Rocketry Planet

AS ANOTHER YEAR'S SUMMER DRAWS TO A CLOSE, it becomes more apparent to me that things have changed in our world and unless we adapt, we are only going to suffer more collectively because of it. This year's LDRS had all the right ingredients ... if you happen to be a lizard.

Right off the bat, let me extend my praises to the Rocketry Organization of California, this year's LDRS host.  These individuals worked tirelessly to pull off a very successful event, even after being targeted by fate with attempts to inflict delays and personal damage.  Every attendee has spoken highly of the effort expended by ROC to make this a truly great launch.

But there were elements in play at LDRS this year that were not within the control of the hosts, elements that often were not within the control of any warm-bodied individual, namely: the weather, the environment, the markets, the economy.

Global warming is a frequently-used term and whether you are conditioned to tune it out as an over-abused buzz word or if you believe the situation is real and deserves more attention, the fact of the matter is that we are all exposed to extremes in the environment that are affecting the weather around us.

For the first time in my memory, warning notices on the official LDRS web site alerted possible attendees that the Bureau of Land Management would be on-site issuing citations for burn-ban violations with the added caveat, "even making arrests if necessary."  These are indeed treacherous times for our natural habitat, and the environmental regulatory agencies are obviously playing for keeps.

All across America, every day, millions and millions are still reeling from the high cost of gasoline this past summer. That high cost takes its toll on everyone daily as the price of consumer goods slowly creep upward to try and absorb the gasoline price increases. Between paying at the pump and paying even more at the register, America is taking a hit from all sides, with the result being even less money left over at the end of the day for personal pursuits of happiness.

Giant dust cloud covering this year's LDRS launch site. Photo: D. Griffith.

Fortunately for lizards, they aren't affected by the high cost of gasoline, the ever-oppressive heat or the ever-changing regulatory environment, but unfortunately we humans are.  Even though the people of ROC did an outstanding job hosting this year's event, and they should be commended for the job they did, it was the things beyond their control that could stand consideration for future Tripoli events.

Since the inception of LDRS, the emphasis has been around the one national launch held each year by the Tripoli Rocketry Association, usually at the height of summer, allowing participants from all over the country to make the trek during peak vacation time. One of the unfortunate things about holding a launch at this time of year is that the peak of summer usually also means the peak of annual high temperatures.

Couple the high heat with the high cost of gasoline, and you have the perfect recipe for lower turnouts and less money to spend at the event, the rockets you build to fly there and the motors you would use to get them up. This year's event was a good example: record heat in the Nevada desert combined with a lower than expected turnout resulted in less flights, less products purchased from attending vendors and a lower overall performance than events held in the past. By Saturday morning, some vendors were running 25% off of everything specials. Certainly the regulatory environment was a considering factor in that result, but perhaps it's simply time for a change.

Lower participation means lower sales. Lower sales means less vendors. Lower sales and less vendors means bad news for the manufacturers, and combined with the regulatory environment, the high costs of fuel, and other equally important considerations, it all spells lower membership numbers for the national organizations. It's time to change directions, before we lose another vendor, before we lose another manufacturer, before we lose another member to considerations that we can't control. It's time to grow this hobby by changing what we can control.

The 2008 LDRS event will be held in Argonia, Kansas, hosted by the Kloudbusters. This will be the fifth time the Kloudbusters have hosted the event. Anyone who has been to Argonia will tell you that it can be as hot as Jean Dry Lake, but the important difference here is the time of year it is scheduled to be held: over the Labor Day Weekend. This year's A.I.R.Fest at Argonia recorded a weather report on Saturday of 86 degrees and sunny — hot, but not as hot as it would be if held in July when LDRS has traditionally been held. Holding the LDRS event over the Labor Day weekend opens the entire summer calendar up to finding some shade and a cooler environment. 

But more importantly, holding the LDRS event over the Labor Day weekend gives Tripoli the opportunity to makes some important structural, operational and logistical changes to their "national launch" focus. With LDRS scheduled to be held on Labor Day, this is the perfect time for Tripoli to expand their "national launch" structure to include several national launches that move around to various regional areas, expanding the opportunity that more participants are likely to participate in several events as opposed to everyone trying to make it to the one major event given the cost of gasoline and other financial factors.

Face it, if you can get a new member to an LDRS, chances are they will become a long-term participant, as the event seems to solidify the hobby to new members. Why not spread that excitement to two or three locations, giving the opportunity to solidify that many more new members and grow this hobby? There are prefectures all across the nation who hold large regional events, now is the time for TRA to partner with them such as they are with the Kloudbuster's 2008 A.I.R.Fest event, which will be held in conjunction with LDRS in 2008. 

In the past, TRA has depended upon the submission of written requests by groups offering to host the next year's LDRS event, and often times only one solitary group submission was available to be reviewed and accepted by the board.  By partnering with established regional events, there is no longer a need to depend on finding a receptive group to submit a request offering to sponsor the next year's event.

Since LDRS 2008 is already on the books for Labor Day next year, it should behoove Tripoli to add at least two other events to their national calendar. The Florida Winternationals is an obvious choice since next year it falls in the month of February, eight months prior to LDRS' 2008 date. This opens up another nationally-sanctioned, regionally-operated launch that could be held around Memorial Day 2008. I immediately think of the folks at MDRA, or the folks in Washington/Oregon or perhaps even another Black Rock event.

This concept isn't new, but its timing is right. It's not even new to the rocketry community, as the concept has been championed before. Perhaps the timing wasn't right then, but it's better now. It's worked for the drag racing community for years, it works for college basketball every March, and it could work for hobby rocketry as well. Let's make the environment work with us instead of against us, and leave the lizards to find their own futures, perhaps participating in GEICO commercials but not at our launches.

Darrell D. Mobley is the editor of Rocketry Planet. You may reach him by email at This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it . If you would like to comment publicly, post your response below.