[June 07, 2011] North County Times, Escondido, Calif., Jeff Frank column Tweet Jun 07, 2011 (North County Times - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Hot-air balloons are familiar sights around Del Mar near sunset. They are far less common flying over Rancho Bernardo. So it was somewhat surprising when a low-flying, multicolored balloon sailed over Interstate 15 just before 8 p.m. Sunday, making a pinpoint landing in the parking lot of the San Diego North Chamber of Commerce. Some new Chamber partnership? It was news to CEO Debra Rosen. "We're trying to be recognized for being a clean-tech corridor, not a hot-air corridor," she said. Apparently, the balloon soared over its landing point, giving passengers Jason Davenport of Del Mar and his family a longer ride than expected. It was a little extra birthday gift for Davenport, who was making his first balloon ride. The pilot did a great job of making a smooth touch-down in the parking lot, the passengers said. Busy day: Not far from where the balloon would come down a few hours later, some 50,000 people wandered up and down Bernardo Center Drive for the chamber's RB Alive street fair. Capturing a good amount of attention was the "Rogue Pogue" robot operated by the robotics team at Rancho Bernardo High School. The student-controlled robot rolled through the fair, catching the eye, among others, of an engineer who had actually worked on the original concept for the system that moves the robot. The engineer offered to speak to the team, said Richard Pogue, the team mentor for whom the robot is named. Another high-tech tool that attracted quite a few users was the DaVinci robot surgical system displayed at the Scripps booth. Plenty of junior surgeons took the controls while trying to pick up small items from a flat surface. A more classical attraction was the Madame Mechanic Car Show, which brought in 60 entries. A 1929 blue Model A Ford with a rumble seat, owned by Cheryl Duesterhoft of Poway, claimed the People's Choice trophy. Setting the pace: A doctor who provided 20 years of service to North County families will be presented the Pace Setter Award on Saturday by Neighborhood Healthcare. Mary Dzvonik retired in March and moved east following that long tenure at the agency's Elm Street clinic in Escondido. She was dedicated to ensuring that children received the medications they needed to improve their health and also managed the community health organization's chronic pain group. "She was a great doctor. Everyone was sad to see her go," said Danae Gill, the agency's philanthropy coordinator. Dr. Dzvonik and her husband, John Olson, will return to accept her award at the 13th annual Pace Setter Gala, 5:30 to 9 p.m. at Orfila Winery. More than 20 of her colleagues are expected to be among the 200-plus guests paying tribute. Gourmet dining, an auction for various travel getaways -- including a beach condo week in Costa Rica -- and the chance to win an Apple iPad 2 in an opportunity drawing are event highlights. Estha Trouw is the guest emcee. The drawing for the iPad is open to the general public. Only 200 $25 tickets will be sold. Admission to event is still available. Call Sheryl Seltser, 760-975-4953. To see more of the North County Times or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.nctimes.com. Copyright (c) 2011, North County Times, Escondido, Calif. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For more information about the content services offered by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services (MCT), visit www.mctinfoservices.com. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]