By Mark Henriksen

On September 20 the St. Louis Rocketry Association gathered at Buder Park for it's last model launch of the year. The skies were perfectly clear with slight wind occasionally gusting a bit, overall a glorious day. A total of just over fifty flights were logged on the day for a good event. Bruce Weidner filled in at LCO for the entire day, providing good commentary on the afternoon's activity. Thanks Bruce.

The first fliers of the day were Joe and Dan Prevedel with their Estes Shadow on a D12 motor. A great flight and the launch was underway. Dave Welch brought out an Aerotech Arreaux on an E18. Unfortunately, it either hung on the rod a bit or needed some more power, as it landed on the ground before ejecting. Matt Armstrong Flew an Estes Patriot called Chrome Dome on a C6. The motor proved to be a bit much as the rocket broke up in flight. Dan Schneider had similar success with a scratch built rocket called Born 2 Shred. It was to convert to a glider at ejection and gently glide back to earth. The first flight resulted in a crash. On its second flight of the day, it lived up to its name however for a spectacular almost flight.

Yours truly flew a LOC Legacy on a G80 for a real high flight. Due to the prevailing winds, it was recovered on the other side of the Merrimac behind a strip mall along Route 141 undamaged. Jason Appelbaum brought out a Comanche-3 in a 2 stage configuration. During the flight, the booster failed to separate, but it still made for an interesting flight. Sam West also had a mishap with his Grey Ghost on an E98. It turned into the wind, had a late ejection and stripped the chute over the river.

There were many other excellent flights during the day. Zack Armstrong had several flights with a variety of rockets including a Baby Bertha, Monarch and Mercury Redstone. Sam West brought out a Hyper X, Big Bertha and Mean Machine among others. Davin Welch flew a Blue Ninja, Screw Machine and Harpoon for good flights. Amanda McCoy was also in attendance. She launched a Fat Boy on a B4 for a good flight and a Stretch Alpha on a B6 for a perfect flight. Trip Gender had an excellent maiden flight with his Richteu Recker on a D12 motor.

Nina Katzenstein had several good flights with her Estes Mosquito. Its hard to believe that the rocket kept turning up after each flight. That's the advantage of flying at a club launch, the additional eyes aid in recovery. John Buckley had the final flight of the day with a scratch built rocket glider. He attempted to CHAD stage a B6 to an A8. It took off and swooped horizontal almost immediately. The ejection was quite powerful as it shot the glider forward, but everything held together for a good flight.

Mark Henriksen