Back At It In West OK.

Things have finely turned around with regards to rocketry here in Western Oklahoma; it was getting pretty discouraging out these ways what with the loss of our launch site and the State wide burn ban.

Then there was LDRS for which I had such high hopes. The very first rocket I launched a Wildman Darkstar mini, went Dorothy Gale which put me in a bad mood. Then while looking for it I stepped in a hole, which from the feel of it shattered by back.

Not wanting to scream, puke and collapse at the launch site thus necessitating them calling an ambulance, (I hate big drama) I instead saddled-up and left. Ten hours to drive home; a distance that took me about four to drive when heading up to Argonia.

But now the burn ban has been lifted in the critical county where my “Local” NAR group has just procured a brand new launch field able at this time to accommodate low impulse “H” motors.

Tomorrow will be our first official club launch at this new site and I have a bunch of stuff I hope to fly.

I did get a successful Cert 1 flight at High Frontiers 8 in Pawhuska so it hasn’t been all bad news.

Oh!! And somebody found my Darkstar Mini I had lost and returned it to me at HF 8.

And then I lost my Rocketarium “Maxtermind”. You win some. . .

Where do you launch? Looks like a lot of the west is still "in the red" -https://www.forestry.ok.gov/burn-ban-information

Has PARC accuired a launch site? Well, seems that they have!

PARC launches are in Canadian county, which currently has no burn ban. We had a good launch yesterday, with about 30 in attendance, 8 kids, and the rest big kids. Flew LMR, or class 1 rockets. Weather was good, and initial winds between 10-12. Got a little worse in the afternoon, but still tolerable. A good day for the initation of our new field, thanks to the land owner!

Mike

At our new PARC site I launched the “Split Infinity” for the second time and like the first, at High Frontiers, it performed flawlessly with both sustainer motors staging at the same instant. My chief concern for this rocket.


The first launch did demonstrate a small flaw in the design/build of the booster pods.

When they staged from the sustainer motors their appeared to have been a lot of stress placed on the joint between the balsa segment that connects the tube too the shield shaped segment that the fins are actually attached to.

Both joints were severed at this point. Repair was fairly simple and I reinforced this joint with layers of tissue(?) paper soaked in super-thin ACC. Poor Mans Fiberglassing.

Both joints held during the second flight, though I haven’t yet tried C6-0 boosters.

boomtube said:

Then there was LDRS for which I had such high hopes. The very first rocket I launched a Wildman Darkstar mini, went Dorothy Gale which put me in a bad mood. Then while looking for it I stepped in a hole, which from the feel of it shattered by back.
...
Oh!! And somebody found my Darkstar Mini I had lost and returned it to me at HF 8.

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Sorry to hear about your mishap at LDRS. I hope your back is doing better. Also, I'm glad your rocket was returned.

--Lance.