1. We are planning to have summer launches - the first on Saturday 21 June 2014 at Buder Park. Additional launches are planned for the third Saturday of July, August, and September. With our recent work with the Science Center, we may have access to a much better field than Buder Park so stay tuned to the web site for additional details.

The launch on 21 June will have setup starting at 8:00 am with the launch starting at 9:00 am. We plan to fly to around 1:00 PM. Everyone is welcome to attend and fly rockets at Buder park. You do not have to be a club member or a member of the NAR or Tripoli and kids are always welcome with adult supervision.  This is a perfect place to get acquainted with the club, the national organizations (NAR or Tripoli) and learn the safe way to fly rockets. The park is not large which limits the size and power of models flown with the ultimate limit being a 3.3 lb rocket. We encourage much smaller models though because of the proximity to the Meramac river and the need to avoid landing on the R/C field which we share access. Flights over 1000 feet are allowed, but unlikely to be recoved safely if any wind is present at all so please ask if you have concerns about loosing your rocket.

Everyone who flies with us must also realize that the St. Louis County Parks requires organizations that fly there to have some form of insurance and we will be covered by NAR insurance which will protect our club and members and the property at Buder park as an NAR sanctioned launch. However, anyone flying without being members of NAR or Tripoli will not be insured directly and must fly under supervision of an SLRA member who is a member of either NAR or Tripoli. We will need to make sure all launches occur under the NAR safety code and must supervise the prep of the rockets for anyone not a member of NAR or Tripoli.  We are glad to do that - so feel welcome. It is to your benefit to eventually join either of the national organizations which will then cover your rocketry activity under their insurance - even at other locations. We  want you to try out the hobby first and to have fun flying with your family in a safe environment - as long as all the safety rules are followed. Members of the Boy Scouts or Cub Scouts and their leaders are covered by Tripoli insurance as long as the NAR safety rules are followed. If you have any questions please ask - you can comment on this post or email the club at admin@stlouisrocketry.com.

2. We had a lessons learned session with Dave Kovar after the very successful Apollo 11 45th Anniversary event with the Science Center and Missouri STEM organization. Dave Kovar (who organized the event) handed out Gene Kranz signed "Foundations of Mission Control" certificates to the club volunteers who helped out. Dave provided the following info on the history of the "Foundation of Mission Control":

"After the Apollo 1 fire, he (Gene Kranz) and others developed a charter, "Foundations of Mission Control." It was a contract or code of conduct, which in the NASA human spaceflight world was the closest thing to the Ten Commandments. Foundations very clearly spelled out the values, expectations and responsibilities that each and every employee in Mission Control was expected to understand, believe and live as a member of the NASA team.

As is the case with many others at NASA, I have a copy of Foundations on my bulletin board at United Space Alliance, where I am almost 10 years into my leadership role with the company. Foundations serves as a constant reminder of the traits of a competent and respected leader … one ultimately responsible for the outcome of their decisions. This is the kind of leader I aspire to be."

The event was very successful and hope to have similar events in the future to support science education and STEM. Thanks Dave Kovar for organizing the event.

3. We have not yet set up a fall launch schedule for Elsberry and high power rockets. We anticipate flying at Elsberry in October and John Buckley will hold another "October Fly" contest. Look for more details on the web site in the coming months. We also plan to continue having flier surveys to gauge interest for scheduling purposes.

4. If you need to pay for t-shirts, hats or club membership - you can always send money through PayPal at the email address: admin@stlouisrocketry.com.

As always, feel free to comment on this post or email admin@stlouisrocketry.com if you have any questions.

Heino Pull
SLRA Secretary