QUEST for FIRE!!!

[billeblurzz]

Lately I have gone out late on Sunday afternoons when the wind dies down and flown more rockets in the last few months, than I have mostly in the last few years that I discovered rocketry. It seemed I was mostly a "builder" much more than a flyer. But taking part in this forum and discovering the use of the digital camera, I fly much more now and enjoy it too. My success in these last outings has been on a roll....no lost rockets or equipment disasters. So today I was going to fly some older rockets...all Quest models...and not have the worries of trying something brand new and expensive. The remnants of the latest hurricane caused winds here in Mississippi all day and I thought I really would not go. But late after 6:00 p.m., the winds seemed to die down....thought I would at least ride out to my field and take a look. I loaded a NIKE-K, HARPOON, SUPER CRUISER, and ARIES. At the field the grass was too high...it started to get kind of dark...but the wind seemed to be down...and the sky was clear and this was the view!!! I thought I might could get some nice shots with the HARVEST MOON!

 

[billeblurzz]

My main emphasis was to work with the Quest HARPOON....it seemed to have some squirrelly flights so I was adding more nose weight to try to balance out all those fins. But my first flight was going to be my NIKE-K that I had painted to resemble the Nike-Apache. This is one of Quest's best fliers and one of my favorites in my "second" level of rockets....had not flown it in quite a while!

 

[billeblurzz]

I loaded a C6-3 and a mylar chute....nice dark blue one that I thought would give a nice but quick descent...this rocket has nose weight for perfectly straight ascents. Here is liftoff on the C6-3...was actually getting quite dark so my flash auto came on....and gave some quite interesting results!!!

 

[KarlD]

I really like Picture 376. Has an Earth to the moon look.

Like the cover of a Sci-Fi Book.

Good Stuff!

KarlD

 

[bcdlr]

Originally posted by billEblurzz
... But my first flight was going to be my NIKE-K that I had painted to resemble the Nike-Apache. This is one of Quest's best fliers and one of my favorites in my "second" level of rockets....

I love my Nike-K as well. Great flyer. I also have a Quest Apollo but I learned you better cut a spill hole in the top chute (comes down in two pieces). That thing drifted forever and landed under - yep UNDER - the only tree on the soccer field. My daughter was running to catch it and she was willing it out of the sky into her hands!
I was weird - landed right under that tree. Next time - spill hole in the top chute. The 'booster' section landed right by the pad.

 

[billeblurzz]

It was a textbook flight for this rocket....perfectly straight up and very high....at this rocket's weight it is surprising how high it does go! Chute comes out way up overhead!

 

[rocketsonly]

Wow! Love the colorful sky shots! They're ALMOST as cool as the rocket!

 

[billeblurzz]

I did not pay attention to the atmosphereic conditions....sure, on the ground there was no wind....but we are in the remnants of a hurricane....and look at the sky....NO CLOUDS!!!! They don't go away on their own!!! She just drifted away over the tree line....came down in the most thick briar thicket around! In the center of this shot in the dip of the tree line is the direction it descended. I have gone in and retrieved rockets in this type thicket before....but then struggled for 2 wks. with every itch and ailment imaginable....I am very allergic to poison ivy,etc. Maybe it is just not worth it! I guess this one is acceptable to the rocket gods, or is it something else....better this one than some of my more newer or expensive ones!....I can't quit thinking more about losing that parachute....go figure!

 

[KarlD]

Bummer Bill!

Any chance you could grab a set of coveralls, a set of gloves and boots and duct-tape them on the coveralls? You know, a poor-man's Environmental suit?

I hate to lose rockets, but I have friends who are allergic to poison Ivy too. Unless it was a reasonably quick EVAC and you were sure of your “Suit”, it is not worth it.

Hope your luck gets better.

KarlD

 

[DynaSoar]

Originally posted by KarlD
I really like Picture 376. Has an Earth to the moon look.

Like the cover of a Sci-Fi Book.

Good Stuff!

KarlD

Yup. Submit it to Nick and EMRR for next year's calendar.

 

[eugenefl]

Bill, so sorry to hear about the rocket drifting into no-man's land. Sorry to say, but that feeling of loss sometimes never goes away.

I had a camera pod do just that in '02. Not sure if you've ever seen my onboard still shots (see avatar), but it had (2) 22" Aerotech Nylon chutes on it and a $29 camera in it. The pod drifted right into some thick Florida forest. I wasn't thinking when I chased it down. Somewhere between anger, anxiousness, and eagerness to defeat nature, I blindly darted into the woods. My adrenaline was pumping very hard and I recall swatting my way through spiderwebs (with spiders still in them), thorn bushes, and low hanging trees that scratched my neck and deposited all kinds of nasty stuff all in my hair. Once in the swampy forest, I had to deal with a mosquito infestation. Unfortunately, the pod had laid to rest on top of a very tall tree hanging over a murky stillwater swamp. (Who knows what was in there.) I made 2 other subsequent visits to try and retrieve the pod but alas it succombed to rain and 98 degree daytime heat.

My 2nd loss was watching my prized upscale 24mm autographed Deuce and digital camera pod land right smack in the middle of a lake with a resident alligator. It was only its first flight with the camera pod. All that time, money, and energy expended on making a piece of art fly down the drain.

Sorry for the long post, but the pictures you took were great and story tickled some old wounds. Your shots are lasting images that offer true sentiment for any rocketeer who has lost their favorite rocket.

 

[billeblurzz]

Nice reply Eugene...you have a knack with words...always enjoy reading your posts. Today I ventured out to see what the lay of the land looked like....impassable 15' deep ravines and thick canopy overhead! No way to retrieve it if I even knew where it was....now if I just had that chute back!