MAGAZINE MAGAZINE

Volume 8 Issue 4

News and Review

Tagg Dog Tracker for Rockets

Spring Grove High-Powered Rocketry Program 2014: THE BLACK MAMBA

THE BIRTH, LIFE AND DEATH OF THE FULL-SCALE “P”ATRIOT

TARC From the Team’s Point of View

The Founding of Tripoli: Its Earliest Days

Red Glare XVI

Getting It Up Down Under–Flying with the AussiesPart 2–Level-Three Success

http://www.aerotech-rocketry.com

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Volume 8 Issue 2

Photo by Neil McGilvrayDan Michael’s Honest John on its last flight at MDRA Red Glare XVI.

The Offical Magazine Of The TripOli rOckeTry assOciaTiOn

BOard Of direcTOrs

sTu BarreTT - presidenT BOB BrOwn - V. presidenT

daVid wilkins - secreTary

Bruce lee - Treasurer

dick eMery

deBra kOlOMs TOM rOuse

gerald Meux Jr.Burl finkelsTein

5 ediTOrial

6 rOckeTry news

By Dick Stafford

8 Tagg dOg Tracker fOr rOckeTs

By Bill Robinson Easywaytofindyourrocket.

10 spring grOVe high-pOwered

rOckeTry prOgraM 2014: The Black MaMBa

ByKyleAbrahims TheFutureinRocketry

14 The BirTh, life and deaTh Of The

full-scale “p”aTriOT ByGregKreiger Adreamcomestrue.

22 Tarc frOM The TeaM’s pOinT Of View

ByWyattNace ThelongroadtoTARC

25 The fOunding Of TripOli: iTs earliesT days

WithNotesfromRobertC.Thwaite RewrittenwithAdditionsby FrancisGraham TripoliHistoryastoldbyitsFounder

31 red glare xVi ByNeilMcGilvray PhotosbyNeilMcGilvray,GregGardner andKenPotter

EastCoastRocketryatit’sbest

54 geTTing iT up dOwn under–flying

wiTh The aussies parT 2 ByMikePassaretti

Mike’striptoAustraliaforhisLevel3

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Editorial By Bob Utley and Neil McGilvray

www.rocketsmagazine.com

rockets magazine is produced by Liberty Launch systems LLc. rockets magazine is the officiaL tripoLi magazine. copyright © 2006, 2014 aLL rights reserVed. no part of this pubLication may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means, graphic, eLectronic or mechanicaL, incLuding photogopying, taping, recording without prior written permission of rockets magazine or Liberty Launch systems LLc.

issn 1940-9230 made in the u.s.a.

Liberty Launch systems LLc. 11554 suLLnick way

gaithersburg, md 20878

301-258-9170

The Cover

greg kreiger’s fuLL scaLe

“p”atriot

photo by greg kreiger

robert utLey

neiL mcgiLVray

dan kirkLin

kathy giLLiand

robert utLey

daVe oLson

JiLL weber

mike ritter

kyLe abrahims

greg kreiger

wyatt nace

biLL robinson

robert c. thwaite

greg gardner

neiL mcgiLVray

ken potter

Pho

to b

y Ts

olo

T. T

solo

editor

executiVe editor

associate editors

iLLustrator

web site editor

speciaL thanks

contributing writers

francis graham

neiL mcgiLVray

mike passaretti

dick stafford

contributing photos

greg kreiger

mike passaretti

biLL robinson

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The world seems to be a crazier place with each passing day. As rocketeers, we have to embrace the freedom we have that allows us to continue and expand our hobby. The rocketry community has done a stellar job of policing ourselves over the 50 years of Tripoli’s existence. Not to say that the organization hasn’t had its moments, which sometimes seemed to pop up like whack-a-moles. The issues were dealt with, and time has apparently healed old wounds—or has it? In the classic 1964 movie Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb , we recall the words of George C. Scott’s distinguished character, General “Buck” Turgidson: “Mr. President, I’m not saying we wouldn’t get our hair mussed.” Years have now passed since Tripoli and the National Association of Rocketry prevailed in their lawsuit with the BAFT, now the BATFE. While the victory over the regulation of Ammonium Perchlorate Composite Propellant was fair, reasonable, and welcomed by the rocketry community, it did not unshackle rocketry from all government oversight. There have been some well-publicized follow-on meetings with our friends at the Bureau, which have all occurred on their turf and under circumstances controlled by the Bureau. One would hope the intent is to keep an open dialog and a free exchange of ideas as we move forward in an uncertain world. As many of us know, trying to explain how rocketry inspires us and keeps us coming back, launch after launch, is like trying to describe what milk tastes like. Unless you have drunk the milk or attended a launch, you just don’t get it. Inamuchlower-key,unofficialcapacity,MDRAhasperiodicallyperformedadifferent kind of outreach to our friends at the Bureau over the years and, most recently, this past April at Red Glare XVI, featured in this issue. During this day-long visit MDRA was an open book, as it has been in two previous visits of this nature. Inattendancethisyearwereeightrepresentatives,rangingfromfieldagentstosenior managers. They were walked through every aspect of MDRA’s operation, much of which is consistent with both Tripoli’s and NAR’s protocols. Despite having some level of regulatory responsibility, the visitors to MDRA were totally unfamiliar with what we do, how we do it, where we do it, and—perhaps most importantly—why we do it. Given the self-policing aspect of our hobby, it is imperative that responsible transparency be maintained in our interactions with these folks. Now that a new day has dawned, we want them on our side. The focus of the visit and four-hour seminar was to introduce to the BATFE a level ofconfidencewitharocketryoperation.Thegoalwastohavethefolksseerocketryaswesee it, from the viewpoint of responsible hobbyists, to dispel any preconceived notions of the hobby. It is necessary that both parties have a clear understanding of what each other’s roleisandwhybothareimportant.Itwasstressedthatofficialgovernmentagencieswantgroups like MDRA, Tripoli, and NAR around, as we are the front-line eyes and ears that for over 50 years have kept the hobby safe, especially from a law-enforcement perspective, nottomentionfromafire-preventionpointofview.Itisimportantthatrocketeersutilizetheir local and national clubs to pursue the hobby. At the end of the day, it was reasonable to assume the mission had been accomplished. Many questions were answered, and a lot of preconceptions were put to rest. There was a realization that the rocketry community is part of the solution for agencies such as the BATFE, not part of the problem. Should other groups be as lucky to have this type of visit, they should keep in mind that these agencies are part of the reason we are allowed to continue in today’s topsy-turvy world. Promote the hobby, emphasizing all of the positive aspects in a safety-conscious, professional manner. Perpetuate the idea that rocketry is part of the solution, not part of the problem.

Onebadhawk Recovery HarnessesOnebadhawk Recovery Harnesses have come a long way.

We have a harness for every type and design of rocket you can dream up. Our line includes a wide variety of stock and custom harness products - flat and tubular, Kevlar and Nylon, and with two or three pre-sewn loops. Our Kevlar Sleeved Tubular Nylon Harnesses are super popular! The 1” Tubular Nylon is not only available in any configuration but in 3 colors as well: green, yellow, and white. The same for the 9/16” Tubular Nylon, which is now available in white, blue, pink, and yellow. The 8000 lb Tubular Kevlar is now available in 2 colors: natural and black. Tubular Kevlar has been our most popular material. Its prop-erties include exactly what you’d like in a harness. It’s light weight, soft and supple, easy to pack and so strong it’s just hard to understand. Our #1 seller in the Tubular Kevlar line is the 11/32” because of its versatility. It can be used in 54mm rockets and, since it’s 4000 lb rated, when you build a 4” glass kit and wind up a bit tight for room in the payload section, the 11/32” Tubular Kevlar is just perfect. We even of-fer a 10/24” stainless steel welded eye bolt that is sewn onto the 11/32” Tubular Kevlar!

Website: www.Onebadhawk.com

rockEtry NEws

Binder DesignThe full line of Max Q Aerospace aluminum fin cans.

The full line of Max Q Aerospace aluminum fin cans are now available, including an assortment of decorative finishes. These fin cans are available to fit 38mm through 98mm fiberglass or carbon fiber airframes and can also be ordered to mount directly onto a motor casing. Made with pride in the USA, all parts are CNC manufactured and machine formed “in house” before being hand signed and numbered. The strongest and most advanced fin system on the market, perfect for your next extreme flight!

Website: www.binderdesign.com

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ByDickStafford

Eggtimer RocketryIs proud to present the Eggfinder LCD System.

Eggtimer Rocketry presents the Eggfinder LCD System, a low-cost GPS/RF rocket finding system. Sold as a kit, the system consists of a transmitter that you mount in your rocket and a handheld LCD display receiver that shows you the GPS coordinates of your rocket in real-time. After landing, you simply enter the last coordinates into any GPS-enabled smartphone navigation app, and you can walk right up to your rocket. Running on the license-free 900 MHz band, it has a range of about 10,000’ with the in-cluded wire antennas, and about twice that with external “rubber-duckie” antennas. At $120 for the complete kit (ex-cept batteries), it’s by far the least expensive GPStracking system on the market.

Website: www.EggtimerRocketry.com

BuyRocketMotors.comRegularly stocked inventory has expanded.

BuyRocketMotors.com, the Fastest, Most Reliable and Transparent Way to Buy Mid and High Power Rocket Motors, would like to announce that it has expanded its Regularly Stocked motor inventory. In addition to carrying the complete line of Aerotech Disposable Motor System (DMS) motors, G through L, we have broadened our reload inventory to include almost all Aerotech 29mm and 38mm high power reloads. Further, we’ve also broadened our reloads to include the popular RMS Hobby Line motors for the 29/40-120 hardware. In addition to our real time inventory, order confirmation, same/next day shipping, package tracking numbers, and real time shipping quotes, BuyRocketMotors.com has added an automatic In Stock Notification feature. This allows you to subscribe to the inventory status of your favorite motor. No need to continually check the website, you’ll be automatically notified once your favorite motors are back in stock. BuyRocketMotors.com - Mid and high power rocket motors reliably delivered to your doorstep.

Website: www.BuyRocketMotors.com

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The Tripoli Fort Myers, Florida group (www.Tripolifortmyers.com) has been flying at a new field in south Florida for the last couple of years, it’s been very hard finding that wide open space where the owners will allow us to fly but we did find a 4 square mile subdivision that was never developed, only a square mile or so has been cleared and we still contend with high grass and water hazards at every launch. I have used the Beeline for many years and still think it’s the best solution for many situations, but some of our members wanted a lower cost solution to these APRS trackers.Danny Rodriguez (RocketsRus) ordered a Tagg Dog tracker to try out. I was a little skeptical but we have a cell tower close by and anyone with a Smartphone and password can follow the flight, I watched time and again as the rockets fall into heavy brush or the local groves and the owner will walk up and retrieve it sparing themselves the arduous task of swamp recovery. You only need to download the free application to your phone and go. The Tracker is a small and very thin device designed to clip onto a dog collar similar to a digital watch in appearance. I have seen it attached to the Rocket by tape or in a small eBay, either works well. It has free fallen from over 5K feet and has also landed in the canal with no damage, always reporting its location and it also uses live overlays of Google maps to make recovery quick. With the iphone app it also reports a Lat/Long if you want to use your GPS. The Tagg Tracker and charging station (Master kit) sell on EBay for around $80. The batteries will last a couple of weeks minimum. It comes with three months of free service then it’s about $7.00 a month, each additional tracker service is only 99 cents so it’s a great way for the club to make a little money from flight rentals. Check their website for details. Your phone carrier doesn’t need to be the same as the tracker because it communicates through a server to your smart phone application; you just need phone service at your location. This is not an altitude reporting device; it just reports its location. It may take a minute or two after your rocket lands to update you as to its location, so far with a 100% success rate in the last year. For those of us flying at less than an ideal field with cell service it’s been a cost effective solution.

Tagg Dog Tracker for Rockets

By Bill Robinson

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Tagg and the tube it rides in, very small for small rockets.

It all began on a breezy day in May 2012, the conditions were right, all three of our teams were positioned and our Team America Rocketry Challenge looked to have its best chance ever to place in the top 10 at The National Finals. That year we took home fourth place, the nice silver cup and the prize money, but not only that, also the invitation of a lifetime to have the chance to work with NASA in the Student Launch Initiative Program andbuildascientificpayloadandrocketthatwouldbemonitoredandguidedwiththehelpoftopengineersandscientists; the goal was to reach 1 mile and drop safely back to Earth with the help of parachutes. In 2013 we became only one of 21 high school teams from across The United States to be selected to work with NASA and build a full scale model rocket with close help from their engineers and top designers. We began work on our four inch diameter rocket that was closely scrutinized by their engineers and began writing up in 40 to 65 page documents our work, designs, changes, and thoughts on the project. We worked the entire year writing reports on our work, keeping track of progress, spreading the word of our project, and built a 6 foot 9.95 inch and 18 pound model rocket that we launched a total of 10 times both at Higgs Farm, Maryland and in Huntsville, Alabama. After a very successful year we got to launch our rocket to an altitude of 4,251 feet. Although the height was a bit short of our goal, we worked together as a team to complete the project and learned a lot of minor and major details on the process of building and successfully launching a rocket. Schools that were successful were eligible for a second year in the SLI program. In May of 2013 we formedateamtodesignanewrocketandwritethepreliminaryproposalforittobefinishedwhenschoolstartedin August of 2013. The previous year the preliminary proposal was due be August 31. We returned to school with a completed design and proposal, but received no word from NASA. Through a series including a sequestration, governmentshutdown,andmonthswithnoword,wefinallyreceivedwordinNovemberof2013thatthehighschool portion of the SLI was cut due to funding issues.

Spring Grove High-Powered Rocketry Program 2014:

THE BLACK MAMBABy: Kyle Abrahims (Team Co-Captain)

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The entire team before the first launch. David Williams, Rnee Eaton, Jacob Guinn, Carter Forry, Matt Sheehan, Kyle Abrahims, Andrew Whitman, Veer Pandya, Josh Staley, Wyatt Nace, Luke Walko and Brian Hastings

With this information at the back of our minds, the 2014 program brought a fresh start to the program and we decided to start the program just as we did the last. So we began by revising the design of our rocket and by writing up and organizing our thoughts in a 40 page preliminary design proposal. After we learned of the cut of funding from NASA, we then decided to continue to build the 6 inch diameter, 9 foot rocket that we began to build in early December, with only one problem, the lack of funding. With secured grants from Lowes and other sponsors we were able to work every night after school to construct the rocket even through many trials anderrorsincludingtheover-heatingofthepayloadandtheaccidentalbreakageofafin.Withthehelpofour

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Kyle Abrahims waxing the rocket prior to the first launch

The Scientific payload team with the payload. Matt Sheehan, Luke Walko and Wyatt Nace

NAR level 2 advisor, Tom Aument, we built the rocket. Through these trials we learned to work together and also thought of many ways to make our rocket designbetterincludingputtingexpandingfoamdownbetweenthefinsandmotortubetonotallowthefinstoflexasmuchandthereforenotbreakaseasy.Wealsofilledthenoseconewithexpandingfoamtostrengthenit.Thescientificpayloadwasinthebackhalfoftherocketandwouldbemeasuringthestrengthofelectromagneticradiation from apogee all the way down.

The center electronics bay, consisting of an 18 inch section of six inch diameter tube coupler and reinforced insidewithfiberglass,heldtwoStratologgerPerfectFlitealtimeterstohaveredundantdualdeploymentcharges.Thefirstatapogeeandthesecondat700ft.Thealtimeterswereprogrammedwithaslightdelaysothatbothcharges would not go off at the same time. The front and back sections of the rocket were held to the electronics bay with shear pins. In early April the rocket was completed and we prepared to go launch the rocket on a sunny afternoon in Maryland at the annual MDRA Red Glare event. On that morning of Saturday April 12 we had beautiful weather at the launch site at Higgs Farm in Price, Maryland with team members Veer Pandya, Carter Forry, Matt Sheehan, Luke Walko, Andrew Whitman, Kyle Abrahims, Wyatt Nace, Jacob Guinn, David Williams, and Josh Staley. The rocket on the pad weighed 38 pounds, a bit more than the 34.5 pounds that was predicted, but that was to be expected with the added mass from the epoxyandexpandingfoamthatwasputintherocket.Forthefirstlaunch,weusedtheCesaroniL1350C-Starmotor that has an impulse of 4400 Newton - seconds. As theheadflightmastercounteddown,weallwaited innervousanticipationand inshockas itwasreadytogoairborne.Therocketbegantosmokeandtherocketflewbeautifullystraightoffthepadwithanicesmoke tail behind it. The height reached was 5,956 feet, a bit more than the predicted 5800 feet. Once the rocket was recovered though we realized that the Labquest was programmed for a shorter time than we had anticipated and it was not able to record any useful data as it was on the pad inside of the rocket when it was recording. We still had plenty of time and worked to launch the rocket a second time. On the second launch, we used theCesaroniL3200Vmaxmotorwhichhasslightlylesstotalimpulsebuthasasignificantlyquickerburntime

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Veer Pandya and Carter Forry prepping the electronics bay

than many other rocket motors, which means that it goes faster for a shorter period of time. The rocket was pulling about an estimated 30gs coming off the pad. The rocket took off perfectly straight and went up approximately 300-400 feet when we had a catastrophic motor failure that blew apart the back half of the rocket immediately above thefins,destroyingthescientificpayload,andelectronicsbay,butalsosplitting the rockets’ back half into two piece. The motor casing was sent back to Cesaroni with a warranty report. At the time this article was written, the result of the investigation was not known. The full front half of the rocket is intact as well as the two parachutes. Our goal at this point is to secure additional funding, buy a new Labquest and sensor, buy additional parts and rebuild the back half, launching again at the fall MDRA Red Glare event in November 2014. We as a team realize that through failure comes progress and have come to compare ourselves to the famous Rocket Boys led by Homer Hickham in the movie “October Sky”. He built and tested hundreds of rockets before he found one that worked and soon turned all that experience into large gains going onto win the national science fair and work for NASA. We all one day dream of working for NASA and to help our space program go further and explore new worlds every day. If the lack of NASA funding and support did not stop us, this will not either. Our resolve is stronger. “The future belongs to the people who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”- Eleanor Roosevelt The 2015 program is about to begin and if there is anyone interested in sponsoring the team or donating to the cause, please contact Brian Hastings at hastingb@sgasd.org.More information can be found on the 2014 Spring Grove SLI project at springgroverocketry.weebly.com

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Carter Forry, Jacob Guinn, Kyle Abrahims, David Williams, Josh Staley, Wyatt Nace and Luke Walko walking the rocket out to the pad prior to the maiden voyage.

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THE BIRTH, LIFE AND DEATH OF THE FULL SCALE “P”ATRIOT

By Greg Kreiger Team SCAM

Finally on the pad, minutes away from flying

WhenIwasfirstgettingintothehobbyofhigh-powerrocketry,myquarter-scalePatriotwasmyfavoritebirdtofly.ForyearsIalwaysaskedthequestionofwhetherornotafull-scalePatriotwaspossible.AfterIhelpedDennisWatkinslaunchthefirstOmotorinIndiana,atThunderstruck3in2012,thetalkofbuildingafull-scalePatriot became even more real. A few months after Thunderstruck 3, I found out I had a noncancerous brain tumor, which needed to be removed. This took a lot out of me, as brain surgery is not something to take lightly. With a lot of prayer to the Lord and a very awesome group of skilled doctors and nurses, my surgery went well. DennisWatkins,whomIhadgothookedintothehobbymanyyearsbefore,cameuptomeandsaidtofindout what we would need and how much it would cost to build the full-scale Patriot. After this the next question was to see who all in the club would be interested in building another group project, splitting the cost. Well, that’s all it took, as many of the group members wanted to be part of something big. After the decision was made to go ahead and take on the build of a full-scale Patriot, the question of how to construct it was asked. Through a couple of meetings with the group, we came up with a design that we thought would be durable while keeping the weight down. Since the rocket was 16 inches in diameter, we decided to construct an inner wall system. This would allow us to maximize the strength we needed while at the same time keeping the weight to a minimum. To construct this, we had Mike Gross draw the rocket full scale on a CAD program;afterthatwasdone;thefileswerethensenttoGeorgeMacAleese,whoownshisownCNCmachine.We then cut centering rings and stringers that would interlock to an inside 12-inch tube. Designing this system was such a team effort, and it paid off. Someone in the group mentioned how this was like putting a plastic model kit together. After we had the internal structure built and bonded together, we took the16-inch-diametersono-tubethathadbeenfiberglassedandmarkedwherethefinswouldbegoing.ThenMikeLaw and Greg Kreiger took turns with the dermal tool, cutting the slots out. After this was complete, it took pretty much the whole team working quickly to spread epoxy on the inside of the tube and on all the stringers. The team themtookthefiberglassedoutsideshellandsliditovertheinternalstructure.Thissameprocesswasusedforthepayload section. Thenoseconewasaprettycoolprojectonitsown;onceagain,aftergettingaprofileforthenosecone,

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Greg standing next to the booster section for size

The Payload section between the booster and nose cone

The Booster section

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Foam covered in fiberglass to make thenose cone

Filling in the low spots before painting

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Recovery system testing.

George MacAleese cut CNC circles of pink ridged foam insulation. After that was done, the rings were glued togetherinthetaperedshapeofanosecone.Thentherewerestripsofheavyfiberglasslaiddowntogiveusanicestrongshell.Aftertheheavystripswerelaiddown,weusedlighterfiberglasstogiveitasmootherfinish.Whenweweredonewiththefiberglasslayers,wesandedthenosedowntogiveusanevensmoothersurface.Afterthat,wefilledinwithBondoanyridgesthatwerestillnoticeable.AftertheBondocured,wesandedthenoseconesmooth,anditwasreadyforprimeandpaint.Afterthetwoflightswesawthatthenoseconewasatestamenttohowwellwebuildit,asbothtimesitstuckinthefielduponlandingwithnodamage. Thefinishingwastypicalofwhatanyonewoulddofortheirhigh-poweredrocket,butonalargerscale.Thiswasaccomplishedthroughthehardworkofthewholeteam.Togetthefinishsmoothafterthefilletswerepoured, we roughed the body tubes up with sandpaper and then cleaned off all of the dust with rubbing alcohol. Afterthisweputsomespackleallovertherockettofillinanyimperfectionsinthefiberglass.Onceagain,wesanded it all back down using a higher-grit sandpaper, and we then followed up with the rubbing alcohol once again. After it was all clean and dried out, we thinned out some epoxy, and then brushed it all over the rocket. It workedsomewhatlikeself-levelingconcreteandgavetherocketaverysmoothfinishforpaint.Whenthiswasall complete, we packed it all up and sent it off to Mike Gross’s house for painting, and Mike did a fantastic paint job on the bird, which pictures can’t show. The decals, by Mike Hayes from Sticker Shock, were also applied at that time. After a few months of a team-project proposal, designing, and actual construction, the full-scale Patriot was no longer just a dream. It had grown into a reality. The last step needed was to do some ground testing and to receive our Class 3 waiver from Washington, D.C. After the ground tests were complete, we hauled the huge bird over to Mike Gross’s house for paint and decal application. He thought the rocket might take a week to paint, but thatturnedintojustafewdays,ashewasworkingveryhardandfasttoseethefinishedpaintschemecometolife.Afterthepaintingwasdone,theteamthenhauledthebirdbacktoMikeLaw’sforfinalpreparationforthelongtripdowntoThunderstruck4.Withmuchthoughtandcoordination,thePatriotfitverynicelyandfirmlyintothetrailer. We had to ensure that none of the paint was scratched and no components were broken. As a club we were really hoping to launch the Patriot on the Saturday of Thunderstruck 4, but as we looked at the forecast and were getting the Patriot unloaded on Friday morning, the decision was made early that we would be going Friday, in the early afternoon. When starting to prepare the Patriot that day, we found that everything was going together well, with no problems. Every member of the team was contributing to getting thishugebirdtogetherfortheflightanddouble-checkingeachother’sworktomakesurewedidnotoverlook

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Air foil buttons Payload with altimeter

Everything on the field at the start of assembly

On the pad one step closer to flight

Going on the pad with help

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something. Finally we received the okay from the LCO to go ahead and haul the Patriot out to the away cell. Fortunately forus,thetilledfieldsweredry,andwewereabletodrivetheboosterandtheheavylaunchtowertothepad. We got the payload sections out to the tower. On our arrival, the reality of putting this huge bird on the rail and sending it soaring into the sky was starting to really set in. It was like the feeling you get when going for your LevelOneorLevelTwocertification:Didwedoeverythingcorrectly?Haveweforgottenanything?Wefirstputthe booster section on the rail, followed by the payload section. After arming the on-board camera, we put the Patriot into its upright position. This took all of the team’s muscle to not only lift the rocket itself but also to deal withtheweightofthelaunchtower.Armingtheelectronicswasthefinalstep;aftergettinggoodtonesandbeeps,we were ready to go. The group took some pictures and then left the area while Dennis Watkins hooked up the igniter. The countdown was initiated. Withthepushofthebutton,theP-8000roaredtolife,andthenoisewasverydeep.Therocketflewverystraight. A few seconds after burnout, it was very apparent that we had a premature separation. As the rocket tumbled to the ground, we saw that everything was still connected. As the two tethered pieces got closer to the ground, the main charges blew, and the chute started to deploy, then, as quickly as it had deployed, the chute folded up again, and the rocket crashed into the ground. With an empty rocket weight of about 260 pounds, we were sure the damage was going to be extremely bad. Well, when we arrived at the scene, we were very surprised tofindthattheonlydamagewastotheboostertube.Everythingelsewascompletelyfine. As for the parachute failing, many might have thought it had become tangled as it opened, but it became very apparent that one of the three large ejection charges had singed the shock cords, and the force on the line when the chute opened had snapped one of the two, causing the chute to lose air. When we got back to the launch line,thequestiononeveryone’smindwas;couldwefixthisbeastandflyitagain? The decision did not take long, and it did not take us long to rebuild the damaged booster tube and aim to flyagainatThunderstruck5. Forthesecondflight,wewentuponthesameP-8000byCesaroni.Therebuildprettymuchconsistedofstrippingthebodytubeoffoftheinternalstructureoftheboostersection.Wethenfiberglassedacompletelynewtube,thenslottedittoslidearoundthefinsaswebondeditbackontheinternalstructure.Afterthatwascured,weadded another hole in the altimeter bay to house another GoPro camera, and we also put an angled mirror to take videolookingdownthesideoftherocket.Whenlookingbackonthefirstflightwewantedtodoeverythingwecould to prevent an early separation from happening, so we added a tube that would allow the air pressure inside the rocket to be regulated. Once again, it was off to paint, and we were just waiting on the class 3 waiver to come through and for good weather.

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When we arrived at Thunderstruck 5 on Friday the wind was gusting at over 40 mph. Needless to say, no onewasflyingthatday.WewereabletogetthePatriotoutandpreppedforthenextday.Withtheeasydesign,theprepwasfairlyfastforthesizeofrocket.Afterthepreppingwasfinished,therewasnothingtodobutwaitforSaturday. When Saturday came, it was obvious that the full-scale Patriot was gaining some attention from people whohadseenitflythepreviousyear,peoplewhohadheardaboutitfromthepreviousyear,andevenpeoplenewto the hobby. I am pretty sure the favorite question we heard from people new to the hobby was “Does that really fly?”Well,afterthelonghaulouttothepad,wesetitupandwaitedforthecountdown.Therocketonceagainroaredtolife,anditflewstraightasanarrow.Theflightwentjustasplanneduntilthemaincharge.Whenthemainblew, the chute never opened, and the rocket once again slammed into the ground. There was hope as we had built thisrocketlikeatank,andtherainfromafewdayspriorhadmadethefieldverysoft.Unfortunatelythistimewewere not so lucky. The only thing that survived was the nose cone. As agroupwehadnocomplaints about theflights. In thehobbyof rocketry there is always the riskof something going wrong, and the bigger, faster, and more complicated they get, the more chance there is of something going wrong. As a group we were are part of rocketry history in the state of Indiana, as we were the firsttolaunchaClassPmotor,backatThunderstruck4.Moreimportantly,withhardworkandsacrifice,weasa group launched a rocket weighing over three hundred pounds, and it traveled over 14,000 feet, twice. Now the question is “what’s next”? Lastly I would like everyone who had something to do with this project to be recognized in the article. So here is the team and some others who made this all possible, not once but twice. As for next year, there are some ideas starting to swirl about what we could do, but nothing solid yet.

Meet the team:Brian IvanovicGreta IvanovicJason IvanovicDennis Watkins Mike LawValerie Law Seanna LawMike GrossJenny GrossBrandon GrossTim HegemierGreg LaMaster

Joe LaMasterTim JonesGeorge MacAleeseJustin MullensBill HutsonGreg KreigerDave WyssMark RodgersCraig Marmeyer

Special Thanks to:Indiana Rocketry Club, Tim @ Wildman Hobbies, Mark Hayes @ Stickershock, Scott Case @ SC Precision, PJ Pilgrim

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Finally armingThe chute is out but can’t catch any air

Stuck the nosecone

Zipper to the first centering ring

For us, the preparations for the 2013-2014 Team America Rocketry Challenge (TARC) season began during the summer of 2013. Throughout our team meetings, we developed several skills that allowed us to grow as individuals and learn the necessary teamwork, and engineering/design skills needed to pursue a career in the engineeringfield.OurteamsbegantomeetinearlyOctobertopreparefortheupcomingyearandbegantobuildourfirstrocketsoftheyear.Webegantheyearwithfiveteamsallfocusedonacommongoal,whichwasfirsttoqualifyfortheannualTARCFinalsinThePlains,Virginia.WefirstdesignedourrocketsonprogramssuchasRocksimandOpen-Rockettoseehowsimilarinconfigurationswecouldmakeourrocketstoourideasandpastdesigns.WebegantolaunchinthecoldsnowofNovemberafterconfiguringandmakingourfirstrockets.Ourfirstrocketshadsomeproblemssuchasbrokenshockcordsattributedtoshorterthannormalshockcordlengths trying to decrease mass and make the rockets as light as possible to stay under the 650 gram mass limit. Wealsoseemedtohavesomeproblemswithsomestabilityandhavingtherocketstakeastraightflightpath.Overthecourseoftheschoolyearwehadsome150launchesacrossthefiveteamsourschoolregisteredintothecompetition.PreparingtotakeflightatNationalswealsohadtenrocketsthatendedupnose-divingintothefields,endingupgettingstuckinthetreesknownas“TheRocketGraveyard”ortakingasampleofourlocalwatersupplyinthepondacrossthefieldfromwherewewerelaunching. At the end of March when qualifying scores were due, we had a total of four teams make qualifying scores to go to advance to Nationals in May. Those teams had team captains of Veer Pandya, Albert Taglieri, Kyle Abrahims, and Todd Thoman. Our teams went to the Rockets on the Hill event the Friday before the National Fly off, where our teams were able to meet with congressmen and congresswomen about our journey, and about the STEM programs offered at our school. It was an excellent opportunity for our rocket scientists to spread awareness of our science programs, as well as the importance of these events. For some of us, we had to rush to the safety meeting on Friday immediately after the AP Statistics exam and were not able to attend the Rockets on the Hill event, unfortunately. At the safety meeting, we learned how safety-conscious the NAR was during events like these. On Saturday morning, a few of us woke up early to make breakfast. We got up at four in the morning, making two pounds of bacon, two dozen eggs, sausage, and hash browns in a small hotel room. After our breakfast,

TARC From the Team’s Point of View

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Spring Grove in front of the Capital

By Wyatt Nace

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The group photo

wedroveovertotheTARCfieldandbegansettingupourtents.WeplayedFrisbeeandsoccerwhilewewaitedfor our launch window. We didn’t want to put our rockets together immediately because we wanted to see how the weather would change, because we found that weather has an extremely large impact on the performance of a rocket, especially when we were trying to launch to a height of exactly 825 feet. When our launch window approached, we constructed our rocket according to the weather, and passed through all of the safety checks. We put our rocket on the pad, and waited for the time to launch our rockets. Our firstteamhadlimitedsuccessastheirrocketwastwentyfeetoffandcaughtandupdraftofwindpushingthetimeto 56 seconds ending their day with a score of 44. Our second team was the best of the day for us with a height only7feetoff,butitcaughtaverylargeupdraftofwindandhadatimeof59,endingwithascoreof43butifnotforthewindwouldhavebeenatop10score.Ourthirdteamexperiencedsomedifficultieswhentheparachutesdid not open fully ending in a DQ, and our fourth team well was good off the pad, but somehow accidentally set the ejection charge late with the parachutes coming out only seconds off the ground. Overall both Kyle Abrahims and Veer Pandya’s team placed in the top 50 in the nation coming in 40th and 41stwithrespectablefinishes.Ourteam displayed respectable efforts and with two teams returning next year as seniors we hope for some better finishesandhaveabetterchance. The Rocket Scientists

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Recovery of the other rocket

Recovery of one of the two they flew

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What is now the Tripoli Rocketry Association, Inc. was founded December 1, 1964 in Rillton, Pennsylvania, by Francis Glenn Graham II and Joseph Albert Marks, Jr., and revived later with a meeting of Francis Graham and CurtisHughes,andevenlaterTomBlazanin;butfirststartedastheTripoliRocketClubofNorthAmerica.Thisis how it came to be and a history of its earliest days. Often adults smile because their teenagers seem to think they know everything, and yet, have so much to learn. But what if that is the case, and as we age we become in many ways dumber, so much so that we come about to fail to recognize how brilliant teenagers are? Are we like Mork from Ork, aging into childhood? No, replies the wise adult, for if that were true, teenagers would not get into all the stupid trouble they get into. Yet is it possible adults sometimes underestimate the enthusiasm and intelligence of teens who apply themselves. In 1963, Francis Graham lived in a nice home in Rillton, near Irwin, built by his carpenter father. He week-ended with his grandfather of the same name, an amateur scientist. The bottom of the Rillton house was a living space in itself, and had a small library supplied by his grandfather. His friends, Jack and Gary Freeman, were sciencefictionfanswithscience-fictionbooksandmagazines. JackoftenreadchaptersfromFrankEdwards’Stranger than Sciencetoallofusaroundacampfire.Francisalsowalkedthe4milesbetweenRilltonandIrwinto go to the Irwin Public Library bi-weekly. However, because he lived 100 feet over the Township border, he was not permitted to borrow books and have a library card. His parents’ divorce also left him poor.ThebooksFrancisreadwerebooksaboutouterspace,apassionhehadsinceSputnik.Particularlyinfluentialwas Willy Ley’s Rockets, Missiles and Space Travel. He learned the founding of the German Space Rocket Society, the VfR, was the pivotal event in outer space access. Nothing like it existed in the 1960s in the USA; modelrocketrysuchaspracticedbytheNARwasnotaboutspacetravelorspaceaccessatall,butinsteadflyingmodelsofspacerockets. It is likemodelairplaneclubsflymodelsofairplanes,whereorganizations like theExperimentalAircraftAssociationfliesactualairplanes.Francisthoughtevenbackthenthatitmightbeaverygood idea to have a modern space access enthusiast society that experimented with rockets that actually might slowly build up to space . This was quite a bold vision for a 13-year old. This is what makes one think he started out smart. Perhaps he reasoned too that, even if space was too far, rockets were gong to get a heck of a lot bigger andcoolerthantheNARflew! On December 1, 1964, a meeting was held in the Graham’s furnished basement living room and there Tripoli was founded. Francis Graham was there, as was Joe Marks and his brother, George; Diane Baldridge , Bob Freeman, Mark and Kathy Graham; and Ray Brown. Tripoli was founded for the purpose of becoming a space accesssociety,andtopromoterockets,“theonlywaytogettospace”atthetime.Thechiefexecutiveofficerwas to be the First Secretary; the President, if there was to be one, would be the chief public spokesperson of the organization. In this, Tripoli was a bit like the U.N . Francis was the First Secretary and Joe Marks became the Second-in-Staff.

The Founding of Tripoli: Its Earliest Days

With notes from Robert C. Thwaite and other early members.Rewritten with additions by Francis Graham

Tripoli Philosophy

Independent philosophical thinkers face a tough time, as those of you readers who are such well know. Liberals dismiss you as conservative, and conservatives berate you as liberal. Both can imagine that you are dangerous. The people in earlyTripoli,many science-fiction fans,were seized bywhatmight be called theCopernicanepiphany, the euphoric realization of how big the Universe is, and that the stars are suns with retinues of their own planets.Butthereismore:forthefirsttime,andadecadehadnotyetpassedin1964,itwaspossibletoaccessthis greater Universe, and the mode of access was the rocket. So it was absurd , with this vast Universe and an ability to leave Earth, that humanity would choose to remain on this tiny rock. While Tripolitans would begin with model rockets, they would be experimental, all; and there would be a future progress with no limits, through to the time space access was routine. That was the plan. This formed the basis of what might be called the early Tripoli philosophy. At that time, the USSR and USA had substantial big government space programs, and, in spite of the difference in governing ideology, they were run in pretty much the same way (Some Goldwater-era conservatives pointed outthatgoingtotheMoonwasNOTafunctionofthefederalgovernmentspecifiedintheUSConstitution,andthat taking tax money for that purpose was unconstitutional. But they were ignored.) The idea of a private corporation investing in space exploration, seen in “Frau im Mond” and “Destination Moon”, had not yet happened in 1964, although communications satellites were soon to slowly pave the way to privatization. So the pathways to participate in space exploration in 1964 were to educate oneself in science or engineering and join a government program. This was the option in the USA and Russia in 1964. Buteventhoughgovernmentprogramsandprivatefor-profitcorporateprogramscouldbeoptions,therewasathird possibility. In The New Industrial State, John Kenneth Galbreath lists the reasons why people cooperate to do things. Coercion is a reason, and is a big part of dictatorships; pecuniary reward is a big one in free enterprise countries. But also there can be voluntary cooperation among persons who gain satisfaction for attaining a common goal. Galbreath cited as an example villagers who volunteer together to drain mosquito-infested swamps to reduce disease. It seemed very logical that this common enthusiasm, which drove the VfR in prewar Germany, could be done in an organization of rocket enthusiasts in the USA as well. Tripoli began with this idea in mind.

The Name Tripoli meant “Three Cities”, from Pittsburgh, Irwin and Rillton; its symbol was a stylized curvaceous Gothic “T”, the Crux Tripolia. In any case, Tripoli was certainly distinctive as a name. And Tripoli would not have sections or chapters; no, it would have prefectures with geographical boundaries, each headed by a Prefect. And other strange titles were madeup:noTreasurer;theofficialinchargeofkeepingmoneywouldbeasubautocrator. Together with Chief Scientist, Membership Commissioner and such other strange titles it all added up to a workable division of labor.

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The First Tripoli Rockets

Some early Tripoli powder rockets, remains or parts thereof, from 1964. Experiment #1, the first Tripoli rocket, is the one shown diagonally.

Diane Baldridge, present at the start of Tripoli, introduced the Tripolitans to James Clair, a medical student who not only had a knowledge of chemistry , but resources too. He donated chemicals and know-how to make gunpowder to a group of young teens in this newTripoli. Thiswas a stroke of luck! Francis’ gunpowderconcoction had a bit of magnesium powder too, and was not as rapid burning as FFFFF is today. He stuffed it in a metal pen top with a screw on cap that served as a nozzle; and attached this to a long wrapping paper tube in the front as a front-drive engine, with the tube as a “stick”. On December 9, 1964 he lit the fuse with his fellow Tripolitanspresent;anditwent“Pop!”upafootintheair.ThiswasTripoli’sfirstrocket. Soon came Joe Mark’s Marko I Styrofoam boost glider on a model rocket engine. Other rockets followed of varying sophistication, including one which had pressurized gasoline and air in a copper tube. Its ascent in 1965 waslikeasinglecylinderbackfiringandflyingoutoftheengineblock.Butitwasanascent.Thereweresomeother very unsophisticated “rockets” as well. With a little bit more adult guidance it would have dawned on Tripolitans earlier that they did not have the technicalskillnortechnicalmeanstobuildrocketpropulsionunitsin1965-67.Thatonuswouldbeliftedlaterwith the March , 1969 Gloria Mundi,essentiallyaslightlymodifiedFortSillBetaamateurrocket.Butbylate1965 it was pretty clear Tripolitans were stuck with model rocket engines for a while. Tripoli’s earliest stages were in Rillton, Pennsylvania, and this article is largely the story of Tripoli right after its founding. But the only other original member from Rillton who continued on after August, 1966 besides Francis was Raymond Brown. Tripoli would have become defunct then if it were not for the meeting of Francis Graham and Curtis W. Hughes at that time at Norwin Junior High West. One of the great fortunate handshakes, the Hughes-Graham meeting really is the start, or re-start, of Tripoli, but it embodied much of the earlier philosophy. Without the collegial effort of Curtis Hughes, Art Bower, and Kenneth Good, and later Ernest Scavincky and Allen Reed, Tripoli might never have happened. Curtis Hughes became the President and Chief Scientist of Tripoli.

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In1965-1967itwaspossibletobuildairframesaroundmodelrocketenginesmanufacturedbyCenturiorEstes, including “F” engines. With High School machine shops at their disposal (shop teachers were just happy for the student enthusiasm) Tripolitans could build substantial rockets of metal or any other material. In those days,therewerenoredflags. Each member who had a garage or basement workshop was obliged to give it a unique name. Francis had the Experimental Ballistics Works; Arthur Bower’s was the Aerodynamics Institute of Terrestrial Rocketry, later shortened to Walrus. This naming thing is a good idea for every Tripolitan, even today.

Case Study of a 1967 Rocket: The Victoria

The problem with model rocket engines is that they are puny. Early Tripolitans Francis Graham, Arthur Bower and Curtis Hughes began to experiment with extreme staging and clustering, just a bit later Kenneth Good would join that regimen. A six-stage model rocket called the Rocketship Chris took off from the old strip mine area called Lake Orcus that became one of Tripoli’s launch sites. But it went horizontal; Kenneth later came up with rackrocketsin1970thatwerebetterthanstaging.Forsmallerrockets,Curttestedtheminhisbackyard;itwascalledtheHughesRaketenflugplatz.AnothersitewasLaunchSiteA,anoldblimpfieldinIrwin;andthenLakeOrcus, an abandoned strip mine with a square kilometer of nothing near the Youghigheny River. Francis then was reading about the Krushnic Effect, that ruins thrust when you line up rocket engines inside atubeandfirethemsequentiallydownthetube.Suchamethodwouldenablelargerocketstobuiltusing“F”engines, if only this effect could be thwarted. In his book, G. Harry Stine had attributed this to some standing wave phenomenon; but Francis corresponded with Lindsay Audin, an early NAR scientist, and learned it was due toasimpleunderpressureeffectwhenanenginefiresdownanemptytube. It might be possible, Francis thought, to overcome this problem by keeping the inside of the aluminum tube pressurized.Thiscouldbedonebyhavingthespentenginefitinsidethetubelikeapistonandbeejectedbythegases of the next engine under pressure. Off Francis went to the Norwin High School machine shop to fabricate the rocket, which he named Rocketship Victoria after a girlfriend. The four-foot aluminum rocket used 5 “F” engineslinedup;eachwasquick-burningandfitlikeapiston.Onthetop,wasaspringloadedthrustmeasuringsystem; a parachute was omitted, as it just didn’t seem necessary to the experiment. Decades later rocket pioneer Frank Kosdon would also only add parachutes as an afterthought.

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The Rocketship Victoria, an aluminum rocket.

At the Victoria dedication: left to right: Curtis Hughes, Francis Graham, Vicky Kudzey, Kathryn Graham. April, 1967. Photographer was likely Marlene Miller.

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Chief Scientist Curtis Wayne Hughes, prefect of Irwin, inspects Victoria fin alignment. The Victoria still exists today. Graham and Hughes were then age 15.

The Victoria flewfromLakeOrcusMarch1,1968.Therockethurledupwardsinaherky-jerkymotion,merrilyejectingcases.Muchlater,statictestsverifiedthatthisdynamosequental staging system not only worked but measured it. Essentially, the ejected piston-like spent engine case is blown out like it is part of the reaction mass. No Krushnic effect. However, later that year, 1968, other Tripolitans were learning at last how to make real amateur rocket propulsion systems,withpotassiumnitrate/sugar(caramelcandy)andzincdust/sulfur.ThusTripoli’smodificationof theFort Sill Beta, the steel Gloria Mundi, came out of the Irwin Prefecture, and the caramel candy steel Vikar came out of the West Braddock Prefecture. Clustering or sequencing F engines was no longer a big priority, and Francis Graham’s experiments were eclipsed by these new bold ventures. The Vikar showedTripolitansjusthowdifficultitistocastcaramelcandypropellantinlongsteeltubesandwhat happens if that casting is not perfect. Tripoli’s safety precautions were adequate and nobody was at risk when the overpressure happened. A Safety Committee served as a precursor to TAP. Later , in late 1969, the UnitedPrefecturesofTexassuccessfullyflewtheVikar II at Fort Bliss under Army sponsorship. The Gloria Mundi was the real success of this new trend. Flown March 23, 1969 at Lake Orcus, it was very successful,andgaveusinspirationforthedifficultiesahead.College,familiesandcareerswoveinanoutofearlyTripolitans’ lives, but the dream continued. Then, in 1981, Tripolitans Kenneth Good and Curt Hughes met up with Chris Pearson and others at Kentcon. There was this new propellant called AP. But the story of the Gloria Mundi and the Kentcon synthesis needs to be told in detail as another story. It is important to readily acknowledge there were a lot ofrocketclubsoutthereinthosedays;theyflourishedfor a while, did some interesting things, and then became defunct as members went to college or pursued other interests. Tripoli was just one of them. It survived due to the tenacity of Graham, Hughes, Bower, Good and others, such as Tom Blazanin, much later. Today, it is largely a high power rocketry support and service organization; spaceaccesshoweverisstillasignificantside-lineasevidencedbythehighstratosphericrocketsatBlackRock,Nevada yearly. It has a long history. But this is how it was started by people barely in their teens.

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Red Glare XVIBy Neil McGilvrayPhotos by Neil McGilvray, Greg Gardner and Ken Potter

Spring in the mid-Atlantic means many things to many people, the realization of Punxsutawney Phil’s end of winter predictions, the blooming of the cherry blossoms in Washington, DC, and of course MDRA’s Red Glare launch on Higgs Farm on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. This event is the one rocketeers set their spring and summer launch schedules by. A MDRA Red Glare launch is, without any doubt, a must -attend event. The spring of 2014 ushered in Red Glare XVI and with it brought moderately warm and welcome temperatureswithlowtomanageablewindvelocities.Attendancewasoverflowing,withflierscominginfromOhio, Indiana, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, and Maryland. During the course of the three-day event, 680 projects left the ground, powered between A-impulse and clusters of N- and M-impulse motors. There were 56researchmotorsusedtopowervariousprojects,accountingforonly7.5%oftherocketslaunched,but26%of the newton-seconds. The research motors have been declining; unusual for the event was the lack of a single O-impulse or larger motor. The motto of MDRA is “Freedom To Fly,” the principle of the club’s existence. In essence it means Use authority; don’t abuse it. With that simple philosophy as the foundation of the club’s operation, extremely complex projectsareevaluated;modifiedifneeded,andallowedtosafelyfly.Aswithanyrocketlaunch,everyflightis“headsup,”andeventhemostskilledrocketeerwillgettheirturninthebarrel,despitestellartrackrecordsflyingthe same rocket over the years. WhilethelargerprojectsareMDRA’sclaimtofame,therealityisthatamajorityoftheregisteredfliersatRed Glare XVI were actually NAR members. Over the event’s three days, the average impulse was in the I-motor range.Ofthe680flights,363wereinthelow-andmid-powerrange,Gimpulseandbelow.Theinclusivemixofsmallerandlargeristhemaindrawformanyfliers,whereyouflyAandBmotors,yetwitnesscomplexandoftenearthshaking high- impulse projects. MDRA provides the venue and all the launch equipment from ¼ A-impulse rods to 20-foot-tall hydraulic towers capable of lifting the heaviest projects you can put on them. The club handles all of the potential infrastructure needs,frompadstoladderstolaunchsystemsandextensionpolestopullyourrocketoutofatree.Theflieronlyneeds to advise the MDRA BOD what they plan on bringing, and the rest is taken care of in a logical manner. The larger and more complex projects are reviewed in advance of the launch through the Big Project registration requirement.Questionsconcerningtheprojectandmodificationsareoftendealtwithlongbeforethelaunchdate,to avoid any safety problems and potential disappointments at the launch. Each year the club upgrades the infrastructure to provide the safest and most reliable systems possible. The PA has been upgraded to include 20-foot radio towers that elevate the speaker systems well above the trailers and pop-uptentsthatmightotherwisetendtoblockormuffletheLCObroadcastsandotherimportantannouncements.Communication over the entire launch site is an important safety consideration at a large event.

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Inadditiontocommunicatingwithfliersandspectatorsatthelaunch,MDRAstaysincommunicationwithlocal, state, and federal authorities. On Friday of Red Glare XVI, MDRA was visited by eight BATFE agents and administrators, who took part in a four-hour seminar on the who, what, when, where, and why of MDRA. The agentsandadministratorswerewalkedthrougheveryaspectofsafety,rocketry-launchoperation,certificationprocesses, motor assembly and operation, recovery, rocket construction, and various demonstrations of igniter functionality and propellant-burning characteristics. There were many good questions asked and responded to, to everyone’s satisfaction. The seminar concluded with lunch at the Road Kill Café, and some of Tommy Higgs ‘s world-famous chicken and a presentation of MDRA Challenge Coins to all the attendees. ThelaunchonFridayincluded54lowandmid-powerflightsand91high-powerflightsburningup136,776newton-secondsofpower.Saturday’sactivitiesincluded219lowandmid-powerflights,withthehigh-powercontingentaccountingfor147flights.Saturday’snewton-secondtotalwas380,078.Thefinaldayoftheevent,Sunday,wrappedupwith90lowandmidpowerflightsand79highpowerliftoffs,with102,591newton-secondsgoing up in smoke. During the three days’ launch, 629,434 newton-seconds were expended, with an average impulse of 843 newton-seconds. OnethingthatmakesRedGlareagreatlaunchtoattendisthediversityoffliersandprojects.Overtheyearsmanyofthelong-distancefliershavecometoknoweachother,andthelaunchdevelopsareunion-typeatmospherewhererocketryfriendscatchupandtelleachotherliesonhowwelltheyhaveflownsincethelasttime they met. The volunteerism has become second nature, with both strangers to the launch and close-knit Red Glareveteranslendingahandwhencalledon.Settingupandbreakingdowngosmoothly,asmanyofthefliersknowthedrillandrealizethat,withtheirhelp,thejobisdonequicklyandefficiently,toallowformoreflyingtime. It is in everyone’s interest to help. Like every launch, Red Glare is not void of challenges. There have been two perennial issues at the launch overtheyears.Oneissueispushingtheenvelopeinquestionableconditions.Witha17,000-footwaiver,thereareahandfuloffliersthatliketotryandscratchthebottomsideoftheglassceiling.Thiscomeswithrisks,mainlydriftingoffthefieldandlandinginthe75-foot-talltreesoff to the northeast. The rockets are always discovered and eventually returned, but not without paying a price. The other issue is the cost for recovering a rocket out of the trees, which can approach three hundred dollars per rocket. The land the trees are on is not owned by the Higgs brothers, and the club is respectful of the rights of the private property owners. Tommy and Eugene Higgs have agreed with their neighbors that they will only use oneinsuredandqualifiedtreeclimberwhenrecoveringrockets on their property. This adds incentive to prep your rockets like you want to get them back and to ensure you are deploying your main parachute when you want it deployed. Friday, April 11, 2014, was a beautiful day with clear skies, warm temperatures, and low winds. After the extended cold winter weather we experienced in late 2013 and early 2014, anything over 40 degrees was welcomeandRedGlareXVIdeliveredmid-70s.Giventheweather-restrictedflyingpriortothisevent,theFridaywasamazing,withmanyfliersonsiteearlyandreadytogo. The winter work in basements, in garages, and on dining-room tables was to be put to the test starting early in the day. Dick Stafford always shows up to a launch with a crowd-pleasing contraption. Red Glare XVI was no

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Steve Bayak’s Fat Boy

http://www.madcowrocketry.com

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Mitch Guess’s Astrobee D Jerry O’Sullivan’s Terrier Smoke

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Jart Drag Race

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exception.DickflewhisWhirlygig-38poweredbyanH-100motor.Therocketliesonitssideandspinsaroundacentralaxis,withcantedfinsthatprovideliftfortheflyingmachinebyauto-gyration.Thediameterofthisparticular concoction is 3 inches, and the length is about 36 inches. There are many other smaller Whirligigs in Dick’s collection, and it can be tough totellthemallapart.Dickdescribedtheflight:“Thiswasanupscaleofthe24-mmversionthatIoftenflyatMDRA.Therocketspunlikecrazyandlifted fast. Near the end of the burn, the centrifugal force was too much for the tint tube,andoneendcameoff.Thecrowdshudderedas thefinheaded for theflight line.However,by the time itgot there, itfluttereddown harmlessly.” WilliamCookcertifiedLevelOnewithhisH-152-poweredTorrentialMayhem. Tim Fritz blasted his Space Eagle into the sky with H-160 power forasuccessfulLevelOnecertificationflight.CameronSchiffettattemptedtojointheLevelOnecrowdwithhisH-160-poweredflightofJusttheTip.Christopher Steinwag unleashed his H-90-powered AGM-256 Pitbull for aLevelOnecertificationflight.BarryMcGarveytestedtheskieswithhisLeveltwoflightwithaBigNukeonaJ-330. Some of the H-powered fliers included Jim Hansen, who hada quick liftoff with his H-238-powered Minnie Magg. Bill and Melody Clune boosted their Black Thunder on an H-410. Olivia Biban lifted Boing, Boing, Boing, Boing, Boing, Boing, Boing off the pad with an H-152. Ben Abresch launched Queen Anne’s Revenge with the help of an H-143. Peter Abresch launched his nicely well-worn Shaken Not Stirred on a nice H-180foraniceflightandnicerecovery,foranothernicelaunch. While theflyingwasgoingon,GregGardner tooktimetofinishhisPinkCheetahrocketwithapaintjob,appliedatthefield.Gregtriedtoassurethelaunchorganizersthatthiswasafirst,asnootherrockethadeverbeenpaintedatthefield.Gregdidn’tswaymanyoftheorganizerswithhisassertion. OtherfirstsincludedAndrewDiehlandDavidReeseflyinga3-Dprinter rocket created by Andrew, called Plastic, powered by an I-300. To the surprise of everyone butAndrew, the rocket held together and flewwell.RandyAppelbaumactuallyflewa rocketanddidn’t land itoveramile away in the trees. Randy launched his JR. on a Research I-300 motor. Not only did Randy keep the rocket out of the trees, he did so twice on the sameday,atthesamelaunch,withthesamerocket,anotherMDRAfirst.TedChernokfinallygotagoodpictureofhisfastflyingGreenHornetonanI-366.SteveEvesflewarocketthatdidn’trequireacranetoplacethevehicleonthelaunchpadwithhisI-420flightofTalos. Friday also brought the mandatory Wildman Drag Race participants. It was a lineup of brains and brawn with Tim “The Wildman” Lehr, “Crazy” Jim Hendricksen, and David “Posthole Digger” Reese. The Drag Race was with Wildman JART rockets powered by J-293 motors. Not everyone played by the rules, as the Wildman somehow snuck an L-motor into his rocket and smoked the other two competitors off the pad. You can decide who owned the brains and the brawn; your actual mileage may vary. AfewoftheK-impulseflightsincludedthelikesofMickeyRowewith his K-2045-powered rocket appropriately called Don’t Blink. David WeberhadhisbigbadHonest Johnflyingona redflameK-695motor.

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Nick Southern blasted Southern Style off on a research K-669. Scott Szympruch lofted his PAC-3 on a research K-400. Jake Boyd called Scott’s research K-400 and launched his NOVA on a commercial K-400. Mr. Hawk Mountain, Alan Gorecki, cranked off his Vulcan 2 on a K-700.DanPatellhammeredhisBadAttitudewithaK-600.GeorgeKieleygothisExtrememovingwithK-740power. Fred Taverni sent Sonic Karma to the next level with a K-540. The “brother” team of Rob, Alex, and Rick Lilley put their heads together to launch Loco Nut on a research L-1450.MikeVerbeekhadhisPhoenixtakeflightwiththehelpofanL-780.RobertAnthonysenthisHighFlyerfor a ride on a research L-1100. Bryan Sparkman boosted Red Bird on a research L-1000. George Kieley made good use of L-995 power to launch his big Patriot. Gary Tortora powered his Sting-6 off the pad with an L-995. BobUtleytooksometimefromhismyriadofMDRAdutiestodowhatbroughtthehundredsoffliersandspectatorstogetheratRedGlareXVI,flyarocket.YearsagoBobteamedupwithold-timeMDRAmemberBillMantellandprovidedamotorforhiswell-wornEclipse.Unfortunatelyforbothfliersthemotorcasingandtherocket were destroyed within seconds of the launch button being pushed. Bob felt bad and eventually bought Bill a replacement rocket, a 4–inch- diameter Intimidator. Bill couldn’t accept the generous gift and gave the kit back toBobtobringustothisday,theflightofBillMantellSpaceTruckeronacommercialL-777.Bobwasgoingtoriskhisrockettooneofhisownmotors.Theflightwentbetterthanexpected,exceeding9,000feetwithanominalrecovery. JerryO’SullivanhasbeenflyinghisTerrierSmokeformanyyearswithgreatsuccess.RedGlareXVIwasnodifferent;thebigwhiterocketflewwellonaresearchM-2500.DanPatellsenthisCompetitor5highintotheskyaboveHiggsFarmwithanM-2500.MitchGuessflewhisfull-scaleAstrobeeDonanM-2055foraspectacular boost of the model sounding rocket. Gerald Taylor wanted to reach for the stars, but watch what you wish for at Higgs Farm, as you just might getit.Gerald’sSpriteboostedmagnificentlyonanM-4000andquicklysailedoutofsight.Thetrackingdevicesfailed, and the rocket drifted into the trees to the northeast. As of this writing, the rocket had not been found and

Kathy Gilliand’s Hot FlashScott Szympruch’s PAC 3 Glenn Reamy’s Hippy Avenger

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most likely remains dangling dozens of feet above the ground. Steve Bayak has been working on his up-scale Fat Boy for years. He had planned on drag racing Dan Michaels ¾-scale Patriot with this 16–inch-diameter monster, but the competition never materialized, and Dan’s Patriot has since been returned to kit form. Steve and crew were still determined to put on a good show, and what better place to do it, than at a Red Glare launch? The 300-pound-plus rocket was prepped with three L-2300motorsandathreeM-1297motors,allplannedonbeinglitonthegroundwithalittlehelpfromthermite-enhanced igniters to ensure all six motors, equaling an O-Impulse, came up to pressure at the same time. When the button was pushed, the Fat Boy worked as planned with all six motors coming up to pressure and boosting the portly rocket up the 20-foot tower and high into the sky above Higgs Farm. The smoke and the flameoffthesixmotorswasanimpressivesightasSteve’srocketascended.Therecoveryefforthadafewoftherocketeers and spectators on edge, as Steve was using a pyro-release mechanism to deploy the big orange and blackparachuteatabout1,000feetforaperfectrecovery.Looktoseethisprojectcomingtoafieldnearyou,onceSteve saves up for six more motors. Saturday, April 12, 2014,wasanotherperfectrocket-flyingdaywithwarmtemperaturesandlowwindvelocities out of the southwest. The inner pads were a beehive of activity throughout the day, with wave after wave of budding rocketeers and future astronauts expertly placing their rockets on the rods and rails, readying themforflight.Themixofbigandsmallprojectskepttheenthusiasmandanticipationhighthroughouttheday. Thehigh-powerpadswereequallyactiveduringtheday,withmultiplecertificationattemptsflown.KevinHoganrolledAlltheMarblesoffthepadwithanH-123forhisLevelOneflight.PatrickGillmadeamuch-neededstatement with his I Hate Glitter powered by a long-burning H-90 for his Level One attempt. Brian Hastings launchedTelsa1withH-135powerinhisquestforaLevelOnecertification.TimBearflewaPatriotwithanH-160forhistryatLevelOne.CameronShiffletwasbackatitwithhisH-144-poweredJusttheTip. Astheimpulseincreased,sodidtheLevelTwocertificationflights.AndrewMartinmadegooduseofJ-350powerwithhisWarlock.TimFritzpoweredhisSpaceEaglewithaJ-357forhisLevelTwoflight.DonaldGrangerboostedAmericanDreamwithaJ-290inhispursuitofaLevelTwocertification.JohnArcarawhirledhisTorrent into the sky on a powerful J-530 for his step up in the certification qualifications.GlennRameysuccumbedtotheneedtoflybiggerrocketsandsenthisVashdaNeradascreamingfromthepadonaK-750forhisLevelTwoflight. OtherK-impulseflightsofnoteincludedTedChernok,withhisK-480-poweredAltitudeSeeker.Mike

Barry McGarvey’s Level 2 rocket

Bob Utley’s Space Trucking

Dave Gregor’s Jericho

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VerbeekandhisHonestJohnlaunchedwithaK-1105.ScottTyrrellandJustinGleiterusedaresearchK-275tolaunch their Standard ARM. Jake Boyd cranked his Dominator 3 on a K-500. Dan Patell blasted his Bad Attitude off the pad with a K-650. FredTavernihammeredhisSonicKarmawithaK-1100.ScottSzympruchhadanicestraightflightwithhisK-465-poweredAMRAAM.SkipCuttingflewhisPatriotonclassicK-550power.AlexDechenesandRickAllen had Clown of Doom screaming into the sky with a K-1350. Ryan Mauver boosted Polaris with a K-600. DaveLanglaunchedhisFormula98onaK-740.AndrewCookspankedhis4-inch”RocketwitharesearchK-900. Tim Lehr and Jim Hendricksen busted off their JARTs on K-2045s for some no-blink action. David “Last Place” Reese joined the mayhem with a lowly K-600 to challenge the two veteran rocketeers. Mark Emerson had Miss Maryland parade down the catwalk with a K-500. Jake Boyd blasted his Nebula off the pad with a K-1440 andair-startedthreeG-107s.MitchGuesswenttheresearchroutewithhisK-555boostofTMLG. The Damn Abresch Boys competed in Mach Madness with their K-2045-powered rocket of the same name. Spokesperson Peter Abresch described the over-hyped, anticipated, and originally reported attempt, “We analyzedthedatafromtheDamnAbreschBoysflightonaCTIK-2045VMAXthatoccurredSaturday,April12, 2014, and have come to the realization that the initial data of 3363 f/s/s was inaccurate. This was suspicious from the start as it far exceeded our expectations. There were many mistakes made along the way starting with inaccurateflightsimulationdatatopullingincorrectdatafromtheRavenAltimeter.” Peter continued to cry in his beer as he reported the “real” data readings, “To set the record straight, here is the correct data. The maximum speed was 1,443 f/s/s (mach 1.31), far slower than 2,050 f/s/s when the Damn AbreschBoysfirstflewon theLokiL-1400.Themaximumaltitudewasabarometric readingof9,768AGLandanaccelerometer reading7,883 feetAGL.Wefeel itnecessary toset the recordstraight,especiallyafterpresenting the wrong data to the enthusiastic, yet gullible, LCO who then announced it to the entire launch site multiple times.” Peter continued with his admission, “Some interesting data was attained: The Damn Abresch Boys pulled maximum74.84Geesjust6feetabovethelaunchrail,traveling194f/s/s.Motorburnoutoccurred.6675secondsafterignitionatanaltitudeof431feet.Themaximumvelocityof1443f/s/soccurred.7425secondsafterignitionatanaltitudeof541feet.TheDamnAbreschBoyscoastedto9,768barometricAGLaltitudein21.65secondsbefore arcing over and separating and starting her drogueless descent. The main deployed at 263 feet. The Damn

Der Red Max Dash

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Abresch Boys touched down undamaged 2 minutes and 41 seconds from ignition. Of course, more speed would havebeenbetter,butitwasstillafunflightwithextreme‘inyourface’speeds.ThevideohasbeenuploadedtoMDRA’s YouTube channel. Brian Wadsley and Andrew Diehl still reign, but we will be back.” Mickey Spain wiped his Sith Happens off the pad with a research K-500. Glenn Diener got his Dark Star moving with a K-665. Steve Eves powered Orange Trouble with a K-350. Joe Vanlandingham tore his LOC 835 to pieces with a K-1100. Jerry Sullivan was slimming with his 98-mm-diameter rocket on a quaint K-450. The West Virginia University Experimental Rocketry Club was on site at Red Glare XVI to launch their Nova Curious onaK-770.HowieDruckermanusedK-760powerinhisGizGoneWild. Tim Lehr was on deck to showcase his L-1420-powered V-2. Team Harden put on quite a show with their two-stageDominator4.TherocketwaspoweredbyanL-3200andstagedtoanL-1720,foragreatflight.GeorgeKieley launched his Extreme on an L-640 and later his Patriot on an L-851. Mickey Spain put his no-name rocket up on a research L-950. Tom Aument had his Black Mamba slithering up the rail with an L-1350 and again later with an L-3200. MikeVerbeek used L-1520 power in his flight of the Phoenix. JustinGleiter poundedWMXwith aresearchL-1300.RickComshawflewWildThingExtendedonaresearchL-666.DaveLangboostedSub-LimeonanL-645.MichaelKittolaunchedNo-EpoxyonapowerfulL-1175.JeffGoldsteinusedalong-burningL-480in his Extreme Red GPS. Randy Appelbaum powered Bad Appel with a research L-1500. Nick Southern cranked Terminally Ill with an L-1400. GeoffHoward succeeded in getting hismuch-anticipated LevelThree certificationwith hisM-1060-powered No Apparent Defect. Rick Comshaw mixed a research M-1025 to power his Ultimate Wildman. Andrew CookhadagreatflightwithhisLittleJohnonaresearchM-1700.JohnRitzthrewhisTomahawkintotheskywith a research M-1600. Dan Patell was back for round two, on Day Two of Red Glare XVI with his Competitor 5. The rocket was 9 feet tall, 5 inches in diameter, and weighed in a mere 38 pounds with the research M-1900 White Trash

Dan Michael’s Honest John and thelast walk to the pad with it

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Team Harding

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Gary Tortora’s Formula 200

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Scott Szympruch’s Bellatrix

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motorreadytoblastitoffthe20-foot-tallMDRAhydraulictower.Dandescribedthepreparationfortheflight,“Thisflightpreppedlikeeveryotherflightofthisrocket.Theflightwasscheduledtobetheeighth,whichhadpreviouslybeenusedasmyLevel3flightatRedGlareXIVonaCesaroniM-840.Therockethadflownthepreviousdayona98mm-7200Nshightestexperimentalmotorto10,700feetandrecoveredsafelyafterlanding1.08 miles away, over Route 313.” When the button was pushed, the rocket tore off the tower, but soon thereafter all hell broke loose. As Danrecounted thefieryepisode,“Itappears that theCATOwasaresultofseveraldifferent issues. Thefirstpotentialissueisthatthemotorcasehadapreviouslyidentified’blister’attheheadendofthecase.Thisblisterwas removed from the equation by adding fore spacers to make sure it was not subject to any pressure during the burn.Afterthefiringitappearsthatthissectionisnotwhatfailed,butit’spossiblethatthecasewascompromisedelsewhere in a similar fashion that was not readily prevalent. The second potential issue is that there appeared to havebeensignificantburningoftheODsofthepropellantgrains.Thethirdissuewhichmayhavecontributedtothe CATO was voids in the propellant, which should always be considered when an experimental motor CATOs. It does not appear that the CATO was pressure-related, but more likely that it was caused by thermal issues. This is consistent with the fact that it was not a detonation, but more of a burn-through type CATO.” Dan continued, “The motor CATO resulted in severe damage. All components except for the aft electronics bay bulkhead and electronics are reusable, believe it or not. I did need several helpers to get all of the parts back tomycar.MDRAisthebestclubintheworld,andRedGlareisthebestlaunch,butifyouhaveflownhere,thenyouknewthatalready!”

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Geoffrey Howard’s No Apparent Defect

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Peter Cadra’s Iron Manny

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Jerry O’Sullivan’s Iris

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Scott Boeckelmann slapped his Philadelphia Flyer off the tower with an M-1400. Gary Tortora took aim with his Broken Arrow on an M-2505. Jerry Willis had better days before launching his M-1297-powered Jolter. ToddHarrison and David Reese slammed their Darkstar into the sky with a research M-4500. Scott Tyrell and Justin Gleiter blasted Specter high above the crowd at Red Glare XVI with a research M-2000. Pat Harden wishes he could turn back the hands oftimeafterhisflightoftheSevraRocket on an M-1540. Dan Michaels had one of the

premierprojectsofRedGlareXVI;histhreeM-Motor-poweredHonestJohn.The7.5–inch-diameterrocketwasatypicalDanMichaelsworkofart,tooprettyandwellmadetofly,buthedoesanyway.Thatiswhattheyarebuilt for. Dan had put the rocket up for sale, and Gerald Meux would be the proud owner after this last victory-lap flight.ThemotorselectionwasthreeM-1315s,alllitontheground,augmentedwiththermite. Whenthebuttonwaspushed,therewastheusualhugeplumeofsmokeandfire,withnothingseemingoutof the ordinary until the rocket was halfway up the tower. It was clear the rocket was moving too slowly, and the cause could have only been one thing, not all the motors had ignited. How could this be? They were easy to light, white commercial propellant lit with thermite, something Dan has mastered on many other cluster projects. As the rocket cleared the tower, the one functioning motor did not have the power to keep the rocket going straightup,anditbegantotiltoveronitsside.Asthebiggreenrocketbegantoflounder,thesecondmotorkickedin,acceleratingtheHonestJohnofftothesouthwestofthecrowd,towardanemptyfield.Asthefirstmotorbegantoburnout,thenosestartedtodip,andtheapogeechargefired.Astherocketwasseparatinginthemiddle,atabout 300 feet above the ground, the third motor lit and joined forces with the second motor. The payload section was torn from the booster and deployed the main parachute, which was tangled in the mayhem still unfolding. While the payload section was falling to the ground, the booster was picking up speed and altitude, again. When it was all over, the booster was about a mile away from the launch tower and had seen much better days. Needless to say, the sale of the rocket to Gerald was off, and Tim Lehr became the owner of the remnants of one of the finestrocketsinhighpower.Oneman’sjunkisanotherman’sgold.LookfortheHonestJohntoreemergefromthe Wildman’s secret workshop. Despite the unfortunate demise of Dan’s rocket, it goes to show that the best of the best will eventually get their turn to get some humility. It seemed inconceivable that the motors didn’t all come out to pressure at the same time; given the fact that thermite was used to enhance the ignition. The motors were lit when the button was pushed and the rocket started up the tower, the staggered pressurization was puzzling, indeed. This is a prime example why launching these types of projects happens in the middle of nowhere. While motors and typically research motors are seen as the Achilles heel of rocketry, it will always be the bits and pieces falling out of the sky that will cause the biggest problem. Fortunate for all involved, Dan’s rocket came down “safety” in an empty field,withtheonlyinjuriesresultinginbruisedpride. The launch went on, and bigger rocket and motors were paraded out to the away cell. Al Anderson launched his unpainted rocket he affectionately called Bubba on an N-4000. Gary Tortora throttled his Formula 200 with an N-5600, only to have the beautiful rocket be stranded in the trees to the northeast for weeks after the launch. Scott Szympruch mixed up an N-2200 to power his Bellatrix for a nice boost and recovery. Jerry O’Sullivan stepped up with his research N-4000-powered Iris to put on a clinic of pyro-release device recovery. PeterCadrakeptitlowandslowwithIronManny.ThebigbeastofarocketwastoflywithacentralN-

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Justin and Scott’s Specter

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Mark Allen’s Meg-Meg, cool shot.

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3300andthreeM-1297motors.OnlythecentralN-3300lit,whichlimitedthealtitudeofthe250-poundrockettoabout 2,000 feet. The good news is: Peter has three M-motors to play with. DayTwoofRedGlareXVIconcludedwitha largecrowdofvery satisfiedfliers and spectators.Theexcitement around the pit area was palpable. The banter, the smell of Tommy’s chicken roasting on the open grill, the music playing between launches all made for a carnival-like atmosphere. Later that night the sold-out MDRA Banquet was held at the Grasonville VFW hall. MDRA could hold the banquet anywhere, but believes it is most appropriate to support the people that gave us the freedom we enjoy and keep with the theme of Red Glare. Sunday, April 13, 2014, completed the trifecta of perfect mid-Atlantic launching days. More rockets were being lined up and prepped early in the morning, with the expectations of this last-day high on the minds of the fliersandteams. As usual the lower-powered pads saw the most initial activity while the bigger rockets were being made flight-ready.Thereweremultiplecertificationflightson thisfinaldayofRedGlareXVI, includingTimBearwithhisH-160-poweredPatriot.DougGoodyearflewhisAMRAAMonanH-225forhisquestofaLevelOnecertification.WillSchworersteppedupwithanI-195-poweredAMRAAMtoachievehisLevelOnegoal. TheDayThreefliersandtheirprojectsprettymuchmirroredtheDayOneandDayTwoflights,thoughthetotalnumberswereless,asmanyofthelong-distanceflierswantedtogetoneortwofinalflightsinbeforetheyhad to begin prepping for the long journeys home. SomeoftheflightsrepresentingtheI-impulseincludedNorwoodTruittwithhisI-366-poweredSkunkWorks. Greg Gardner launched his Pink Cheetah multiple times on an I-195 and an I-455. Dave Weber sent Toober sailingforanotherrecord-breakingflightonanI-161.MikeTysonfinallyfinishedhisDayOnepreparationof

Dave Gregor’s Firenzy Joseph Abresch Jr. Sean Taylor

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LittleManandlaunchedthe54mm-diameterrocketforahighflightwithanI-110. J-poweredflightsincludedOttoBurgesslaunchinghisGrumpyonaJ-410.DaveGreggerboostedJerichoonaJ-270.ToniAbreschsalutedSallyRidewithJ-425.BrainWadsleyandAndrewDiehltriedtolaunchascaled-down version of their Mach Madness record-breaking rocket, Practically Cheating, on a J-650. But like those who preceded them with spectacular attempts, the rocket came apart at the seams and didn’t go according their well-scripted plan. TheK-ImpulseflightsincorporatedtheeffortsofJohnJohnswithhisK-550poweredTransonicII.TomDevlin launched Away Time on a K-1100. The West Virginia University Experimental Rocketry Club put Nova CuriousintotheairagainonaK-700. FredWallaceflewTreeHuggeronapowerfulL-2300forahigh,fast-movingflight.GaryTortorafinishedup his day and his Red Glare with his L-1030-powered Vorlon 5. Alan Gorecki used l power to boost and subsequently lose his Vulcan rocket. GeorgeKieleyflewhisIntimidator6withanM-1315.ColinHarriswentforhisLevelThreecertificationafteradayofpreparationforthelastflightoftheday.TherocketwasnamedTheLonePineandwasflownonanM-1315. The rocket tried to live up to its name, especially the lone part. The boost could not have gone better, but in the haste to get the rocket into the air, the nose cone was not secured as well as it could have been. At apogee the nose cone came off and deployed the main at apogee, setting up the rocket to drift over the horizon, beginning the long search on theEasternShore countryside.Manyhours later, the rocketwasfinally recovereddue tosome inside, local knowledge, and the good will MDRA President Bob Utley has cultivated with the neighbors surroundingtheMDRAflyingfields. As Red Glare XVI was going into the history books, the launch equipment was broken down and stored awaywith thehelpofmanywillinghands.As thefliers slowlydeparted thefieldatHiggsFarm,planswerealready being discussed what Red Glare XVII might be seeing. MDRA looks forward to the next launching challenge and to making their members’ dreams of rockets a reality when the leaves begin falling from the trees andthefinalcropsareharvestedinthefallof2014.

Neil McGilvray doing what he does best, talking to the BATFE

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InPart1ofthisarticleIdiscussedtheeventsleadinguptomyLevelThreecertificationattemptattheWilliamsWildfireWesternationalsinWesternAustralia.TherewasaneditorialmistakewhereaparagraphwasleftoutafterthetestflightinGrassValleyandthefirstcertificationattemptatWilliamsthefollowingmonth.Thefocusthisarticle,Part2,willbeontheaftermathofthefirstattempt,re-groupingforasecondgoaroundandtheremainder of my rocket related endeavors in Australia. My Level Three rocket was recovered and was for the most part in-tact with very repairable damage. The low level of damage occurred despite landing in a rock laden paddock with only a drogue to soften the blows. Needless to say I was not a very happy camper, however it knew it could have been worse. Dave Couzens aka Scoop, who was one of my TAP’s helped me wade through the thought process that followed to determine what went wrong. He assured me I would bounce back, and succeed at the next available launch opportunity two months later. There were however a few minor risks that loomed. M-motors are not as easy to come by in AustraliaastheyareintheUSA.Atthetimeofmyflight,Aerotechwastheonlysupplierwithmotorsavailablein Australia and stocks were limited. I had to secure another motor quick otherwise I would have to pay big bucksforaspecialshipmentorgohomeinafewmonthsasLevelTwoflier.ThemotorthatIusedformysecondcertificationattemptwasactuallyownedbyanotherclubmemberwhosold it fromme. Thepropellantgrainboxes were covered with little gold stars, the kind you might see an elementary school teacher hand out for good performance.I’mstillnotquitesurewhatthesignificanceofthesestarswas,butI’msurethereisafunnystorybehind it. While the festivities that ensued Saturday night at Williams would have been that much sweeter, I still had an amazing time meeting and chatting with the countless people that were there. The Williams launch brings fliersfromalloverAustraliatogether.DuetotheremotenessofPerth,almostalloftheattendeeshavetoflyin.This creates a small mountain of logistical considerations, not to mention the tall list that normally goes along with organizing such an event. As the WA prefect Dave takes on the brunt of the planning but has no shortage of help from his wife Mel and many others. WWW in 2011 was by far one of my favorite launches to date. While theflightstendtobethefocusatmostlaunches,it’sthepeoplethatyou’resurroundedbythatreallymakethingsinteresting.

Dave Couzens (l) and Mike Passaretti with his Aerobi 1 rocket

Getting It Up Down Under–Flying with the AussiesPart 2–Level-Three Success

By Mike Passaretti

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A week or two after my failed attempt at Level Three I found myself in Dave’s backyard re-performing theeversoimportantejectionchargegroundtests.Afterreviewingallofthedataavailablefrommyflight,thingsbegan to focus on why the main parachute & deployment bag did not eject from the airframe. It was obvious there was not enough force generated by the ejection charge. This had been ground tested several weeks earlier, sothequestionwaswhydiditnotworknow?Thefirsttestthatwasperformedwasare-creationoftheoriginalthatwasusedtovalidatetherocketbeforeitwasflown.Aslightlymoremethodicalapproachthistimearoundrevealed that 2.5g of black powder separated the NC (and two 2-56 Nyslon screws) but didn’t push out the main/deployment-bag.Howcouldthisbe?Headscratchingbeganatthistime.Theback-upchargewasfiredseparately,justifthiswereanactualflightandstillthemain/deploymentbagdidnotcomeoutoftheairframe.Iwasinshockandthequestionsbegantorunthroughmyhead.Whathadchanged?DidIreallyflymyLevelThreerocketlikethis?WhatdidIdodifferentlyinthefirstroundoftests?Ashortwhilelateritwouldbecomeapparentthatmyoriginalgroundtestwasseverelyflawed.2.5gramsofblackpowderwasnotenoughtoeject,letalongreliablythe main/deployment bag from the four inch airframe. The reason this was not discovered during the original ground tests is because the test was too complicated and therefore hid the fact that there was a fundamental problem.Theoriginaltestwasflawedbecauseitdidnottestasinglechargeinisolationanditsabilitytoejecttherecovery system. The rocket was prepared with both the primary and back-up charges connected to the altimeters suchthattheavionicsbaycouldbepumpeddownwiththeaidofavacuumtherebycreatinga“flight-like”butunfortunately an unnecessarily complicated test. While, Dave, Neil and myself were futzing around with vacuum cleaners, garden hoses and black powder we missed the fact that when the nose cone separated BOTH the primary

Dave Couzens bring back the rocket,.

Damage on first attempt

More of the damage

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Flight number 2, successful

Mike coming back after a successful Level 3 flight

Australia really is upside down

and secondary charges went off at nearly the same time. This could be attributed to the rapid and unrealistic re-pressurizationoftheavionicsbay.Thefive+gramsofblackpowdergaveoffatheatricalkickasthenoseconeanddeployment bag were vaulted across Dave’s backyard. Fun to watch, but what I did not stop and say to myself was“that’snotagoodtest.”Hindsightisbrilliantofcourse,buttheimportantthingwasthatwehadconfidentlyhoned in on a very serious problem. This was not a mistake I would be repeating any time soon. Lesson learned: Eliminate as many variables as you need to focus your test on the area of your project that is in question. Anything else will only cloud your ability to make sense of the results you set out to identify. Don’t over complicate your tests, decide on what you are trying to validate through testing and don’t stop until you answer the question you set out to answer. Testing can see time consuming, but it can alleviate a world of hurt down the road when there is a lot more on the line. Nowthattheproblemhadbeenidentified,itwastimetoemployasolution.Whatwasalsoevidentbythispointwasthatthemainparachuteanddeploymentbagwereatightfitinthefourinchairframe.Tohelpencouragethenewejectionchargesdo their job, Iopted toget ridof thedeploymentbagandusea72”canopyinsteadof the larger and bulkier 84” version. To further increase the ability of the ejection charges to do work, a very rudimentary but effective cardboard piston or “Scoop-cake” was created by Dave aka Scoop, (hence the naming) and employed for testing. Three grams of black powder now reliably ejected the main parachute recovery system and the results looked much better. Three back-to-back tests were repeated and the results were the same each time; the nose cone was separating cleanly and the main parachute was being thrown out with just enough force tostraightenoutthefifteenfootlongshockcord.Withthismajorquestionnowanswered,Iwasjustaboutreadyfor my second attempt. The next Williams launch was in September and I was long ready to go. I changed out the GPS/FRS unit this time around and opted for an Android smart phone running an application that broadcasted GPS position through text messages. These transmissions relied on the cell phone network but knowing the service was better than average atWilliams, I felt confident itwouldworkwell. With the application running, the phonewaswrapped in bubble wrap and stuffed inside of the rockets nosecone above the Contour GPS HD camera which wouldalsogoalongfortheflight.TheSeptemberlaunchwasamuchsmallerbigeventthanJunebuttherewerestill a number of spectators lined up to see what the WA rocket guys had in store for them that weekend. Also flyingthatdaywasRichTerminiandhiswifeSamantha.Samwasalsogoingfor(her)LevelThreesamedayandwouldfollowupmyflightwithhertowering8”diameter,14foottallbeautifullypainted“Lucky7”rocket,poweredbyanAerotechM1500G.Theflightwentoffwithoutahitchandwhileit landedintree,wasstillasuccessfulflight. Perhapsmore importantly thiswas theveryfirstLevelThreecertification inAustraliabyafemale!CongratsagaintoSamanthaforthisfirstofakindaccomplishment! I prepared my Level Three rocket with the help of several people, doing my best to stay focused and not let my nerves get the best of me. The winds started to pick up slightly and this began to make me mildly nervous. I did my best not to rush through my checklist and make a stupid mistake, I stopped several times to ask Dave to double check my work – this is something simple that can be invaluable. With the HD camera running and the

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Group photo at Williams launch

Android phone transmitting coordinates, I began to walk the rocket out to the pad. The winds were pretty stiff at this point, but not strong enough to create a safety concern and delay the launch. It was time to go and this rocket wasgoing! Afteragut-wrenchingdelayfromonebadigniter, thefour inchrocket jumpedoff thepadunderthe power of the coveted M1298 White Lightning propellant turned slightly into the wind and powered almost completely out of site to nearly 13,000 feet AGL. There were a few in attendances that had come to see their very firstamateurrocketlaunchandneedlesstosaytheywerenotdisappointed.WithastreamofGPScoordinatescoming in on Dave’s phone, we watched the recovery system deploy as planned and followed the rocket all the waydowntothetreelineonthehorizon.Barringanyunforeseenproblems,thiswasasuccessfulcertificationattempt. With the last coordinates entered into a GPS hand unit, Mel and I hoped in her car as she navigated her hometown farm roads to get close enough to the paddock where we believed the rocket had landed. A short walk upanarrowtreelineseparatingtwofieldsledusdirectlytotherocketwhereitlay,recoverysystemstretchedacrossabeautifulandsoftgreenfield.Touchdown!AsIgatheredthepiecesoftherocketandbegantoinspectfordamage, I felt the nosecone vibrating which needless to say startled me. It turned out to be Dave calling my only cell phone which was now in the nose cone; he wanted to know if the rocket found and if it were OK. He then tried Mel’s phone, she handed it over to me and I reported on the great news. When we got back to the launch site, I was immediately given a celebratory beverage as Dave eagerly walked over with a permanent marker in hand readytogivemeaceremonialandtraditionalforehead“tattoo.”Itwasofficial,IwastobeLevelThreecertifiedandwiththedistinctionofbecomingtheveryfirstnon-AustraliantocertifyLevelThreeinAustralia! Several weeks later Nic Lottering one of the “Queenslanders” contacted me through THE Australian Rocketry Forum (ausrocketry.com/forum) and asked me to come out for his Level Three launch in November. For several months Nic had been working on a rather large project, a 10.5” diameter, 11 foot tall 80 lbs (on the pad) up-scale Sledgehammer. One of the most impressive points about this rocket is that it was completely scratch built and did not use any pre-made components. Nic crated everything himself, which is always an impressive feat, especially at this scale. We all followed along as he posted detailed updates on the forum and were anxiously awaiting the launch. For those of us that know Nic, he is a very smart guy who loves his Bundee (Australian Rum–sorryNic,thatstuffispuregasoline!).He’salsoaremarkablecraftsmanwholeavesnostoneunturnedwhen he approaches a project, paying attention to every minute detail. His projects are really fun to follow along with;somemightquestionhowhehassomuchsparetime!?IhadmetNic,hisbrotherandhiswifeonlyafewmonthsearlierattheWWWlaunchbutwehadalreadyhitoff.Withoutthinkingtwiceaboutit,IdecidedtoflytoQueenslandfromPerthtofollowalonginthefinalstagesashepreparedforhisLevelThreecertification.Nicand his wife Margreth picked me up at the airport and welcomed me in their home a few days prior to the launch. Also in town that weekend from Western Australia was Dave and Paul Kelly “PK”. Dave and Blake were Nic’s TAP’s and PK had made a surprise visit to support Nic and his massive project. The launch would take place atoneofthetheQueenslandRocketSocietiesfields,thisoneisnearthetownofJimboomba.Nic’sflightwasonlyexpectedtogoapproximately4000feetundertheKBAM3500andthisfieldwasperfectforthat.Muchof

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The plan

Nic Lottering and Robert Winchcomb making the tube

Fins attached to the body tubevacuum made fins

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How the motor tubes and fins mount

Layers of fiberglass going on the foam core

Clear coat on the body tube

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After sanding the fiberglass

The finished nose cone

Check out the shine

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Nice red flame of the flightabove: the recoveryleft: group photo before flight

the preparation of Nic’s up-scale Sledgehammer took place at this home prior to the launch; this always makes thingseasieronthefieldasyouonlyhavetofocusonthefinalcriticalstepsofpreparation.Needlesstosaythatmanypeoplehadturnedouttowitnesstheflight.Thiswouldhavemademeincreasinglynervousifitwasmyproject but Nic seemed to take it in stride. That didn’t stop PK from deliberately bringing a spare quick-link with him out to the pad though. At just the right time, with the rocket pointed skyward, armed and ready to go – he handed it over to Nic and said “found this on the ground by the pad, thought you might want it.” Nic of course smirkedandhadsomechoicewordstodescribePK,butIliketothinkthathewasnervousforjustasplitsecond!Shenanigansaside,itwastimetogetbacktotheflightlineandseeifcertificationwasinstoreforNictoday.With the crowd corralled at a safe distance, on their toes and anxiously awaiting the countdown completed and theM3500explodedthe80lbrocketoffthepadasitclimbedskywardunderabrilliantredflame.Theairframetilted slightly, just as much as one might expect for a large rocket on its way to a comfortable 4000 feet, arcing over every so slowly arriving at apogee for a perfectly timed separation event. The recovery system deployed as planned and the rocket touched down softly just a few hundred yards away. Nic and a small team set out to go retrieve it and we all anxiously awaited their return. Not long after, they returned and Nic was all smiles – that dayjustgotbetter,hewasnowLevelThree!Nicwouldofcoursereceivehispermanentmarkettattoo,whichhewould don at the nearby restaurant where everyone collected for celebratory drinks and food. I had hustle out of towntoflybacktoPerththateveningonaredeyeflighttomakeittoworkthenextday.Ihadareallygreattimethat weekend, it’s always nice to see others succeed their hard work to pay off and I thanked Nic and Margreth for asking me to be around for a small part of it all. I was scheduled to arrive home from Australia the Tuesday prior to Thanksgiving 2011. As luck would haveit,IneededtoflybackoutThanksgivingeveningfortheMarsScienceLaboratorylaunchinCapeCanaveral.The Atlas V rocket carrying the Curiosity Rover and some of my very own handiwork was scheduled for to lift-off that Friday morning. That week, in the midst of literally days of travel time, while severely jet lagged and full of turkey, I thought back about all of the great times I had in the previous months. My level three project, touring WA wine country for my 30thbirthday,flyingarocketwith850feetofshockcord(that’sanotherstory),helpingNic with his Level Three, having a traditional Thanksgiving dinner with my new Aussie family, the inception of several BALLS projects and many, many others. Australia is a beautiful place, so far away but so incredibly worth the effort it takes to get there. Our rocketry counterparts, many of whom were mentioned in this article have taken on the massive feat of holding an international launch in 2015. The event has been dubbed “Australian Thunder Down Under.” It goes without saying that I will make the journey to the Queensland yet again to visit all of my friends and support the launch in anywayIcan.IreallyhopethatotherfliersfromtheUSandbeyondcanmakeitaswell.Mysincerethankstoall of the great people I came across during my stay in Australia. Had I decided to shelve rocketry that year and wait until I had returned, I really couldn’t imagine how dull my stay would have been. So many great friendships, projectsandmemorieshaveensued.ToallmyAussiefriends,seeyouinthefield!

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