Balloon boy hoax inspires Halloween costume

[link to www.cbc.ca]

A Saskatoon manufacturing company is soaring with orders for a balloon-boy costume kit, taking a quirky news phenomenon to new heights for Halloween.

Plantraco Microflight, a maker of remote-controlled airplanes and blimps, is offering the kits for $19.99.

Bud Kays, Plantraco's managing director, said an existing remote-controlled balloon was revamped by removing the electronic components and adding a gondola.

"We have laser-cut a gondola to represent the gondola that we saw on the Colorado balloon-boy hoax," Kays told CBC News. "It's a scale model of the balloon-boy's balloon."

Kays said the inspiration for the costume came when he realized the drama of a Colorado boy allegedly caught aloft in a balloon this month was likely a hoax. He said it was not much of a stretch to imagine taking similar-looking products and marketing them as a spoof.

"For Halloween I also try to go for an easy costume," Kays said. "This came to mind and I thought, man this is something we can do."

The kit comes almost ready to use.

"The costume-wearer would supply helium gas fill and a cardboard box," Kays said. "When they ring the doorbell for Halloween, when they parade around with the costume, they drag the balloon behind them, ring the doorbell and say, 'My dad said stay in the box. But I'm supposed to be in the balloon.'"

Manufacturing of the items began Monday. The first kit was sold on Tuesday.

Kays said he initially expected to sell dozens of kits but now believes he may ship thousands.