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SUNDANCE — The giant American flag that hung in a canyon in Pleasant Grove over the Fourth of July last year went on an adventure Wednesday morning.
“Big Betsy,” as she’s lovingly called, is a giant American flag that measures 78 feet by 150 feet, more than a quarter-acre, and weighs more than 400 pounds. The flag is the largest free-flying flag in the United States.
Kyle Fox, creator of the group Follow the Flag, had the flag produced at Colonial Flag last year to celebrate the nation’s birth and to encourage patriotism.
Fox and a team of volunteers hauled the flag to the top of Sundance, where it was unfurled at the top of Red’s Lift. Skiers then held the sides of “Big Betsy” and skied down part of Bear Claw while the flag fluttered and rippled in the wind.
Gail Halvorsen, the candy bomber from World War II, was there to see the flag go down the mountain.
“Incredible. Makes you proud to be an American,” Halvorsen said about the flag.
Fox suspended the flag in Grove Creek Canyon near Pleasant Grove last year for the Fourth of July but wanted to do something new with it to encourage patriotism as the Olympics begin in South Korea.
“There (were) near a hundred people up there that were associated with what we were doing, and I’m sure that every one of them had a different experience and you know that’s the beauty of it,” Fox said. “There’s a little something different in everybody’s hearts and eyes that comes out of this.”
Many volunteers expressed awe at the sheer size of the flag and were grateful for the experience to help with the project.
The group plans to hang it in Grove Creek Canyon again this year for the Fourth of July. Details for the event can be found at its website.
