Southern Arizona Rocketry Association
Tucson, AZ
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SOUTHERN ARIZONA ROCKETRY ASSOCIATION NEWS JANUARY 2002 **HELLO AND WELCOME Last month I touted the great flying weather we have here in Southern Arizona as compared to the rest of the country. Well . . . we do get the occasional rainstorm and the December launch just happened to fall on one of those rainy days. Just about everyone stayed home except for a few of us die-hards. We were also greeted by a local Cub Scout group that was anxious to get some rockets into the air regardless of the weather. Later in the morning the rain stopped long enough to conduct a launch with our young guests. Jerry King details this in his launch report below. As the new calendar year arrives it's time, once again, to consider joining SARA by contributing your financial support. We initiated a paying membership in 2001 and 32 of you joined up. The money accrued (over $630.00) went a long way in helping us make launch site improvements, maintaining a website, conduct a Summer youth build session, and generally keep the organization on a solid financial footing. Beyond standardized memberships, we also received some generous cash donations and this is always welcome. We have the following suggested annual membership levels . . . Junior/Youth (under 18) . . . . $10.00 Single . . . . . . . . . . . . $20.00 Family . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 You can join at the January launch and be paid up for all of 2002. Beyond the satisfaction of knowing that you will be keeping SARA functioning and growing, members are entitled to a $2.00 reduction on the $5.00 monthly launch fee. This $3.00 member launch fee, by the way, is paid directly to TIMPA for use of the field and is not used for other SARA activities. Annual memberships and other donations are what keep us going. Please remember that this is YOUR rocketry club. We want to hear your ideas and thoughts on how we can make SARA more responsive to your needs. Thanks for your support! **2002 BOARD OF DIRECTORS As mentioned last month, SARA held a general membership meeting on December 8, 2001 at The Woods Memorial Library to elected and appointed officers to it's board of directors for the upcoming year. Here, once again, are the results . . . President . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mark Koenig Secretary/Treasurer . . . . . . . . Doug Forester Vice President . . . . . . . . . . Ben Nead Member At Large . . . . . . . . . . Curtis Farrell Appointees selected for 2002 NAR Senior Section Advisor . . . . Jerry King Range Operations . . . . . . . . . Tony Gonzales This Board assumed office on January 1, 2002. **WEBSITE Much of this information is already posted on our website. Those of you reading this on email can go there directly by clicking the URL below . . . http://www.sararocketry.org When you get there, add it to your web browser as a bookmark or favorite. Check back often to keep yourself up to date with what SARA is up to. Even if you don't own a computer, you can visit your local public library and log on for free. Your librarian can help you connect to the SARA website if you are unsure how to do it. If you want additional information on our upcoming meetings, feel free to talk to a board member at the next launch. Benjamin Nead, SARA Membership Director/Vice President Elect ------------------------------------------------------------------------ **DECEMBER LAUNCH REPORT SARA attempted to have a FAA notification launch at TIMPA on December 15, 2001; however, the weather was against us with temperatures in the high 30s and low 40s, a ceiling of only a few hundred feet and fairly steady rain for most of the morning. The field and road became very slippery with mud. It was not possible to hold any formal launch. A group of Cub Scouts and parents came to participate in the launch. Steve Lubliner and Ben Nead spent considerable time talking rocketry with the group and they really were looking forward to being able to send up some of their rockets. Even through the drizzle three pads were set up at the ramada and with good fortune the weather broke for about an hour and around 30 flights were made. No formal records were kept; however, the scouts were all able to make several flights each. There was a beautiful rainbow in the northwest at one point. Many thanks to everyone who helped out with the launch. Jerry King, NAR Senior Section Advisor ----------------------------------------------------------------------- **SARA 2002 LAUNCH CALENDAR / TIMPA FIELD LAUNCH SITE Please note the correction of a typographical error from previous listings . . . May 19 instead of May 18. We may also have to reschedule one of our Fall 2002 launches so as not to conflict with a large R/C model airplane event already scheduled. Please check the SARA website for last minute updates on all launches. SATURDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2001 NOTIFICATION SUNDAY, JANUARY 27, 2002 NOTIFICATION SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2002 WAIVERED SUNDAY, MARCH 24, 2002 NOTIFICATION SATURDAY, APRIL 27, 2002 NOTIFICATION SUNDAY, MAY 18, 2002 WAIVERED SATURDAY, JUNE 22, 2002 NOTIFICATION SUNDAY, JULY 21, 2002 NOTIFICATION SATURDAY, AUGUST 24, 2002 WAIVERED SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2002 NOTIFICATION SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2002 NOTIFICATION SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2002 WAIVERED SATURDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2002 NOTIFICATION Notification launches are where SARA notifies The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that we will be flying models up to 3.3 pounds of launch weight and/or containing up to 4.4 ounces of propellant. Waivered launches are where The FAA grants approval to SARA to launch models that exceed the launch weight and/or propellant load noted above imposed by standard notification launch requirements. Our site dimensions support models that are limited to a maximum altitude of 4500 feet above ground level (AGL) and use a K impulse motor or less. The Winter launch window of 9:00am to 1:00PM is now in effect. This will be the standard launch window for our TIMPA events until the hot weather returns this next Summer. We then switch back to an 8:00AM to 12:00 Noon launch widow. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ **DIRECTIONS TO TIMPA FIELD LAUNCH SITE . . . . from I-10 and Speedway, Exit 257 . . . 1) Travel west on Speedway past all building developments. Proceed with caution as Speedway crests over Gates Pass and turns into Gates Pass Road. The road is very narrow, winding, and often used by bicyclists. Enjoy the view. 2) Continue on Gates Pass Road until it ends at the "T" intersection, Kinney Road. Turn right here as if you were headed towards the Desert Museum. At about 1 mile past the museum entrance (about 10 miles past I-10 and Speedway), Kinney Road changes it's name to Mile Wide Road. 3) The next intersection, about 6 miles past the Gates Pass/Kinney "T", is Sandario Road. Come to a complete stop as the north/south traffic does not. Proceed through, heading due west. You will eventually cross 2 bridges. After the 2nd bridge, Mile Wide Road turns into a dirt road. 4) At about 3.5 miles past the Mile Wide/Sandario intersection, Mile Wide Road makes a forced turn to the right and changes it's name to Reservation Road. You are now heading due north. 5) The main TIMPA Driveway (marked by a sign) is on the right at about 1 mile past the forced right turn. Go another 1/2 mile past this and turn onto the next right turn. At this point, you should be able to see rocket launching activity. Please park to the north or east of the launch range. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- **STANDARD LAUNCH PROCEDURES / SARA MEMBERSHIP Anyone may launch model rockets with NAR or Tripoli approved motor at a SARA launch. All models first require inspection by The Range Safety Officer (RSO) and a SARA flight card must be completely filled out for each individual launch. After this is done, the model and flight card can be taken to The Launch Control Officer (LCO). It is here that a launch pad will be assigned to you. A range fee of $5.00 is to be paid at the beginning of the launch day. This fee for SARA members is $3.00 for the day. For more information on SARA membership, please visit our website. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ **TIMPA FIELD USAGE Use of the TIMPA site is only permitted at club events or by prior arrangement. To access the TIMPA field outside of scheduled club events you must be either a current National Association of Rocketry (NAR) or Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA) member. The TIMPA caretakers have been instructed to call The PIMA COUNTY SHERIFF and to pursue trespassing charges if no previous arrangements exist. Tony Gonzales is The Range Operations Director for SARA. He can be reached at . . . tgonzo64@msn.com . . . or by phone at (520) 790-1006 Tony will need to know how many models you intend to launch as well as their respective launch weights and propellant loads. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ **FIRE SAFETY 1) Please note that there is NO SMOKING permitted on the range area. Smoking is only permitted on the dirt road adjacent to the launch site. Cigarette butts and ashes are to be placed in a metal container or ash tray. 2) Fire is something that needs to be taken seriously. If you see smoke or flames, yell it out loud and clear. If we have fire on the range, EVERYBODY needs to drop what they are doing and assist in containing the fire. There are water bottles, ABC rated fire extinguishers, and shovels on hand at every launch. The 55 gallon drum near the launch control area is also filled with water. 3) Unless you are using a Nomex parachute heat protection cloth in your rocket, you will need to use a FLAMEPROOF wadding of some sort. Toilet paper and paper towels are not acceptable. If you need clarification on what to use, check with the Range Safety Officer. Many flyers will have extra wadding on hand and they will be happy to lend you some. -------------------------------------------------------------------- **SPACE MODELING SOLUTIONS Pete Riddell and his wife of Space Modeling Solutions in Phoenix attend almost all of our launches and offer rocket kits, motors, and other hard to find building supplies. Contact Pete in the days leading up to the launch and he deliver that special order to you at the launch site . . . launch@smsrocketry.com . . . or by phone at (480) 497-1960 or by fax at (703) 832-3237
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