MOSCOW BUD: Peace, Victory, Beer

Multiple-choice question: Celebrations in Moscow of the city’s recent Peace Victory Week were slated to include (1) a trio of Clydesdales pulling a troika-load of Budweiser through the streets of Moscow, (2) a gigantic balloon, complete with passenger gondola, in the shape of a Budweiser can, or (3) a half-marathon race sponsored by Bud. The answer: 2 and 3. While the 89-foot-high Bud Inflatable Can was to take off from Red Square as part of the Peace Victory Balloonfest, a smaller (but still sizable) Bud balloon – the Bud Cloudhopper – was tethered to the ground to serve as a lofty viewing stand for the Bud Moscow International Half-Marathon.