distance in a straight line is a fabulous Samsung Galaxy Tab AT 10.4 as will the Key Worker they nominated. This could be anybody from Vista that has supported them or a family member through these difficult times. Nominated Key Worker to be written on the Balloon.

* Second prize is a JBL Flip 4 portable Bluetooth speaker

* Third prize is a luxury food hamper.

Share the excitement by posting on Facebook or Tweeting!

The winners will be informed and announced within a week of the race ending. Prizes are subject to change without notice.

For full Terms and Conditions please click here.

100% ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY

Unlike a traditional latex balloon race, where the balloon can cause death or serious injury to wildlife and farm animals, our balloon race is 100% environmental and litter abuse friendly! Plus, with no actual balloon, string or label, and no helium gas either, it’s climate change positive too.

BUYING / GIFTING / ACTIVATING BALLOONS

For all these options first sign-in to go direct to your dashboard and click the [ buy / gift / activate ] button in the top bar.

Buying

Select the Buy balloons for you option and buy as many balloons as wish!

Gifting

Select the Buy activation codes to gift option and buy as many activation codes as you wish to gift. Receiving a code is the same as receiving a prepaid balloon in effect. All your purchased codes will be sent directly to you by email for redistribution by any suitable method - email, text or WhatsApp, for example. Please ensure you use the person’s correct email address or telephone number as mistakes cannot be rectified

Activating a gifted code

Select the Activate a gifted code option. Enter your code in the code field and click Activate. Repeat if necessary, with more codes. Well done, a balloon has been added to your account and will appear in your dashboard.

CUSTOMISING YOUR BALLOON

Decorating

Sign in to go direct to your dashboard. Either click the [ edit balloon ] button or click on an individual balloon to decorate. Remember to save all your design and parameter changes by clicking the [ Save changes ] button at the top of the page.

Enhance your chances of winning

On your dashboard you can customise each balloon by changing various parameters, for example, balloon helium content; shape of balloon; thickness of rubber.

And reflecting real life, virtual balloons just like latex ones, can pop if the balloon parameters are not suited to the weather. For example, maximising helium content, having the fastest shape and thinnest rubber during stormy weather is not advisable. So, looking at the predicted weather forecast for your race period prior to customisation can help your chances of winning.

TRACKING BALLOONS

The 25 race leading balloons can be seen 24/7 during the race. Information shown includes the straight-line distance travelled in kilometres from the launch point, plus the balloon’s latitude and longitude. The button [ race leaders ] is found in the top bar.

To locate and track your balloons, Sign-in and go to your dashboard. Click on any individual balloon to check its progress around the globe.

WINNERS AND PRIZES

All races are 7 days in duration and the winning balloon is the one that has flown the furthest, as measured in a straight line from the launch location. Please note that a popped / burst balloon can still win if the wind direction changes and sends the still-flying balloons in the reverse direction.

The winner will be emailed with confirmation that they have won the race and with details of how to contact the organiser to arrange receiving their prize. To further comply with Gambling Commission rules, the winner will be asked a question not instantly researched or ‘Googled’.

Prizes for every race are publicised on the website homepage and are strictly not negotiable, may vary without notice, and no correspondence will be entered regarding them.