University looking for a launch date

I'm sorry if I seemed a little dismissive but we came on here to locate possible launch venues due to changes on our end. We are really glad that the comment about the G8 research status came up as it is very helpful to know we are on the correct side of the rules since our club flies under TRA rules and we were completely unaware of the possibility of a different status beyond just decertified. However the conversation turned into a discussion of our rocket instead which effectively derailed the thread and created half a page of unrelated discussion that anyone contributing has to wade through. I'll happily share our rocket design after we are done with everything in a separate forum thread but we are not taking modification suggestions from unknown sources here on the forum and I was trying to politely respond without ignoring or being too dismissive. I know this isn't my strong suite so I can accept some of the responsibility for this miscomunication. Nobody I've ever seen has launched weather balloons at a class 2 launch to establish upper winds for a rocket worth less then the balloon and helium.

Timothy,

I'm sorry that I came into your thread to offer real world experience with the G8...you won't find many out there that have had the privilege of experiencing this motor, but I certainly understand you didn't ask for my advice or experience on that.

However...

What any TRA waivered launch operation WILL want to know is your experience with various parts and pieces of the puzzle before allowing you to fly a "complex" rocket. Therefore, whether you like it or not, being able to offer a "resume" of your experiences with projects leading up to your grand slam two stage is oftentimes a critical piece of the puzzle. It is on you, the flyer, to convince the RSO and/or launch operations team that you and the team possess the knowledge and experience to safely fly your relatively ambitious project. Since you don't own the field you fly from (nor does the Launch team), the waiver you're using, the reputation with the neighbors, the launch equipment you're flying from, etc., your experience does indeed matter. Simply put, if you didn't do your homework (real world success greatly surpasses hypothetical simulation/design world), you aren't likely to fly at someone else's launch! You don't get to the Super Bowl without going through the regular season and playoffs first...

Not to be a downer, but provide a reality check...

Side note...I know you're not asking, but...aren't tilt/altitude check electronics now required for high power staging? I hope your rocket includes this feature; be prepared for that question to be asked by the RSO for the launch you hope to attend.

Honestly trying to help. I'll be quiet now...

And we are fully prepared to offer this information to any club officers willing to potentially let us fly. But we aren’t yet interested in sharing the entirety of our project with the world.

ECayemberg said:

aren't tilt/altitude check electronics now required for high power staging?

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Best practice, but not a formal requirement as far as I know. There may be requirements by specific clubs.

As for the weather balloon suggestion, I wasn't seriously suggesting the OP do this, only pointing out that the claim that they wouldn't fly if conditions were poor didn't hold up to a lot of scrutiny.

Now, since the OP has made it clear he's not interested in discussion, I'll stop posting.

mikec said:

Best practice, but not a formal requirement as far as I know. There may be requirements by specific clubs.

As for the weather balloon suggestion, I wasn't seriously suggesting the OP do this, only pointing out that the claim that they wouldn't fly if conditions were poor didn't hold up to a lot of scrutiny.

Now, since the OP has made it clear he's not interested in discussion, I'll stop posting.

Click to expand...

Nowhere did you point that out until now. Which means your comment was baited from the beginning. It’s very easy to quantify bad weather. We don’t fly in gusty conditions or anything over 8 mph at ground and we check the Noah sight for anything weird happening up to our predicted max altitude. It’s a little startling how many of the members here would like to assume zero experience and try to manipulate the discussion instead of genuinely helping what they believe to be inexperienced fliers.

Look, get you butts down to NCR, Northern Colorado Rocketry. The Pawnee is the place. Your project will work out fine. We have the people and vendors if you need help. The weather can be iffy in April. The Launch is a 2 day go, so that may help. You can camp on site. Lots of guys from Utah have flown with us. Enough said...I'd fly that, if I were you....

NCR is a great option and closer to you, but if you need a backup check out friendsofamateurrocketry.com and put in a launch request. The FAR Site is available to university teams wanting to do high altitude flights with research motors. Currently in full operation with launches on the first and third Saturday of every month with a 50K waiver. FAR now houses a tripoli chapter (TFAR) and has hosted at least one record flight. It took us 9.5 hours to drive to Salt Lake from the site.

I thought it was further for some reason. That makes it a viable third option. Currently we have Colorado as our first choice as it’s not to terrible a drive and should have less snow by that time of year. Second choice is Boise but snow is a bit heavy this winter so we suspect it might not be possible come March. Far might become our second option. The big problem is always transportation and housing. Students have to pay to go on trips like this until the university decides to step up so we are heavily limited by our own individual situations. We don’t believe you can safely launch a group designed and built rocket with only one member present no matter how small the project.

What's the deadline for your flight? I mean- absolute latest you can fly it?

Big Sky Rocketry Association is 420 miles north of SLC with March and April launches (new schedule coming soon) and a good enough COA.

Launch window closes April 12th. However we are aware that trying to find an existing launch is far more realistic a goal then asking a club to provide a special launch day so we have restricted our search to scheduled events. And as this is early in the year for many clubs that run Jan-Dec instead of scholastically we know many events might not yet be scheduled.