LDRS 19 BOWLING BALL LITE CONTEST


 

At LDRS 2000 the Arizona High Power Rocketry Association sponsored a contest to loft an eight-pound bowling ball to the highest altitude using a K motor.

The Bowling Ball Loft was first proposed in 1996 by other AHPRA members and myself. We were trying to come up with a standard payload for a large high power rocket that would be available everywhere and inexpensive. Other objects where suggested but the 16 pound bowling ball was the final choice. The original rules were for parachute duration using ANY motor. Parachute duration was selected at that time over altitude as it is easier to time the flights and there is no argument over altimeter accuracy. This was announced at LDRS 15 at Orangeburg to a roar of laughter.

At BALLS that year Jim Cornwell and I brought rockets using O motors. Jim's rocket flew well and was recovered; however the parachute on the ball was tangled and did not deploy. The ball was in the air for over four minutes. I did not launch my entry due to weather. I later flew it at Flagstaff, AZ were it was aloft for 22 minutes. TRA members made other flights over the year using smaller motors.

Rocketman, AHPRA and NERO sponsored the BALLS 98 launch. We had more and bigger entries. The motor of choice this time was the ARM P 6500. Brandy Bruce Sharp, Mike Hobbs and I each had an entry. Flights to nearly 30,000 feet were made with 9" diameter rockets. They were beset with problems and no records were set.

For the year 2000 we decided to bring bowling balls to the masses at LDRS. The unlimited parachute duration event was totally unsuitable for the site in South Carolina so changes in the rules were made. Originally K550's were to be the only motor allowed but due to requests from those who use other brands this was changed to any certified K. Parachute duration was changed to altitude to keep the rockets out of the trees and corn. The weight of the ball was reduced to eight pounds. Eight pounds with a K motor seems like a lot, but to have the equivalent weight as a NAR B payload rocket a K motor would have to loft 32 pounds! With the new rules in hand we contacted the host club and received their approval.

THE ROCKETS

The entries this year came from two schools of thought. One used the ball as a nose cone and the other had the ball streamlined in some manner. All had the ball exposed.

In the ball nose cone group the main body of the rocket went from Mark Ketchum with a 5.38 tube with a boat tail and four fins to "The Rocket Reverend" Brad Wilson had a 7.6 tube for the parachute with a step transition to 54mm. Wayne Anthony had the ball for a cone but the rest of the rocket looked like a cartoon bomb, cool. Jeff Taylor used an airframe he had lying around and just put the coupler on the ball to attach it. The team of Tonya Sanders and Jamey Jenkins, AKA Kool Kones, entry was painted with rock paint!

The other group, the nose cone guys, there were three. Derek Deville had a beautiful green rocket that matched the ball he was using. It looked kind of like a 7.5" V-2 with an 8.5" ball in the center . Along the same line, but more far out was Chris Holland with a 54 mm rocket with the ball in the middle. My entry used a cone that partially covered the ball like a hat and was only 37 inches long. For recovery most used Rocketman parachutes.

THE PRIZES

We had a wonderful response to our requests for prizes. Everyone who flew a rocket got a prize, even the less successful ones. There were no losers. The vendors and manufacturers, which donate prizes to events like this and for raffle prizes at launches, are the ones who really support the hobby. They give something back and are the ones we should support.

When AHPRA started planning for this contest it was decided that the members of the Prefecture would not be eligible for prizes, this was to eliminate any controversy. The other competitors did not know this until the prizes were awarded.

Results & Problems

All the rockets flew from the away cell at the "pivot". The rods or rails were pointed down range and a member of AHPRA accompanied them to the pad. Before this they had to fill out an entry form with all the information of the rocket and have CP-CG and predicted altitude printouts and then be RSO'ed by at least two members of AHPRA.

Greg Pebbles was the brave soul that stepped up to fly first with his rocket "Know Fear". The flight looked good but the ball was lost, a welded stainless steel ring in the recovery system failed.

Following this we had a long string of good flights, all of the rockets went very straight.

I had an ejection failure with my entry, "Thunder Ball JR"; I did turn on the altimeter this time. On postmortem of the parts upon arriving home I found there was unburned black powder in the ejection charges. This could have been due to the humidity.

Wayne Anthony's BBX-8A Blunderbuss "Death From Above" was a shred. It was all carbon and was quite strong. It is believed to be a victim of flutter of the highly swept fins. Fin flutter is a major cause of shreds; it can be hard to predict but with long swept fins it is more prevalent.

With each of these flights successful and unsuccessful we learn something. Even with the problem flights there was no debris other than a fin that landed on the near side of the pivot road.

The highest flight was by an AHPRA member Mark Ketchum; "Bowled Over" made it to 4833 feet. Mark was the one who had suggested no prizes to the club members, sorry.

The winning rocket was Jeff Taylor's "The Eleventh Frame" with an altitude of 4275'. The first place prizes where a Kosdon East 6000 NS M motor casing and a Rocketman R9 parachute. Jeff is planning for his level three rocket and this will really help.

Second prize went to Derek Deville with "Cat's Eye", 3869', winning him a Dr. Rocket 54 mm motor casing set (This is the one with the 4 cases!) and a Rocketman R9 parachute. Brad Wilson's prayers worked and his " Scarlet to White" made it to 3629' and a Rocketman R7 and an Aerotech 54/2560 case for third. Fourth place for a Extreme Rocketry subscription and T-shirt plus a Scotglas 4" mosquito type nose cone was our team entry "Special Kay by Kool Kones" made by Tonya Sanders and Jamey Jenkins, 3717'. Fifth place, and the last completely sucsessfull flight, was Chris Holland at 3400'. He won from Shadow Composites a video tape and "remove before flight " ribbons and from Black Sky their new Ejector charge holder.

Greg Peebles, whose bowling ball rests some where in the sod, won a Shadow Composites a video tape and "remove before flight " ribbons for his effort. Black Rock technologies sent a T-shirt for a prize for the most "anxious moment". For those out at the away cell when Wayne Anthony's rocket came down it was quite the "moment" although all parts landed in the far field. Wayne also got a Rocketman drogue because of the size of the parts returning this is all the parachute he required.

Motors- single use vs. reloadable

The choice of motor was interesting. While a small percent of large motors regularly used are single use motors, the Aerotech K 1050 was in six of the nine flights. The single use motors are normally lighter than the Reloadables of the same power and weight is a big factor for altitude in this event. There were two Kosdon East K 777 used and one Aerotech K 560.

Next Year

Next year at LDRS 20 we will be holding the same contest. The rules will be the same, eight-pound ball with certified K motors for altitude. Although the field conditions at Lucerne would allow motors larger than K motors we are trying to keep the cost to a level at which the average Tripoli member can afford. We will also continue to do the 16-pound unlimited motor parachute duration at the BALLS launch at Black Rock.

Mark Clark

 

Photos from

Granddaddy of HPR kit manufactures!!

 

Wayne Anthony's BBX-8A Blunderbuss "Death From Above" was a shred. It was all carbon and was quite strong. It is believed to be a victim of flutter of the highly swept fins.

Mark Clark had an ejection failure with his entry, "Thunder Ball JR"; He did turn on the altimeter this time. On postmortem of the parts upon arriving home he found there was unburned black powder in the ejection charges. This could have been due to the humidity

 

The highest flight was by an AHPRA member Mark Ketchum; "Bowled Over" made it to 4833 feet. Mark was the one who had suggested no prizes to the club members, sorry.

"The Rocket Reverend" Brad Wilson had a 7.6 tube for the parachute with a step transition to 54mm. His prayers worked and " Scarlet to White" made it to 3629' to win a Rocketman R7 and an Aerotech 54/2560 case for third place.

Granddaddy of HPR kit manufactures!!

 

 

Home

Launches Meetings BALLS  Bowling Ball Loft

XRAA Pictures Contact AHPRA Links Join AHPRA