Rocketry and flying in public parks

After just losing my place to fly after 10+ years, I'm now looking for a new place to fly. I noticed one of our parks is a 40+ acre soccer complex about 10 miles away from where I live. I read all 30+ pages of the park ordinance and didn't find anything in particular about model rockets being banned so I'll probably shoot an email to the park director and ask if I would need a permit for this. I imagine I probably would.

That and I could only fly when there isn't any games going on but at least I might possibly have a place to fly again.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Advise them you do and will pick up all rubbish, igniters, plugs/caps, and whatever other crud that gets left on the ground. It's not just the mess, but folks don't want to get a bit of wire stuck in their leg while playing sport if they hit the ground during a game. My handy B6 site is a soccer ground and it's one of the only concerns folks there had about me launching (other than time conflicts as you said). I try to launch between the playing fields to be additionally careful not to cause any damage to playing surfaces.

Good luck.

Are you a NAR member? If you are, tell them you follow the NAR safety protocols and give them a copy.

Wouldn't hurt to call the local fire marshal and find out what the official ordinances require. Document the call.

I felt much better about launching at a local high school on weekends after I talked to the fire marshal.

Of course, absolutely follow the NAR safety rules.

That's were I used to fly, you from central IN lol. We didn't fly while soccer games were going on, also we didn't fly over an F. Actually drew a crowd rather that upset people, just tried to be safe and respectful as we could. We also called the fire chief and the airport, and they wondered why I was calling them, but I think it was still good to reach out to them and let them know your following safety codes.

I guess it depends to high busy your park is and is it in a flight line with your local airport.

Last night I emailed the director of the soccer complex and today I got an email from him and was promptly denied. I guess model rockets are considered "aerial devices" and therefor are not allowed on the property.

That was the only one that would have been suitable for flying. All the others are either way too small and/or have way too many tall trees.

None of the schools here are an option either. They all have perimeter fences around them that are of course, locked on the weekends.

Back to square one I guess.

Makes me glad I took up RC boating as a second hobby. It may become my primary hobby if I can't find another place to fly.

Donald

Ask the director to allow you to do a low power demo flight with him watching and he might change his mind ?

bobby_hamill said:

Donald

Ask the director to allow you to do a low power demo flight with him watching and he might change his mind ?

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We'll see, I'll keep that in mind as a last resort.

I think the best bet is to find a private property. I'd rather not deal with the potential headaches of dealing with the county government if I really don't have to.

Donaldsrockets said:

Last night I emailed the director of the soccer complex and today I got an email from him and was promptly denied. I guess model rockets are considered "aerial devices" and therefor are not allowed on the property.

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If the wording specifically prohibits "ALL aerial devices," counterattack.

Frisbees, kites, RC planes and quadcopters would certainly all qualify, as would model rockets.

If you could get a lawyer-type person interested in the case, it could probably be argued very persuasively that soccer balls become airborne frequently and in fact regularly in the process of normal usage, and thus they should also be considered "aerial devices."

You're a taxpayer just like the soccer parents are. You should have the rights to use that park as long as your usage does not interfere/infringe upon the rights of others.

If they're going to use the "aerial devices" bull$#% on you, turn it around and point it straight at their heads.

Just think of the news stories after a court ruling that the usage of soccer balls is prohibited inside the soccer complex. :lol::lol:

Your lawyer could then offer a compromise in which the usage of soccer balls would be allowed only in the event they could not reasonably be expected to become airborne: for instance, if the balls were filled with water.

:wink::wink:

Or, they might just forget about the "aerial devices" crapola altogether, yuh think??

Let the soccer teams use the soccer complex for games/practices as they currently do, and let model rocketeers/RC flyers/frisbee throwers use it at any other time which does not interfere. Everybody happy.

:w:

Have you looked at any Churches? I know it might seem odd. However my regular launch site is the field behind a local church, which is owned by the church. Doing a demo this Saturday for the kids in fact! Good luck finding a field.

Startup a club and or approach some farmers? Search for clubs in your area

The old saying, "easier to ask forgiveness than permission" comes to mind. Chances are if you just launched some rockets on non soccer days no body would have cared.

I quickly checked the NAR site for clubs in Florida. There are clubs in:

Ft. Lauderdale
W. Palm Beach
Homestead
Jacksonville
Orlando
Panama City
Melbourne

I don't know what's close to Fort Myers, but I'll leave that to you. Good luck!

Bat-mite said:

I quickly checked the NAR site for clubs in Florida. There are clubs in:

Ft. Lauderdale
W. Palm Beach
Homestead
Jacksonville
Orlando
Panama City
Melbourne

I don't know what's close to Fort Myers, but I'll leave that to you. Good luck!

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We used to have one in Cape Coral but it is no more. The guy who was in charge of it took a job where he had to work on most Saturday's. That and attendance dropped off over time as it wasn't really that great of a field.

There is one in La Belle where I used to fly (about a 45 minute drive) but they're mostly into HPR/Research launches and I don't fly HPR anymore.

All the others like Tampa are at least 2+ hours away.

Joe V said:

The old saying, "easier to ask forgiveness than permission" comes to mind. Chances are if you just launched some rockets on non soccer days no body would have cared.

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True, but I'm the type that would rather do what it takes to avoid a confrontation if possible.:wink:

I've been using Google Earth to find some potential sites. I found one that would probably work but I'll have to try and find out who owns it.

I've come to believe the forgiveness vs. permission mantra. If there's no statute forbidding rockets, you're good. Worst case, somebody calls the cops, you get told (right or wrong) that it's not allowed. You look crestfallen, make the most of the scientific and harmless hobby nerd thing, and leave. I've made the mistake of asking a few times. NOBODY ever gets it. "rocket" is a dirty word. I asked about a state park where people fly 10 pound r/c planes and people carry freaking GUNS around and hunt during hunting season..."No, I don't think we can allow you to launch rockets here, it might be dangerous."

There is a scenario where one would be wise to ask permission, and that would be on privately owned land. Farmers are not thrilled when city slickers trespass upon their land, especially if they do anything that might result in a grass fire. Worse yet is if an uninvited visitor leaves a gate open allowing livestock to escape. And there is always the possibility that an otherwise innocent trespasser might stumble upon some "cash crops" that the farmer wishes to keep secret. :kill: