July 19, 1997 Launch Report

Contributed by Tom McAtee

SLRA held its second launch of the summer on Saturday, July 19. Hot weather (95 deg) and the threat of storms kept attendance down, and eventually the the day ended with our first-ever rainout since we started holding organized launches in 1995. (We've had one launch cancelled due to wind, and one cut short by a blizzard, but never before rain.) Still, we were able to get in two good hours of flying before the rain arrived, with thirteen rocketeers putting up 48 flights.

D motors were the most popular, powering 14 flights. There were two 1/2A flights, 7 A's, 7 B's, 11 C's, 14 D's, 3 E's, and 4 F flights. James Hollister was the flight leader for the day with seven flights; most notable was a new Gemini DC and also a new Python. Chris Gillham, Mark Henriksen, Jack and Peter Hollister, and Bill Hrach were all tied with five each.

Jim Davis started things off with a spectacular flight of his Black Brant II on E30 power, streaking high in the sky and then recovering close by. Jim's Maniac was next up with an AT F24-7; unfortunately the delay was more like two seconds, causing a separation.

Chris Gillham made several good flights, including his newly refinished V-3 and his Impulse on D power. He also had an interesting oddball called Shuttle - Mir (sort of a shuttle orbiter coupled with a space station), but unfortunately its shuttle spiraled in. Speaking of oddballs, Steve Mizerany had a new version of his Oddball (aka the Ceiling Fan), which flew on yet another D motor. The D provided a little too much oomph, causing one helicopter blade to fly off at deployment. His finless Comrade Rocket made a good flight on F52 power, as did the C-powered Hindenburg dirigible PMC.

Mark Henriksen's modified 3-D Broadsword finally got 3 good D motors, making a great flight, as did his nice-looking Jayhawk. Jack and Peter Hollister both made successful flights with new rockets; Jack had a nice-looking new Silver Comet, while Peter had an original design called the Silver Bullet.

Bill Hrach returned with his Launch Pad Hawk scale model, and made a great flight on E30 power. He also debuted a new MRC Moonblaster, making a successful flight on D12 power. Rob Chapie had another Hawk, the Rocket R&D version, which flew impressively on an F40 reload. Aaron Edwards flew a modified Sizzler (the new kit) on D12 power, but it became a victim of the neighboring field.

Kevin and Bill Souers joined us for the first time and made several good flights. Kevin, resuming the hobby after a long absence, brought some great oldies. First up was his EAC Viper, the first one of these I've seen in ages. (EAC was the Estes Aerospace Club - I bet some of you guys remember.) Kevin also had an Astron Delta, the two-stage Camroc booster, which went incredibly high on two C engines. Kevin's father Bill made a good flight with a new Firebird, but unfortunately the rocket was lost in the neighboring bean field.

Our next launch is planned for August 16 at the Polo Field.