Non-club Sponsored Launches at North Site?

[John]

Excellent tips and suggestions. Joe your input is exactly what I was hoping was not the case but also what I really needed to know. I’ll check with the Fort Collins Fire Dept. to see what if any restrictions are in place within city limits. If the same holds for Fort Collins I’ll abstain and wait for club dates and encourage my buddies to do the same.

Thanks All!

John

[SCOTT EVANS]

We use to just go launch from Parks with Estas stuff.
Last year we launched from the foot ball field at the school here in Longmont. But it was just my family, not a big gagle of people.
I always thought it was easier to get forgiveness than permission. 😉 If anyone actually cared.
Now “G”s on the other hand are getting bigger!
They make more noise.

[Warren B. MusselmanModerator]

Personally I would be loathe to give the OK from the club for anyone else to use the North Site for non-club sanctioned launches – the potential danger of losing one of the best launch sites going is too scary to contemplate. That said, I do know that folks other than NCR do use that site on occasion and that a number of NCR members have flown Estes birds up there at times other than sanctioned launches.

All I can say is if you do and something screws up and club loses the site or it damages our relationship with the Forest Service, a lynch mob might form…

There is a field called Sandstone Park east of Longmont that a number of folks have been flying at. See other forum threads on this for details.

Warren

[Art HoagParticipant]

I highly discourage anyone using the site to fly on their own because of the possibility of losing it for the club. Even if someone’s intention are good, the USFS, Air Traffic Control centers as well as all the other organizations only expect rockets to be flying from that site when the club notifies them. Also, I realize it is very green right now but one of the best reason’s not to fly on your own is the “lack” of firefighters if a fire were to start.

I am not sure why there would ever be a reason for anyone to fly outside of a club around here, there are so many great clubs in the state. Clubs already have the launch equipment, the waiver and the knowledge to share. Use the resources that the clubs have to offer.

Art

[Warren B. MusselmanModerator]

Exactly Art – there are at least 4 and sometimes 5 separate launches every month in this state and sometimes even more. In addition there are certainly fields such as Sandstone Park that allow rocketry activities within certain limits. While of course there are the occasional un-sanctioned and un-cleared launches, it behooves everyone to know that the launch sites that NCR, TC, CRASH and the other clubs in Colorado have managed to obtain are a tremendous resource that everyone benefits from and that getting caught by unfriendly law enforcement, land management or Air Traffic Control folks is only going to be bad for the entire community. Losing a place like the North Site would be devastating to all.

Make absolutely sure you have permission from the landowner or management agency before flying and also make sure you damn near kiss their ass with complying with whatever restrictions and provisos they may ask of you. If you’re flying 1/4A through G and so long as you’re more than 5 miles from any airport, you’re in good shape. If you do plan on flying H and above, you really should be flying from a waivered site and you really shouldn’t be doing it without the full knowledge and approval of the waiver holder. If you’re flight exceeds 3.3 pounds or will fly over 5000 feet AGL, you really want to open the waiver. Otherwise you risk the waiver for whoever holds it and in Colorado, that means the clubs and folks you know and the places that you fly. It also means the reputation of the hobby and those that practice it. The press is far too likely to screw up a story from some need for sensationalism and we all know they’ve gotten it wrong far more than they’ve gotten it right.

On the other hand, this is the West and there is an awful lot of big country out there and flying a bird or two in the great wide space would probably never get noticed if you chose the spot well. Without admitting anything, some people may have possibly flown HPR birds a few times without benefit of a sanctioned launch or even possibly without a waiver on random pieces of desolate Western landscape… If the land is BLM or Forest Service managed you’re pretty much allowed to be there, to camp there and to play as you like so long as you leave the place as you found it.

Warren

[muleParticipant]

The only time BLM and FS people get excited is if the group reaches 30 people. Then a permit needs to be in place.

Back to the topic though, we have used several parks in the Westminster/Broomfield area and never had any issues. The one in Longmont is a common place too. There are other properties that are state owned and accessible for launches, you have to find them via the walk in lands list or map. I think the best place to start there is with the Dept of Wildlife list for walk in hunting.
Other maps are available that have color coded areas showing state trust, County, BLM, FS and private lands. A typical county map has these areas marked and are more accurate than an inclusive state map. So, that is where I would start if I were you and I didn’t want to use a park…..

[John]

Thanks Greg. I am familiar with the land access maps as an occasional hunter. The group I am referencing is only about 6 people max. To be honest, unless the Fire Marshal gives me a thumbs up I simply won’t be doing it in/near town and will wait for club dates. I’ll make my case with my friends too if the Marshal says “no” but they are on their own.

I placed a call into the Fire Marshal in Fort Collins yesterday afternoon but haven’t heard back yet. I’ll let everyone know what he says.

[muleParticipant]

I don’t think I would have ever thought to ask the fire marshal for permission. I personally wouldn’t give him the opportunity to shut me down. I would be more of the mind to ask him what the regulations are and leave it at that. If he asked me, I would tell him and invite him along. I know several firemen and as someone said, they love stuff like this.

[John]

In this case the Fire Marshall is a really good guy! He said in Fort Collins “You are good to go, no restrictions.” He was very nonchalant about it too. I’m not much for asking “permission” either and in this case I was asking about any restrictions within city limits rather than seeking permission per se. So there we have it…launch away in Fort Collins with the sport motors. Though the Marshal made no comments on safety measures other than “common sense” I think a lot of the inputs on this thread are still good to follow.

John

[edwardModerator]

Hughes Stadium near the foothills is a great place to launch. Contact the campus and ask them. I’ve done there before on weekends and usually the place is packed with people walking their dogs, walking, running, etc. Wide open on the south side.

Edward

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