I had a really enjoyable time at NARCON 2018. I am so glad I went, even though I am still very new to rocketry.
I spent Day Two essentially in the model rocketry talk track. The first presentation was by Trip Barber on TARC and how to win it. The biggest take away for me from his talk was the importance of a systematic approach to taking data and experimentation. The importance for me is clear; I'm never going to get a solid grasp on this hobby if all I am doing is putting random motors in rockets and launching. In light of how my day ended (more later), his talk was quite prescient.
The second talk I attended was by Tim Van Milligan (I certainly was not going to miss his talk!). It was really interesting. He walked through the software programs he uses to design rocket kits and prepare them for production. I especially enjoyed his demonstration of the tricks and workarounds he had to do in Adobe Illustrator so that the laser cutter would cut the fin sheets correctly and efficiently. After his talk, Tim graciously signed my copy of his book,
Model Rocketry Design and Construction.
The presentation that followed was by Amy Heidrick of the Museum of Flight. She gave an update on the progress of cataloging the G. Harry Stine Collection. I had no idea the collection was so massive. As I have a peripheral association with a research library myself, I enjoyed her detailing of the progress made and the challenges still ahead.
Before slipping out to grab some lunch, I picked up another rocket from ASP Rocketry. Because....rockets.
After lunch I attended James Duffy's presentation on his 1/12 scale Little Joe. I think I spent the entire presentation with my mouth agape. I had never seen a scale model up close before, let alone a 1/12 scale one! His presentation was riveting (pun intended, his detail on the rivets amazed me). He also generously passed around components of the rocket and construction supplies so we could get a really close look at it. If ever wanted to know what a year's worth of work on a rocket can produce, I now know. I don't know if I'll ever get into scale modeling of this sort, but I sure had a wonderful introduction to it.
I now switched tracks to the high power rocketry track and listened to Gary Rosenfield's talk on the beginnings of high powered rocketry. I know next-to-nothing about high power rocketry, let alone any of its history. Gary's stories of the beginnings of Aerotech and the struggles in the nascent years of this part of our hobby were really fascinating. Lee Piester also contributed a hilarious story on having to quickly come up with an alternate expansion for the acronym LDRS for a fire marshal (Let's Do Rockets Safely seemed to work).
Switching back to the model rocketry track, I listened to Glenn Feveryear's talk on the new National Rocketry Competition. I know nothing about rocketry competition, but I quickly picked up on the notion that this year debuted some substantial changes from previous years. While Glenn's talk highlighted those changes, rocketry competition looks like a lot of fun. The entire notion of competing nationally while flying locally is just cool. I definitely want to try competing at some point.
It has already been a really long day by this point. I debated whether to go to the final session or not, but the desire to take a break and get some coffee won out so I drove home (I live only eight miles away). After resting for a bit and getting some coffee, I journeyed back to the Hilton for the banquet.
I really need to thank James Duffy, the lead co-organizer of NARCON 2018. Not only is he an excellent MC, he is perhaps one of the most hospitable individuals I've met in recent memory. I'm new to rocketry. I just recently joined my local club. I know nobody at the banquet. After complimenting him on his Little Joe presentation he instantly introduced me to a group of other rocketeers. And then, by sheer happenstance, who else happens to sit at the same table as me? Tim Van Milligan and John Beans -- the person responsible for getting me over my initial frustrations in rocket construction and the person who, as I understand it, is the inventor of perhaps the biggest game changer in the hobby in years. Is this really happening?
The food was quite good.....a rather large display of Tex-Mex, fajitas, and tamales. Scott Parazynski's dinner keynote was also extremely enjoyable. And to the shock of perhaps everyone in the room, we all ended up with a copy of his book, signed and personalized.
Now, remember Trip Barber's talk on the importance of collecting data? The highlight of the evening for me was when Tim gifted me the Altimeter Three he won as a door prize. I can't say thank you enough (and to John, for donating so many of them as door prizes). I am going to have so much fun with this.
So, yes, I had a fantastic time.
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