You may be surprised to learn that Atlas Machine and Supply has a link to the 2023 Kentucky Derby Festival Great Balloon Race! The colorful event, held on April 29th, is an annual tradition that leads up to the most exciting two minutes in sports--the Kentucky Derby.
So, what's the balloon race's connection with Atlas? The winner of this year's race was Sullair---a major provider of industrial air compressors and related products. Atlas happens to be the region's distributor ofSullair products to manufacturers.
"It's very cool to represent a company like Sullair," says Dave Sullivan, Vice President of Atlas' Industrial Products Group, which includes the Sullair brand. "It's fun to see them win a major event that helps to attract thousands of people to Louisville for the world's most famous horse race--the Kentucky Derby.
The balloon's pilot--Shawn Raya--dropped his marker the closest to the target with a distance of 1 foot, 3 1/2 inches. The second-place finisher was close behind, coming within 1 foot, 4 inches from the target--just half an inch more.
Shawn has been flying for 36 years, and 17 of those years have been in partnership with Sullair. This is his second Kentucky Derby balloon win for Sullair--the first being in 2019. He and his family live in Michigan. The Sullair headquarters and its main U.S. factory are located in Michigan City, Indiana.
The Sullair balloon is set to compete in other festivals--spreading awareness of the brand to an even greater audience. Ultimately, that helps Atlas as a distributor, too.
For more information about Sullair's regional distributor and Atlas' other Compressed Air products and services, click HERE or call 1-855-GO.ATLAS.
