Jon Skuba is the official vendor of Roadrunner G80's for the SSS. Tim gets them from Jon.

Warren

Yep, Skuba usually has a basket of 'em. He was out of the 7 second delay last weekend, but had the other delays...

Well, I left a wee bit early on Saturday but it looked like there was only a single SSS attempt? (unfortunately, it was unsuccessful). Wow... there is a proverbial bucket o' dollars if someone pooches up a flight that counts.

Probably better start talking about this now -- what if the contest ends with no qualifying flights? It is definitely possible that the remaining two launches could be cancelled due to weather. NCR might be done for the year. What then?

Interestingly, the SSSS has had most of the entrants do their thing. Fewer players, but the majority have flown. SSS has something like a dozen entrants, with only a couple of flights that I am aware of.

J

I think it bears discussion, but my take is that if no one flies this year then we should let the money ride-forward for the 2008 SSS. I don't like the idea of EVERYONE forfeiting.

Also, I talked to a number of people who entered and didn't fly. Everyone is held back by the likelihood of losing their rocket. Note that I didn't say possibility, I said likelihood. Almost all the folks I talked to said the SSS is over for them due to that one rule. Again, my perspective on this is to kill the "no-tracking" rule and allow people to use radio tracking or at least sonic beacons.

Ed was preparing to fly his SSSS just as I left at 3PM, but I don't know what the results were. I do know that the winds kicked up something fierce around 4PM so it may be that he never got the flight off.

Warren

You may be right on the tracking thing -- though that rule was clearly in place when a dozen or more flyers handed in their ante. Interesting. Next question, then -- if it rolls over, is it only open to those who were in it this year?

From my perspective (and remember, I am not in the contest) I think it should be one of the following:

a.) Split between those who tried and failed. A "zero" altitude with an attempt is better than not flying at all, IMHO

b.) Everyone gets their bucks back

c.) Rolled over with the same players, same rules, but let the guys (Kyle, Ed) who flew this year fly again next year. They should not be penalized because the timeline was extended.

I also think it is fair game for someone to go out and pop something up to 300' in November and claim the prize. This is, after all, a bit of a chess game....

Ed did fly. It was very strait, If I remember right he hit around 12,400 +/-

That was his SSSS - his SSS flew too, but he lost the nosecone and all the electronics (so no reported altitude)

We've had several successful SSSS shots, so I think we'll award the prize for that. If no one flies the SSS though, we'll roll it over and give everyone who paid up another shot.

W

I did get my SSS as well as the SSSS off on Saturday.

As Chris pointed out I lost the nose cone and altimeter on the SSS.

For the J350 SSSS I recorded recorded an altitude of 12361 and recovered 2 miles NNE. - but get this --- When I downloaded the MAWD flight data it started at a negative 1198 feet. Has anyone every seen this before?

Between this and John beating me, I REALLY want to fly again!

PerfectFlite miniAlt/WD
Firmware: 1.0
Software: 1.0
Ground: 05573
Apogee: 12361
NumSamps: 04234
Mach Delay: 00008
Main Deploy: 01100
Comments:

**!!Data:
-01198
-01155
-01046
-00970
-00894
-00807
-00709
-00621
-00522
-00412
-00323
-00212
-00134
-00022
00078
00202
00281
00394
00484
00575
00621

I as well flew my SSS. I think if none else flys we should give Ed and I another chance and move the pot over. Sorry for the loss electronics Ed, it definitly would have beat my 10 feet shot.

Between this and John beating me, I REALLY want to fly again!

Hey, it is about time 😉 Please make that cone available to Breck / Batman if he wants it? When you guys are done, go ahead and send it back to the land 'o corn..........

Hey, I really don't have a vote as I lost fair and square - But, if the pot were moved to next year it would sure help to achieve the original goal of a big incentive in order to generate lots of interest in the contest.

BTW, I emailed PerfectFlite about the reported negative altitude. Here's their response for those interested......

(IIRC the port is about 5/32" and about 7" aft of the base of the nosecone)

With high performance flights (especially if the static sampling hole is too large or too far forward) the pressure around the body tube will increase when the rocket is travelling at high speeds. This will shift the apparent altitude downward until the rocket slows and the pressure relieves. In extreme cases (such as yours) the apparent altitude can actually shift negative.

Your data also shows a massive spike when the apogee charge fires -- either a result of ejection gas getting into the av bay or again, a sign of an overly large (probably single) static port.

It looks like I'm probably out of the SSSS. My rocket just didn't pan out as built to accept tracking equipment. All the web material I read about tracking devices said to attach the transmitters to recovery harnesses, but I have since learned that is not a good way to go. As such I had not allocated any additional space in the rocket to house a transmitter. Ed and JW were very helpful and generous in offering equipment to borrow, but ultimately if I can't get my own 6:1 glass conical nose cone prior to the last launch I am hosed. I have ordered one, but no telling how long it will take to get.

It has been fun preparing for this flight and I have learned alot, which was one of the reasons I entered in the first place. There is more to min diameter altitude birds than I really understood at the outset. I will fly it on the J350 at some point, but I just can't afford to risk it without making the necessary modifications to accept proper tracking equipment.

just to let you know there are transmitters as small as a cigarette butt and even a little smaller. you really do not need that much room...