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November 2010 launch report (11/20/2010)
On Saturday, November 20th, MASA held its final club
launch for 2010 at the VFW soccer fields near Elk River
The day was COLD! Temperature was maybe 20 degrees,
and there was a stiff breeze out of the NE. Turnout for the
launch was very light. We started flying around 10am, and
everyone was ready to pack it up by 11:30.
Themes:
Walkin' in a Winter Wonderland - winter or holiday themed
rockets
MASA members - please send in your thoughts about the
launch!
Luke Brown writes:
It was a beautiful day, though. My kids always like the VFW
field because of the playground - and they played on it while I
set up and then were willing to tolerate some launches. We got
in four flights - with three chute failures and three rockets
broken on landing. Alex flew his tube-fin model so didn't have a
breakage even though his chute failed; my boost glider lost a
fin so I had a breakage even without a chute failure.
But it was a pretty nice glide for one of those overly
complex swing-wing models, and I'm happy.
Gerald Meux writes:
I was there, I took some pictures. I'll post soon. Saw the
first snowball drag race. It was cold cold cold!!!
Alan Estenson writes:
I prepped six rockets at home this morning where it was warm!
I flew three rockets with plastic parachutes - Goony Goblin,
Solar Goon, and Minne-Skeeter. Despite being freshly
packed and liberally powdered, none of them unfolded after
ejection. My Astron Sprint clone had a very anemic flight
and very late ejection on an A8-5. It ejected about six
feet above the ground, ripped off the streamer, and broke two
fins off. My Quest Planet Probe had a great flight on a
C6-0.
I don't have any winter or holiday-themed rockets.
However, while selecting what to bring today, I looked at a
Sputnik and proclaimed "I dub thee Snowball!" (think about
it - <grin>) Neal also had a Sputnik along today, and he
had the inspired idea for a "Snowball Fight" drag race. We
both flew our Snowballs on C6-0. Even though we were using
separate controllers, liftoff was pretty much simultaneous.
I don't know who won the Snowball Fight!
Neal Higgins writes:
Unlike Alan I prepped all my rockets at the field. Numb
fingers do not work well while trying to pack chutes.
I had a total of six flights for the day. I started with
my Mini Max on an A3-4t followed by a Corkscrew on a C6-7. Both
rockets flew nicely and the streamers deployed on both of them.
Next up was the Sputnik for 1st annual Winter Wonderland
Snowball Fight. This should definitely become yearly event
at the November launch.
I flew my Check Six on a D12-5 but it Cato'ed and blew
the payload section off. The only damage was the torn shock cord
and the tube coupler. These phenolic tube rockets can sure take
a beating. To end the day I flew my Six Pack on a D12-5 and
Grappler on a B4-4. The Six Pack had a decent flight but the
Grappler forgot to deploy the chute and
landed hard with only minor damage to the clear payload tube.
Despite the cold winds, cold temps and low turn-out it was not
too bad a day to fly rockets.
The Details:
Full launch tally (PDF)
The totals were: 16 flights, 16 motors. The cumulative
total impulse was 125 Ns.
The motor breakdown follows:
|
Type |
# Burned |
| MicroMaxx |
0 |
|
1/4A |
0 |
|
1/2A |
0 |
|
A |
3 |
|
B |
4 |
|
C |
7 |
|
D |
2 |
|
E |
0 |
|
F |
0 |
|
G |
0 |
|
H |
0 |
|
I |
0 |
|
J |
0 |
(Alan Estenson)
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