Welcome to High Power

Now get out your checkbook

You’re finally ready. That glistening rocket out on Pad #16 is yours and they’ve only got a half dozen to go through before it flies. That bird is going to set the new “gold standard” for high power rocketry. You’ve worked so hard on it, you haven’t even had time to speak to your wife for a month. She’ll soon see the importance of those thirty coats of chameleon paint with ten clear coats on top so the rocket looks blue when it’s pointed North and green when it’s pointed South. It’s so smooth, it probably has a negative Cd and the sky might just suck it up off the pad.

You’re up, the witnesses are watching, your knees are rubber, the speaker crackles and the LCO counts down “five, four, three, two, one” and the igniter lights. That “H” motor you just bought from your witness comes to life, your rocket screams off the pad and heads straight up into the sky followed by the most spectacular smoke trail and accompanied by an incredible roar. The LCO reports “it’s arcing over,”, “we have an event,”, “we have a chute” and finally “congratulations, welcome to high power and now you can get out your checkbook”. A pretty traditional salutation from the range head to the (about to be certified) high power rocketeer.

Your bird is slowly drifting back to earth and your heading out to retrieve it (still has to be inspected). and yYou’re on pins and needles hoping nothing broke during the landing. You’ve got it and it’s undamaged, . “Great!” nowNow back to the witnesses, to collect your signatures, some handshakes, good wishes and a Temporary Level 1 Certification card. You’re walking back to your car higher than the rocket was at apogee; the next bird is taking shape in your mind, altitude records are going to fall, that 98mm RMS motor in the Aerotech catalog is just around the corner, but something in the back of your mind is troubling you. You can’t quite put your finger on it, maybe something you just heard. Was it the “now you can get out your checkbook” line? No, that’ was just a joke, right? you’dYou’d heard it before for other flyers,flyers; they probably think you’re going to crash something., howHow much more than an “H” could a “J” be, anyway? don’tDon’t worry about it.

Your mind is working overtime during the long drive home. Altimeters, dual deployment, air starts, multiple stages, outer space maybe (after all, it’s only 75 miles or so). Time for a reality check; here are some of the things your actually going to need to participate in high power rocketry and how much they cost. Let’s make some assumptions before we make this list. Let’s say your going to continue on to Level II 2 which will require a LEUP and you want to maintain your NAR membership and maybe hook up with TRA. Let’s assume that you want to hang with your rocket buddies with one or two local chapter memberships. Let’s also say you live in California and (wherever you live) you don’t want to break any laws. Let’s also say you want to help preserve the sport you’ve signed on to and plan to make an occasional contribution to the national organizations to help them fight off the encroaching government regulators.

Annual Permits & Fees

National Association of Rocketry (NAR) w/ insurance & Sport Rocketry Tripoli Rocketry Association (TRA) w/ High Power Rocketry Local NAR chapter Local TRA chapter includes launch fees LEUP 3 year permit $50.00 renewal) Cal Pyro 3 (annual renewal) Annual contributions to NAR, TRA or both (discretionary & deductible) One time & Start-up Fees LEUP Origination Cal Pyro fingerprint processing Local PD fingerprinting LEUP Passport photo Type 4 Indoor magazine Type 4 Outdoor magazine Type 3 magazine (Day box for transportation & launch use 2 Workdays (1 for LEUP inspection, 1 for Cal Pyro test) use your own #

$ 62.00 $109.00 $15.00 $60.00 $16.66 $50.00 $200.00 $50.00 $37.00 $20.00 $20.00 $250.00 $1000.00 $500.00 ###.##

Obviously, you can control or reduce some of the individual expense items on this list. You can obtain a LEUP without storage, buy motors from vendors at launches and eliminate the need for magazines. You could pick your national organization based on your personal preferences and the same goes for local clubs. You do have to remember that the above pricing includes empty magazines only; reload kits, RMS housings, black powder, igniters, electric matches, etc. are not included. However, the point is clear. While not as expensive as Grand-Prix racing, this is not an inexpensive sport and if you want to preserve the relationship with the wife who just sat through that month long building marathon, you have to approach it realistically.

As you progress through the certification levels, your rockets get bigger (duh!) and as your rockets get bigger, they need larger launch sites. Unless you happen to live in the Mojave Desert, this will require that you transport yourself, your rockets and your family to remote locations. Some of these remote locations can be very beautiful, but harsh and may require 4WD vehicles. Some family members may object to certain of the rougher parts of the harsh environments (Porta-potties and no showers for example) and this may require the addition of a larger vehicle like a Winnebago. These larger vehicles provide excellent rocket storage and great living amenities, but they do add expense to the sport and (if you recall) they were not included in the above list. In some households, the purchase of an item as large as an RV may require the purchase of a sort of “matching” item such as jewelry, a cruise or travel to a foreign country. The purchase of “matching” items has not been included in the above list.

Despite the cost, I can’t think of anything else that has been this much fun for me and my familymy family and me, . so So pay the tab, contribute and enjoy the sport.