- 6 April, 2006 -

Welcome to the exciting hobby of flying model rockets. Growing up, I was an avid follower of the NASA space program. I dreamt of being an astronaut . Too young to be in orbit, I still wanted to believe I was a part of the space program. I joined the space community by building and flying my own model rockets. My first rocket was the thrilling Estes Alpha. It was quickly built, but I didn't have a launch pad or controller. A quick trip to the hobby store and finally, I could go out with my friends and launch my Alpha. Things are even easier today. Go to your local HobbyTown USA? and purchase the Estes Alpha III Starter Set. It comes with everything you need to start your own space program ? a launch pad and controller, two rocket engines, and of course, the Estes Alpha III rocket. The launch pad has three legs for stabilizing your rocket prior to launch. A mount holds the rocket to the launch rod to keep it from falling over. The other reason for using a launch rod is to make sure the rocket is going straight up. A model rocket is aerodynamically stabilized ? it's not stable until there's air moving over the fins. The launch rod allows the rocket to be moving fast enough to be stable by the time it reaches the end of the launch rod. You have a safe, stable, and straight-up launch. The launch pad also has a blast deflector, which does two things. First it allows you to position the rocket on the launch rod. Second, it is a safety thing. When the rocket engine fires, a flames shoots out of the nozzle providing the thrust needed to make the rocket fly. We don't want that flame to hit the ground and start a fire, so the blast deflector redirects the exhaust away from the ground. When you fly rockets, it's still a good idea to have a fire extinguisher just in case you need it. One more thing finishes off the launch pad ? a swivel mount to hold the launch rod in place. It can be angled into the wind to make recovery easier. But don't go over 20 degrees of launch angle or it may not go up in a safely controlled manner. Both Tripoli Rocketry Association and the National Association of Rocketry safety codes do not allow for an angle greater than 20 degrees. Get lots of engines and experiment. You'll quickly learn the best angle to use. You can even write a program on your computer to help you estimate how much to set the angle for flying your rocket based on the wind speed. Estes rockets and motors are safe because they're fired electrically from a safe distance with the launch controller. When not in use, the safety key has a plastic part that fits on the top of the launch rod. Put this on the launch rod whenever there is no rocket on the pad. This way the safety key is not near the launcher and you know where it is. When you want to fly a rocket, take it to the pad, remove the safety key and put it in your pocket. Then mount the rocket on the launch rod and connect the launch controller wires to the rocket engine. Only you can launch the rocket when you are safely at the launch controller. After you've connected the controller to the rocket engine, walk the controller back to the full length of the wire away from the rocket. Then take the safety key out of your pocket and install it into the controller. The continuity light will come on telling you that the circuit through the igniter is complete, your batteries are good and you can launch the rocket. If the continuity light does not come on, then you might need new batteries, or one of the clips came off the rocket engine. Always remove the key and take it with you when you go to check to see if the wires are correctly connected to the rocket engine. When you buy the Estes Alpha III starter set, keep the box it comes in. It has a punch out handle and converts into a range box to carry your pad, launcher, rockets, engines and supplies to the launch site. Oh boy, I almost forgot the Estes Alpha III rocket! It's quite simple to build. I just assembled one, complete and ready to fly with decals in 20 minutes. It'll probably take you a little longer to build. I've built hundreds of Estes rockets and know exactly what to do, but I always follow the instructions in case of a design change. You should as well, so you can quickly assemble your Alpha III rocket. I noticed the latest enhancement to the Alpha III, a precut parachute with the shroud lines attached. Good job, Estes! In the future I will go into more detail on rocket construction, tricks and techniques. The Estes Alpha III is a great first rocket. Just follow the instructions and it will turn out fine. Okay, let's finish my first rocket story. My mom took us to a big empty field and we set up the launcher. I packed the parachute, put in an Estes ? A6-2 engine (I will tell you all about engines in the future), and put the rocket on the pad. I put the safety key in my pocket and connected up the igniter. I went back to the launch controller, looked around to make sure everything was ready and installed the safety key. My mom started the countdown and we all counted, 5-4-3-2-1 Launch! I pushed the button, the engine came to life, and my Estes Alpha roared off the pad. Seconds later the ejection charge went off, out came the parachute and my rocket gently came back to earth ready to fly again.- Bruce Lee Bruce Lee has been flying rockets for 40 years. He's the President of THOR - The Heartland Organization of Rocketry, on the Board of Directors for the Tripoli Rocketry Association, and the Local Section Leader for the National Association of Rocketry. Bruce's televised rocketry projects include: National Geographic Explorer, Extreme Machines, Junk Yard Wars, Rocketry Challenge and Master Blasters (soon to be released). Also coming up is a show called 77 Miles Up, where Lee was on the team with the first amateurs to put a rocket into space. His biggest rocket was 30 feet tall and weighed 600 pounds, a 1/3 scale Mercury Redstone. His wackiest rocket :a flying Porta-Potty, a real one with fins, motors and parachutes. Bruce's web page is www.brucewlee.com HobbyTown USA

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