Born Again Rocketeer

I started putting together the Python a week later and worked on it over the course of January - indulging in every part of the process, savoring the enjoyment of the build. Finally, I'd completed the model and, after taking a couple pictures of it, I let it sit on top of a cabinet for the next six months.

One day in late August, I walked into the room where the Python sat and it caught my eye. It seemed to be saying: "Launch me, you've been waiting and now I'm ready. Launch me." I agreed that a launch was long overdue and immediately ordered a Quest launch kit (I like the Quest launch controller better than the Estes one) and some rocket engines (B6-4, C6-5) from Apogee.com. They arrived no time and I was ready for flight.

I spent a few weeks trying to find the perfect launch site. I live near the bay so the wind is a little high (in excess of 7 miles an hour usually) around my place. I decided that heading south, further inland, might get me a better location. I remembered a junior high school baseball field near my parents house. Once when paying my folks a visit, I scouted the location. With the exception of a few trees nearby, it seemed perfect.

Last weekend I grabbed my beautiful girlfriend, jumped in the Solara with the top down, and drove the half-hour to my parent's house. I commissioned my brother to come along and the three of us drove the couple blocks to the field. Again, I was indulging in the process. I slowly readied the rocket and launch pad savoring every tiny moment. I packed the Python with wadding, stuffed in the parachute, set up an engine and igniter and placed it on the launch pad.

My count down started... 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... LAUNCH! It was a rush, just as it had been when I was twenty years younger. The whoosh of the rocket taking off, the silent, smoky, coast as it soared to its apogee and the pop as the ejection charged deployed the 'chute. I knew before the rocket had reached the ground that I was hooked again!

I launched the rocket five more times that day. After the third time the ejection had melted two of the parachute's shrouds. Unfortunately I had nothing to to repair it with (gimme a break - I'm born again and still "new" to this). Fortunately, the drag cause by the "streamer" effect of the broken parachute was enough to recover it safely so I launched it another three times!

Now, as a recent B.A.R, I've been buying all the "vintage" Estes rockets I can get my hands on (and I've found a few). I even purchased and Aerotech Initiator to get my feet wet in the mid-power segment.

I'm liking model rocketry even more in my adult years than I did when I was younger. I've got the money to buy the rockets I always wanted, the build process is a great stress reducer, and who doesn't honestly love the launch?

The next steps in my rebirth are a membership in the National Rocketry Association (NAR), progression through NAR's Rocket Skills Program, and of course building and launching many, many more model rockets!