Just for grins...

What if I could afford to put together a dedicated rocket range. In other words, a place set up to fly rockets first and perhaps grazing or other activities to pay the bills only so far as they do not affect flight operations.

The place would have a permanent blockhouse for flight operations and should be able to handle everything from MMX to big home brew motors.

the spread would be big enough that the "permanent range" can be set up and used with wind coming from any direction.

This is a dream facility. Maybe it would have storage lockers where clubs could store their equipment/trailers. The air conditioned snack bar and lounge might be a nice touch. I like the idea of a water tower with lines run to the launch areas and flood them in case of fire.

What would your dream setup have/do/look like?

I'm stuck out of town at a conference for the rest of the week and thought this might be an interesting thought experiment to help keep the boredom at bay.

Somewhere I could fly sparkies/EX.

That's it.

Sounds nice. You own a spresd that large?
How about a spiderweb of buried conduit with installed cables so pads could be set up anywhere 360 degrees around the central core?
Water and sewer service?
How much money do you have, anyway? LOL

Gary

While we are dreaming of RocketWorld (let's get Disney-esque), in no particular order:

1. Play place for children w/ supervision
2. Bike trails
3. Rocket recovery observation towers w/ comm. links
4. On-site fire fighting
5. On-site tree climber/trimmer
6. Pay-per-use GPS equipment
7. Classroom structure for meetings with the latest A/V equipment
8. Paved parking
9. Weather center
10. First aid center
11. Ops center
12. Nice waiver altitude

There's a dozen.

If someone makes such a place then I would want to visit at least once a year. If you build it, they will come.

Greg

There is an old grass airport for sale down my road.

400+ acres all mowed with a windsock and four large hangers in good condition.

It's been on the market for 5 or 6 years now so I'm sure the price has dropped.

Black Rock type altitude waivers.

We're pretty lucky to have such a facility in California, at the MTA. The RRS has done a lot of work over the years putting it together, and it's pretty much heaven -- tons of test facilities, launch pads, places to sleep, and a 50k' altitude limit (higher with the proper paperwork). There's a tracking station, concrete viewing bunkers if you want to try a micrograin or a steel case, an air conditioned underground blockhouse, on-site solid propellant mixing facilities, and conduit to all the test stands for data acquisition and control cabling. Praxair even delivers to the site. It don't get much better!

I've heard that the group up in Oregon is planning a similar facility with the land that they've just acquired. So it's been built, or is being built... all you gotta do is come!

I want a 1 mile radius from the pads for recovery, soft dirt and mowed lawn for 500 ft. around the LPR pads, soft dirt and no more then 6" grass for 1000 ft. around the MPR pads and no more then 12" grass anywhere on site. A store on site with a full selection of all rocketry supplies @ +20% discount from MSRP, and all pads and GSE available. A waiver over 15,000 ft would also be nice.

Rest rooms. With flush toilets. Cleaned regularly.

Shaded prep area, with room for everyone. With a hard roof. No more having to pack and bring along your own shelter and chairs.

Radar tracking.

MK

ggoldy said:

Sounds nice. You own a spresd that large?
How about a spiderweb of buried conduit with installed cables so pads could be set up anywhere 360 degrees around the central core?
Water and sewer service?
How much money do you have, anyway? LOL

Gary

Click to expand...

Taking the last one first, much less than I used to.

As I said, this is mainly just a "what if" exercise. I have always enjoyed designing my "dream X" where X is what I am interested in.

Thinking about the layout, I was thinking in terms of buried conduit but with the pads orthogonal to the 2 main prevailing wind directions and in the middle of the spread. Since I am using monopoly money anyway, I'll just buy enough land to handle that in 360 degrees.

I'd definitely want to sink a well instead of trying to run a water main. I'd also be on a septic system because even Parker Bros. will run out of monopoly money eventually. For electricity, I think I would want underground to mitigate the problems of recovery.

GregGleason said:

While we are dreaming of RocketWorld (let's get Disney-esque), in no particular order:

1. Play place for children w/ supervision
2. Bike trails
3. Rocket recovery observation towers w/ comm. links
4. On-site fire fighting
5. On-site tree climber/trimmer
6. Pay-per-use GPS equipment
7. Classroom structure for meetings with the latest A/V equipment
8. Paved parking
9. Weather center
10. First aid center
11. Ops center
12. Nice waiver altitude

There's a dozen.

If someone makes such a place then I would want to visit at least once a year. If you build it, they will come.

Greg

Click to expand...

This is the kind of thing I was thinking of. Thanks.

If I could afford it, I would build it. I don't think I would be able to charge enough, though, to make it pay.

sandman said:

There is an old grass airport for sale down my road.

400+ acres all mowed with a windsock and four large hangers in good condition.

It's been on the market for 5 or 6 years now so I'm sure the price has dropped.

Click to expand...

400 acres seems about right for the "deluxe visitor center" and the hangers might come in useful.

I like the windsock. I'll put that down.

daveyfire said:

We're pretty lucky to have such a facility in California, at the MTA. The RRS has done a lot of work over the years putting it together, and it's pretty much heaven -- tons of test facilities, launch pads, places to sleep, and a 50k' altitude limit (higher with the proper paperwork). There's a tracking station, concrete viewing bunkers if you want to try a micrograin or a steel case, an air conditioned underground blockhouse, on-site solid propellant mixing facilities, and conduit to all the test stands for data acquisition and control cabling. Praxair even delivers to the site. It don't get much better!

I've heard that the group up in Oregon is planning a similar facility with the land that they've just acquired. So it's been built, or is being built... all you gotta do is come!

Click to expand...

Now we're getting into the spirit of things!

Praxair?

GregGleason said:

While we are dreaming of RocketWorld (let's get Disney-esque), in no particular order:

[snip]

If someone makes such a place then I would want to visit at least once a year. If you build it, they will come.

Greg

Click to expand...

If someone built such a place, I would want to live there! :roll:

MK

Handeman said:

I want a 1 mile radius from the pads for recovery, soft dirt and mowed lawn for 500 ft. around the LPR pads, soft dirt and no more then 6" grass for 1000 ft. around the MPR pads and no more then 12" grass anywhere on site. A store on site with a full selection of all rocketry supplies @ +20% discount from MSRP, and all pads and GSE available. A waiver over 15,000 ft would also be nice.

Click to expand...

Is a mile really enough for a project of this grandeur?

I hear you on the grass. In my hypothetical universe, though, I'm probably talking about west Texas where 6" grass means the blades are, on average, 6" apart.

I did think in terms of a grandiose on site store. THe problem is that I would pilfer the inventory.

MarkII said:

Rest rooms. With flush toilets. Cleaned regularly.

Shaded prep area, with room for everyone. With a hard roof. No more having to pack and bring along your own shelter and chairs.

Radar tracking.

MK

Click to expand...

Great. I'll put you down as latrine monitor.

I was thinking of a big line of "picnic shelters" parallel to the flight line. I mean the nice one like the Tx Highway dept sometimes puts up.

Great thread. I too have fantasized about spending some of my lottery winnings in this manner.

I'll too go for shaded structures with reinforced roofs.

BBQ grills close by with more shelters.

A big AC generator for tools, fans, pa, battery chargers...

Fixed launch equipment at pads and RSO/LCO to minimize the lugging of stuff around.

Secure storage for all the stuff that isn't fixed in place, spares, etc.

A shed for al ATV to lug what you still need to lug.

Access roads to all pad areas.

I better win big!

JAL3 said:

Great. I'll put you down as latrine monitor.

Click to expand...

Latrines (pit toilets) would simply not do! You have to demand more than that!

JAL3 said:

I was thinking of a big line of "picnic shelters" parallel to the flight line. I mean the nice one like the Tx Highway dept sometimes puts up.

Click to expand...

Link or picture, for the unfortunate among us who have not visited your fair state?

MK

JAL3 said:

What if I could afford to put together a dedicated rocket range. In other words, a place set up to fly rockets first and perhaps grazing or other activities to pay the bills only so far as they do not affect flight operations. [...]

Click to expand...

I'd say start out with your dream range being a sod farm. I've flown off a marching field with "in need of mowing" grass -- about 4" tall. Most incredible place I've ever flown.

A place where kids can buy and use reloads without asking dad to pull out hi passport or drivers every time.... And ideally, they pave over lake george, 32 miles long, 500 yards wide, hope the winds coperate!



SD

MarkII said:

Latrines (pit toilets) would simply not do! You have to demand more than that!

Link or picture, for the unfortunate among us who have not visited your fair state?

MK

Click to expand...

Try this out: https://satollparty.com/post/?p=684
Its probably a bit much even for me.
What I was thinking of that seems fairly common is the slab with some sort of hard roof, no walls. They usually a stone masonry tables and benches and a BBQ pit.

I'll probably save the 18 million dollar version for the extra special guests.

As for latrine, I was using in in the generic sense of the WC, I was NOT thinking about slit trenches. I figure that a nice, air conditioned WC building could be placed for every 5 or so "pavillions".

Figuring 100 pavillions, 20 sets of facilities should do for the flight line.

If every member of this forum pitched in 350 bucks, we would have over a million dollars for such a place. What's the cheapest wide open land that is closest to the center of the U.S?

People could play soccer there as long as they don't interfere with the rockets.

Rocketry retierment village?

Seriously though..... imagine the possibility, a rocketry version of an airpark?

There is one in my town, and they exist here and there all over, probably in every state.

A developement of houses situated around a private airfield.

One feature I love about the one near me is you have a hangar next to your house instead of a garage and you can taxi out straight from your yard.... sweet.

So a "rocket park" where homes are sold. Marketed to the rocketry comunity.
At least the nieghbors would not complain....... right.

Problem is not enough rocketeers to make that viable.

(dreaming mode off) back to work.

.

evil ed said:

People could play soccer there as long as they don't interfere with the rockets.

Click to expand...

ROTFLMAO!!!:clap:

Can we tell them to leave when we show up? Can we, can we?

HotRod Rockets said:

Rocketry retierment village?

Seriously though..... imagine the possibility, a rocketry version of an airpark?

There is one in my town, and they exist here and there all over, probably in every state.

A developement of houses situated around a private airfield.

One feature I love about the one near me is you have a hangar next to your house instead of a garage and you can taxi out straight from your yard.... sweet.

So a "rocket park" where homes are sold. Marketed to the rocketry comunity.
At least the nieghbors would not complain....... right.

Problem is not enough rocketeers to make that viable.

(dreaming mode off) back to work.

.

Click to expand...

I've seen a few of these themed towards light aircraft and one that was for rotor heads. If I brought up such an idea with a rocket theme to SHE WHO MUST BE OBEYED, I would find myself severly thrashed. She wants to retire near her sisters in Hawaii.

evil ed said:

People could play soccer there as long as they don't interfere with the rockets.

Click to expand...

Kicking a rocket would mean a BIG fine.

MarkII said:

Latrines (pit toilets) would simply not do! You have to demand more than that!

Click to expand...

You would have loved the toilets we had at one of the big UK launches a couple of years ago. It was a portaloo block, but the nicest I've ever been in. Separate male and female sections, wallpaper, mirrors and pictures hanging on the walls. Proper sinks, proper flush toilets. A selection of soap. Classical music playing from hidden speakers. Built in generator to power it all. I think it even had razor sockets. It was great!

Until, of course, it ran out of space and started overflowing on the Sunday.


First thing required in my ideal site is an indoor prep/building area with lots of good lighting and plenty of power sockets. A bit like this, but maybe with a workshop full of tools attached to it. Second priority would be decent onsite catering, or at least a site which is within delivery distance for several local takeaways.

Phil

daveyfire said:

We're pretty lucky to have such a facility in California, at the MTA. The RRS has done a lot of work over the years putting it together, and it's pretty much heaven -- tons of test facilities, launch pads, places to sleep, and a 50k' altitude limit (higher with the proper paperwork). There's a tracking station, concrete viewing bunkers if you want to try a micrograin or a steel case, an air conditioned underground blockhouse, on-site solid propellant mixing facilities, and conduit to all the test stands for data acquisition and control cabling. Praxair even delivers to the site. It don't get much better!

I've heard that the group up in Oregon is planning a similar facility with the land that they've just acquired. So it's been built, or is being built... all you gotta do is come!

Click to expand...

Is that a launch site or Area 51? LOL

Seriously, what is that place? Where in California is it?

GregGleason said:

While we are dreaming of RocketWorld (let's get Disney-esque), in no particular order:

5. On-site tree climber/trimmer

If someone makes such a place then I would want to visit at least once a year. If you build it, they will come.

Greg

Click to expand...

As long as we're dreaming here why don't we just say there will be no trees for miles around? Thus #5 becomes un-necessary!

Glenn