Personal Launch - Durham, NC, 12/24/05

[TheRadiator]

I was able to get a launch in on Christmas Eve, I planned on flying 10 rockets, but only got halfway through my set. I've had a few good launches in a row, so I guess I was due, which is why I quit after 5 flights. I started with an Estes Banshee I finished 2 years ago, but have not yet flown it. I loaded up a B6-4 and she turned in a nice flight, whoosh-bang E2X style. Hey, they're good for testing the wind.

 

[TheRadiator]

The second flight is where my trouble started. It was my freshly painted Mini Constellation, and since I was out of ½A 13mm engines, I went for broke with an A3. It performed beautifully flying who knows how high, and was dropping straight down on the streamer. About, I dunno, 300 feet or so, a gust of wind caught it and sent it toward the trees lining the parking lot. It got caught about 15 feet above the ground. Between the next few flights, I made a few attempts to get it down by throwing a timber at some of the branches to shake it loose. After flying, I spent a good hout trying to shake it loose with sticks, rocks, and brute force. The epic struggle ended an hour later in a draw. I did get the prized sandman nose cone back. I did return on Christmas Day with a pruning hook and retrieved the rocket. However, it had gotten rained on early Christmas morning. Two days in intensive care under a lamp, it finally dried out and is usable once again.

 

[TheRadiator]

Between rescue attempts, I placed my Hyper-X on the pad. This one was problematic, in that Estes had replaced the ejection charge with a bomb of some sort, and blew the elastic cord out of the rocket, and it landed semi-ballistic on the pavement. The plastic fin can saved it from certain destruction. The Heli-Nose Cone returned in style and it's own sweet time.

 

[TheRadiator]

I also had an Estes Stormcaster which has sat finished for two years and no flights. I loaded up a C11-5 which in turn produced a "picture on the back of a rocket kit" kind of flight. It popped right at apogee. It landed short of the tree line and will likely see heavier action as it is a nice flying rocket for a 3FNC.

 

[TheRadiator]

I hadn't flown a glider in a while, so I used a Tinee that has never flown. I used an A10 as once again, didn't have a ½A to use. The wind was a bit heavier above the pads than I anticipated. It caught the glider as soon as it leveled out. It looked like an overmatched offensive lineman gliding backward as fast as possible. But I do think my launch rod was a little too flimsy, so it was wobbly even under boost. (My regular launch rod is in my car which is in the shop. I had to buy a 1/8" round rod at Home Depot before the launch.) After the flight, I became obsessed with getting the Constellation out of the tree, and grounded the fleet.