Date:January 17, 1999

Location:Sam Boyd Silver Bowl, Las Vegas

Club: None (solo flight)

After a couple of false starts, today I finally got a chance to fly for the first time since I became a BAR. The air was cool at ~55F, the wind dead calm. The sky was overcast with an occasional peek of sunlight. My buddy Bill and I drove out by the stadium and set up in the dirt lot in the back. I was hoping to fly from the nearby park, but the fields were full of kids playing soccer.

First up: the Sabre that came with the Estes starter set I got for Christmas. The only reason I even bothered with this thing is because I wanted to use up the A8-3 that came with the set. It went up straight and fluttered back on its streamer. It came down a bit fast and popped a fin on landing, but I wasn't completely heartbroken. It'll be easy to fix and may fly again, if I bother to buy more A motors for it. Whoop-dee-doo ;-)

Next was my Quest Nike Smoke on the B6-4 that also came with the starter set. This little rocket went a lot higher than I expected on the B6. Ejection seemed to be fine, but I noticed that it was coming down a lot faster than it should. As it got closer to the ground, I could tell that the shock cord had tangled around the fins. It landed and bounced a little, and except for a couple of minor scuffs, it was undamaged.

My Estes Prowler went next. It boosted slow and straight on a C6-3 -- a very pretty flight, but the delay was a bit short for this rocket. I think a 5 second delay would've been optimium. Ejection occured just before apogee, but after recovery it appeared undamaged. After reading other peoples' experiences with this rocket, I had replaced the stock 24" 'chute with an 18" nylon 'chute, which seemed to be just right. In fact, the rocket came down so close to the pad that I was able to catch it. I would like to fly this sometime on the Aerotech D21.

The only major disappointment of the day was my MIRV Gryphon. For its first flight, I decided to fly it in the 2-MIRV configuration. There was no way I could've launched this with all four motors with my Electron Beam controller, and I even had my doubts about the controller providing enough current for two igniters. I had to hold the button down for a full two or three seconds before it finally zipped off the pad. Those A10-0T boosters sent it up a lot further than I thought they would! At booster burn-out, only one of the MIRVs separated from the booster, and the one remaining MIRV, still connected to the booster, pranged with a nice "thud." The other MIRV fluttered down on its streamer, landing completely unscathed. After retrieving the booster, I saw that both boosters had lit nicely, and after pulling out the MIRV that stuck I saw that it had lit as well. I concluded that I had friction-fitted the sustainer motor too snugly into the booster, preventing it from separating properly. So the reason for failure was completely due to human error. The nose cone was a complete loss, but the body tube was only slightly damaged and should be fairly easy to repair. The nose had absorbed most of the impact, saving the tube from complete destruction. Except for a few scorch marks inside the top of the tubes, the booster unit was undamaged. This neat little rocket *will* fly again!

After swapping the launch rods, I put my Estes Python on the pad. This was the first rocket I build since my re-birth, and I beefed it up a bit so I could fly it with Aerotech "E" motors. For its first flight I put a D12-5 in it. It boosted straight and fast and ejection was at apogee. It seemed to go a lot higher than I expected; I'm almost afraid to put an E15 in it now! It floated down nicely on its 18" nylon 'chute, landing about 150 feet from the pad. The trailing edge of one of the thin plastic fins dinged a bit, but other than that it was fine. Great rocket.

Next was my Estes Big Daddy, also on a D12-5. This one seemed to go a bit higher than the 350 foot estimate from Estes. But the five second delay was perfect, and it also landed less than 150 feet from the pad. This is another kit where I replaced the Estes 24" 'chute with a nice 18" nylon to prevent excess drifting. It received a tiny ding on the edge of a fin when it landed. Overall, a great little rocket. I have also modified it to take Aerotech "E" motors.

Last flight of the day was my old Centuri Thunder-Roc, also on a D12-5. This is one of only two rockets that have survived from my pre-BAR days. The original dual 12" chutes are long-gone, so I replaced them with the 24" chute that came with the Prowler. Sporting a nice, new red and white paint job, it flew nice and straight, and I was a bit surprised that it held together after sitting in storage for so many years. The 24" 'chute turned out to be a little too big for this rocket, and I had to chase it about 500 feet. It landed very softly and received no damage.

Except for the Thunder-Roc, which is at least 12 years old, this was the first flight for all these rockets. Overall, I was *very* happy with my first launch after so many years. Now I can't wait for next weekend's Tripoli-Vegas club launch, where I plan on flying my Initiator on an F20 and the Python on an E15, and maybe the Big Daddy again. It's good to be back!

Motor Count:1/2A - 2, A - 3, B - 1, C - 1, D - 3