The pie eating contest and hot air balloon rides will have to wait as this year's Kyle Pie in the Sky Hot Air Balloon Festival scheduled for Labor Day weekend at Lake Kyle has been cancelled.

The anticipation built up for this event will have to wait yet another year since the 2020 festival was postponed due to the pandemic.

“It came down to largely a lot of logistical issues,” said Rachel Sonnier, communications manager for the city of Kyle. “COVID has affected nearly every aspect of planning this from volunteers to vendors to staff and everything in between.”

City leadership did not want to contribute to the rise in delta variant cases and the already strained health care system, according to a press release from the city of Kyle. They also anticipated coronavirus and planning challenges would become more difficult as the event approached.

All ticket purchases and vendor payments will be refunded, and the city hopes to host the festival in 2022.