Southern Arizona Rocketry Association
Tucson, AZ
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------------------------------------------------------------------------ **HELLO AND WELCOME My apologies for not getting SARAnews out to all of you
earlier. In addition to several non-rocketry activities that suddenly popped up
out of nowhere that kept me away from my computer in late March and early April,
we went through a transition here at SARA concerning how these email messages
actually get sent out to you each month. The communication process has now been
streamlined considerably and I hope that all of you will be getting these email
messages in a more timely manner in the future. Included here you will find two
monthly flight reports, details of other SARA activities that have recently
transpired, and information on how you can voice you concerns about the future
of model rocketry to you elected officials in Washington. **CONGRESSIONAL ACTION MODEL ROCKETRY WEB SITE The weather is, once again, predicted to be great for this Saturdays launch but there are possibly stormy days ahead for our hobby. The United States Senate is currently seeing a debate that will effect how our high power model rocket flyers will be able to purchase, store, and transport ammonium perchlorate rocket motors and other materials associated with the sport. As currently drafted, the Safe Explosives provisions of the Homeland Security Act would place new restrictions on hobby rocketry that are due to be enacted in late May. One Senator, Mike Enzi, is coming to the defense of rocketry enthusiasts by proposing exemptions to the Safe Explosives provisions for hobbyists. This would allow for the use of these materials more or less as it is currently interpreted under existing law. Senator Enzi launched a letter writing campaign on February 28 to encourage the public to contact their Senators to let them know how they feel about this issue. To facilitate this effort a web site has been launched. Please visit it, bookmark it, and check back often as it is regularly updated . . . http://www.space-rockets.com/congress.html Contained on the website is a complete description of the
argument and what is being proposed. There is also information on how to
construct a positively written and business-like letter to your elected
representatives that will help convince them that hobby rocketry is worth
defending. The initial Senatorial letter writing campaign was conducted in late
February and others will follow shortly. Please check out the web site, bring
yourself up to speed, and act accordingly. **RECENT SARA SPECIAL ACTIVITIES SARA was planning on having a static display table at the air show at Davis Monthan Air Force the weekend of March 29th and 30th. For a variety of reasons, however, we decided to cancel our involvement. The most prominent factor in our decision was that the Air Force staff could not guarantee that our display models would be able pass through their explosive sniffing equipment successfully. The black powder residue inside the airframe tubes left over from ejection charges firings would be enough to set off their sniffers. Because of increased war time security measures, the air show organizers were not able to allow us to load our display models onto the base any earlier than 6:30 AM Saturday morning. It was conceivable that we would be denied access just hours before our display would be open to the public. We hope to be involved in future air shows at Davis Monthan when we can assured of being able to load in the night before and have our display materials pass any tests with suitable advance notice as we have been able to do in the past. The only announcement of this cancellation to our membership was a verbal one at the March 23rd launch. As this was happening, we also got word that the Donaldson
Elementary School was wishing SARA to be involved in their annual rocket days.
SARA participated in this two years ago with great success. As with the
cancellation of our involvement in the air show, the only real notification of
our involvement with Donaldson came verbally at the March Launch. I will, once
again, advance my apologies that word didn't get out to the general membership
via email as it should of under normal circumstances. We did, however, assemble
a small crew that was able to attend the building session on the evening of
Thursday, April 10, and the subsequent launch on Saturday, April 12. I was able
to make the launch to help out and witnessed over 170 models built by students
take to the air that morning. The school staff, parents, and students were very
pleased at the end result and will certainly have us back. Thanks to Steve
Lubliner for organizing the activities and to Jerry King and Doug Forester for
assisting. **MEMBERSHIP IN SARA This is the time of the year that we ask for our annual membership contributions. While anyone can participate in a SARA launch by paying the $5.00 daily TIMPA range fee, we encourage you to consider joining the club at any of the following annual levels . . . Junior (18 years or younger) . . . $10.00 Members pay only $3.00 for the daily TIMPA range fee so annual SARA membership basically pays for itself if you join and attend our monthly launches on a fairly regular basis. It should be noted that the range fee money that we collect DOES NOT get deposited in the SARA bank account but is handed directly over to TIMPA as payment for our use of the launch facility. The membership fees that we typically collect at the beginning of the calendar year, on the other hand, are what pays for SARA's anticipated annual operating expenses (NAR chapter membership, etc.) as well as any unexpected ones. SARA also reaches out to the public several times a year with youth oriented building sessions and static rocket displays at special events (such as the ones mentioned above). There is also the ongoing expense of maintaining and/or improving our launch equipment. We think that these activities and endeavors are important enough to ask for your annual financial support. Please consider renewing you existing SARA memberships or by joining up for the first time if you haven't already done so. There will be plenty of application forms on hand at the next few launches. Benjamin Nead, SARA Membership Director/ Vice President **WEB SITE The Southern Arizona Rocketry Association maintains a web site that details all of our club activities. It's always a good idea to check it to see if there is a last minute launch cancellation or other late breaking news . . . http://www.sararocketry.org Even if you don't own a computer, you can check our web
site for free by visiting your local public library. Library staff can also
provide assistance if you are unsure exactly how to dial up our web site from
one of their computer terminals. **FEBRUARY 2003 LAUNCH REPORT The Southern Arizona Rocketry Association held its monthly sport launch at the TIMPA site on February 22nd with an FAA waiver in place. Flying conditions were excellent with very clear skies, pleasant temperatures and minimal winds. There were a few holds required for aircraft in the area (including one which stayed close by practicing aerobatics). The PA system was most erratic and did not operate much of the time making for interesting unaided loud announcing of the launches (stressing vocal cords). Thirty fliers made 86 flights with 78 (91%) of them nominal although there were a few interesting events. There were 2 separations and 1 each tangle, early ejection, CATO, unstable flight, kicked motor and a cluster flight with only on motor igniting to cause a far, fast downrange flight path. Vince Hagerlin came all the way from Pierce to be our most active flier with 12 flights. Other activity was (#flights-#of fliers): 8-1, 5-1, 4-5, 3-5, 2-9, and 1-8. Motor use was 1/2A-2, A-15, B-24, C-28, D-13, E-3, F-4, G-3 and I-1. There was a large group of visiting parents with children who were active fliers. Dan Pendergrass had a nice flight of a Comanche III staged D-C-C, straight up and nearly out of sight with good staging. There were 3 cluster flights, 2 of them very nice and one with just one of two motors lighting. Kevin Houser flew his video transmitting rocket on a Pro 38 I 205 for a really nice flight. **MARCH 2003 LAUNCH REPORT SARA held a sport launch at TIMPA on March 23rd under really nice conditions with a FAA waiver effect. The author was not able to be present at the launch but has good notes by Ben Nead from which to make comments. The weather was fabulous without much wind and aircraft were cooperative although the field was apparently buzzed by an ultralight. Thirty four (34) people took advantage of the launch to make 98 flights with 85 (87%) nominal (clean). There were 6 separations, 2 no ejection and one each: CATO, tangled recovery device, no chute, unstable and a partial glider wing deploy. The most active flier was Dan Shinkel with 7 flights, other activity was (# flights each- # fliers): 6-2, 5-2, 4-8, 3-4, 2-8, and 1-9. Motor use was: 1/4A-1, A-6, B-17, C-42, D-11, E-15, F-9, G-3, H-3, and I-1. There were several notable flights. Eric W. Burch, Sr. had a successful Level 1 Certification flight using a PML Io with a Cesaroni Pro 38 H motor - Congratulations. There were 4 2-stage flight attempts and all were successful; Bryon Cheselka, Sid Clarke, Mariah Houser and Sandra Thompson all deserve acknowledgement as 100% success is rare. There were 3 successful 3-motor cluster flights with Sid Clarke achieving 2 and Jay Dickhous one. Eric,Jr and Michele Burch had a drag race with a 'photo finish'. Peter Riddell of SMS did a quick build of a Quest Astra at the field and had two clean flights. Thanks are due to all who helped with the range and to Ben Nead for providing the anecdotal information for this report. Gerald King, NAR Senior Section Advisor **2003 BOARD OF DIRECTORS This is the group of people that were elected or appointed
this past December that keep things running smoothly. President . . . . . . . . . . . Steve Lubliner If you are new to SARA, please feel free to introduce
yourself to any and all of the new and returning board officers or appointees at
the launch. **SARA 2003 LAUNCH CALENDAR / TIMPA FIELD LAUNCH SITE We now have the schedule for the TIMPA launches for the
calendar year 2003. SARA is now able to accommodate high power rocket models at
each scheduled launch. Each launch is now a Federal Aviation Administration Our first special event for the calendar year is the static display at the upcoming air show in March. We hope to do at least several non-launching activities like this in 2003 and we will add them to the calendar in future months. Please check the SARA web site for last minute updates on
all launches and events. We try to keep our calendar as up-to-date as possible
but there are always new events being added and the occasional last minute
substitution. We recommend confirming any last minute changes by visiting our
web site before making the long drive. SATURDAY, APRIL 19, 2003 8AM to 12NOON We have now reverted back to our warm weather 8:00AM to
12:00 NOON launch window starting with this Saturdays launch and this will
continue for the duration of the Summer. **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. Continue north for approximately another 1/4 mile. 6) The launch site entrance is on the right side of the
road and marked with a sign. Proceed with caution and park to the west of the
main launching activity. **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 . . . rangeops@mail.sararocketry.org .. . . 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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