SEARS held its monthly launch on March 13 at Green’s Sod Farm. It was too windy to fly rockets but some of us were brave (foolish) enough to try anyway. Saucers and streamer rockets were good choices. The monthly event was Maiden Launch. Rick Gutknecht won the draw with an Applewhite Flying Disk. This little paper saucer flies on an E motor and tumbles down.

  The Samson TARC team continues to improve their design. They used a triple D-12 cluster in a BT-80 rocket with enough streamer to rope off a crime scene. Richard Crews grilled burgers and dogs to raise funds for the team.

  Tom MacPherson was undaunted by the winds and took frequent flyer award. His mid-power fleet barely stayed in sight on F and G motors. An Aerotech Barracuda was the only casualty to the winds. It was last seen drifting towards the Gulf of Mexico to join other fish of its namesake.  Tom achieved NAR L1 with a Madcow Seawolf. It weather-cocked at liftoff which made it look like a real guided missile.

  Going over the flight cards, It seems we have neglected other recent certification recognitions from previous launches.  Gabe Doering achieved NAR L1 and L2 on the same day in his “Dr Evil” LOC Minnie Mag. I guess he couldn’t fit an M motor in it. Andy Mosely achieved L1 on a Giant Leap rocket. Nicholas Hall achieved L1 on a PML Ariel. Bruce Heath achieved L1 on a Performance Little Dog. He also set a PD record with an oversized chute on this flight. Tim Morgan has quickly progressed to L2 in preparation for USLI competition. Congratulations to all and welcome to the club!

  Greg Lane flew a nice assortment of saucers. Riley Worring flew his Estes Outlaw several times switching from a chute to a streamer after its 1^st flight. Randy Folts flew an Estes Star Striker. Marty Wiggins flew an Estes Big Daddy. Bill Bosely flew a Quest Penetrator. I flew some odd rocs and streamer rockets. My DD Mean Machine reached 2771’ on an H motor.

  Chris Short flew the flight of the day in his Auburn War Eagle. Richard Crews transported all the spectators along with the 20’ tall rocket to the away cell in his limousine.  Loki Research provided a sparky M demo motor for propulsion. The flight was spectacular and recovered safely on the field.

Tripoli will be hosting a research launch at the Sears field in Samson Al, on March 14^th. You must be a Tripoli member to fly at the launch, and L2 or higher to fly research motors. Everyone is welcome to come and watch. We are expecting two USLI teams to come with their university rockets.  The launch will start around 9:30, and will last all day. Please note, research launches are more laid back, less rockets launched, and mostly high power stuff. Something could go boom too. We will have at least a high power pad with small rail and probably a large rail as well. If you wish to fly Estes, bring your own pad please. There will be a $10 range fee.

Chris Short

TRA 10247 L3 TAP

Prefect #38

The next monthly S.E.A.R.S. Launch is
Saturday March 13th at Samson, AL. We setup at 8:30 AM, the waiver
opens for launches at 9:00 AM. We usually go until about 4:00 PM.
Beginners are welcome. Bring the whole family!. Everyone is also
invited to Crews BBQ in Samson after the launch. For more info
see http://www.sears572.com/sears-launch-info   

Launch Events:

• General: Maiden Flight Day
• Youth: Decorate A Rocket Contest
• Challenge: Kit Mash, build a rocket from two or more commercial
  kits.
• Advanced: Fly a Hybrid Rocket

Use a green flight card for any event flight and you will entered
for a draw from the prize pool.

Looking forward to TARC Teams and USLI Teams attending!
Greg Lane

SEARS President

The Feb 20^th SEARS launch at Green’s sod farm was the best launch that we’ve had this year. We had clear skies, cool temperatures, and no wind. We had many new flyers, HPR certifications and student teams. I am writing this from memory, so please forgive me if I forget to mention your noteworthy flights.

We will move the Feb 13th Samson launch one week to Saturday Feb 20th. The sun will be out but the field has recieved a large amount of moisture today. We do not want to risk damage to the field. The South Alabama guys said the extra week would help them get their final rocket ready. Unfortunately this is a hardship on Chris Short and his work schedule . Please contact him about motors.

As always check your email or the web site before heading out to the launch. Please let anyone who may not get this email know about the change.

Thanks,

Greg Lane
SEARS President

The next monthly S.E.A.R.S. Launch is Saturday February 13th at Samson, AL.  Beginners are welcome. Bring the whole family!. Everyone is also invited to Crews BBQ in Samson after the launch. For more info see http://www.sears572.com/sears-launch-info

The special event theme is egg loft day. Fly any of the special events on a green flight card and your card may be selected in the 3 PM drawing for a pick from the prize pool.

• General Event: Egg Loft Day (fly any egg loft rocket)
• Youth Event: Decorate eggs as Eggstronauts and have a picture taken for web site.
• Challenge Event: Egg Loft Duration (without cracking the egg)

The launch is on for 10AM to 3PM due to the cold weather. The potty will not be serviced. We will scale down launch gear. Dress for the weather multiple layers consider long johns and definitely something for the head covering the ears.

The next monthly S.E.A.R.S. Launch is Saturday January 9th at Samson, AL.  Beginners are welcome. Bring the whole family!. Everyone is also invited to Crews BBQ in Samson after the launch. For more info see http://www.sears572.com/sears-launch-info

General: Streamer Day
       Youth: Make a colorful streamer and fly in a rocket
       Challenge: Streamer duration contest
       Advanced: Land a egg payload with a streamer

Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas!

 All,

To all, the Pea River has flooded the sod farm, therefore the launch is off.  See you all on 9 January 2010 for our next launch. 

Greg 

JonRocket.com’s Virtual Vendor program offers discounts to SEARS and its members.  The Virtual Vendor program offers 5% off our regular discounted prices on orders up to $50, 10% off on orders of $50 to $250, and 15% off on orders over $250.  These discounts are available to each club member as well as on group orders and are in addition to our Free Shipping offer (we offer free shipping on orders of $40 or greater).  We encourage your club members to get together and place one large order to get free shipping and a larger discount.  It’s almost as good as having a rocketry vendor on-site.

In addition, we’ll keep track of the total amount of orders your club generates. We’ll use this information to occasionally provide rewards to  your club.  These rewards may include things such as special offers for your members or free merchandise for use as club prizes or fundraisers. We  will also work with your club to fill any special requests.

SEAR’s special Coupon Code is VV-SEARS.  The proper discount will be applied to the order by entering the Coupon Code on the payments page when checking out of JonRocket.com’s online store.

 Roger (and Bracha)
 jonrocket.com