Southern Arizona Rocketry Association
Tucson, AZ
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------------------------------------------------------------------------ **HELLO AND WELCOME / POSSIBLE LAUNCH CANCELLATION The July 2002 edition of SARA News is being delivered earlier than usual this month for a couple of reasons. First and foremost is the possibility that, because of ongoing historic drought conditions and the resulting extreme fire danger, we may have to cancel our July 21st launch. We came to this decision at our board meeting. Noting that all public fireworks displays in Tucson were cancelled for Independence day and with a massive wildfire burning in the White Mountains, we decided that this was the prudent thing to do. As I write this on the evening of July 6th, weather forecasts indicate that we MAY finally be getting our monsoon rain next week. Let's hope so! If the downpour is sufficient to moisten the ground over the next couple of weeks, we will be launching on the 21st as usual. If, however, the conditions remain dry and we don't receive sufficient rain, we will be forced to postpone the launch. Regardless of what we end up doing, you will receive another email from us in the days leading up to that weekend. Also . . . check our web site for updated information . . . http://www.sararocketry.org Once we DO finally get back into the air, we will lift all bans that were previously in effect on clustered and multi-staged models. We also were recently granted FAA waivered status on all of our monthly launches. There is a lot of great launches to look forward to soon. **BUILDING SESSION AT PIMA AIR & SPACE MUSEUM ON JULY 20. Even if our launch is cancelled for this month, SARA is sponsoring a special event that is of interest. Between the hours of 10AM to 3PM on Saturday July 20, SARA volunteers will be on hand at The Pima Air & Space Museum to assist youth between the ages of 7 and 12 assemble a model rocket. A large air conditioned classroom at The Challenger Learning Center is being provided. Rocket kits are donated by Classic Hobbies through an arrangement with The Estes Corporation. We held an event like this last Summer and it was a great success. Almost 100 models were assembled August 11, 2001. The local press agencies gave us newspaper, radio, and television coverage leading into and following the event. The Museum had exceptionally good attendance that day. Needless to say, we decided then that we would do another one this Summer. This year, we were able to schedule it on July 20th . . . the anniversary of the 1969 Apollo 11 lunar landing. We currently have around 6 volunteers scheduled for this year's event but we can certainly use more help. Even if you don't want to "get your fingernails dirty" doing the building we still have things that you can do to help us. For instance, you can help at our display table by dispensing SARA brochures. Or . . . do you have a nice model that you would like to display at The Museum that afternoon? If you can assist us in any way please don't hesitate to contact me. I will need to know your availability this week or as soon as possible. Thanks! Benjamin Nead, SARA Membership Director/ Vice President (520) 624-7870 mcnead@earthlink.net --------------------------------------------------------------------------- **2002 BOARD OF DIRECTORS Here are the folks that keep everything running. If you are new to SARA, please feel free to introduce yourself to any and all of the board officers and appointees at the next launch. President . . . . . . . . Mark Koenig Appointees selected for 2002 NAR Senior Section Advisor . . Jerry King JUNE 2002 LAUNCH REPORT The Southern Arizona Rocketry Association (SARA) held a launch on June 22, 2002 at the TIMPA site with a FAA waiver in effect. Flying conditions were good with regard to weather and airplanes, but the conditions were very hazardous with the possibility of fire. Seventeen (17) fliers took advantage of the opportunity to make 49 flights of which 39 (80%) were clean. This showing is again below our usual success rate. There were 3 tangled recovery devices, 2 separations, and one each: CATO, unstable flight, lawn dart, partial deploy and no deploy. Anthony Sostarich made the most flights with 7 and the remainder of the activity was (# flights each-# fliers): 4-4, 3-4, 2-6, and 1-2. The heat and shortage of mid and high power motors kept the launch activity level low for a waivered launch. Motor use with: 1/4A-1, A-3, B-4, C-13, D-11, E-5, F-5, G-4, H-1 and I-2. We had many new faces participating in the launch, both young and old, and
several observers who might well become active fliers in the future. Among the
names I did not recognize from previously Jerry King, NAR Senior Section Advisor **SARA 2002 LAUNCH CALENDAR / TIMPA FIELD LAUNCH SITE Here is the launch schedule for the remainder of the calendar year. All of scheduled launches will be conducted at the TIMPA launch site unless otherwise noted. SARA is now able to accommodate high power rocket models at each scheduled launch. Each launch is now an Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) waivered event. Waivered launches are where The FAA grants approval to SARA to launch models that are limited to a maximum altitude of 4500 feet above ground level (AGL) and use a K impulse motor or less . . . restrictions imposed by our launch site dimensions. As mentioned above, the July 21st launch will be cancelled if we don't get sufficient rain before then to alleviate the fire danger. Please consider attending and/or assisting at our build session on July 20th at The Pima Air & Space Museum. We may 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, JULY 20, 2002 SUNDAY, JULY 21, 2002 (POSSIBLY CANCELLED) The Summer launch window of 8:00AM to 12:00PM is now in effect. This will be
the standard launch window for our TIMPA events until the cooler weather returns
this next Fall. We then switch back to a 9:00AM to 1:00PM 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.
We now have a collapsible sign posted on launch days at the intersection. Please
park to the east of the launch range. **STANDARD LAUNCH PROCEDURES 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. **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 Tony Gonzales is The Range Operations Director for SARA. He can be reached at . . . tgonzo64@myecel.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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