RJD 2015

Another trip to Leipzig over one of several long weekends in May/June for the annual RJD rocket launch. I often do a couple of days cycling and then drop in on the RJD launch on the Saturday/Sunday. This year most of the flying was Saturday, with Sunday being a bit grey and breezy.

I didn't fly anything, but mostly took photos.

Frank and Ton racking up an impressive carbon fibre rocket...

On the pad (not quite) ready to fly... I'd do something with that igniter first...

Oooh nice! Redline motor...

I do believe that's not the proper way to land...

Looks like it's well buried, unfortunately...

Not sure that's going to polish out...

Cycling in Leipzig

Last year I did some MTBing not too far away in Poland and Czech Republic on the couple of days preceding the RJD rocket launch. This year I decided to do some road cycling instead. The ride was basically round one of the lakes just south of Leipzig, then back thru the city to the hotel.

Skiing in Kronplatz

For a change, instead of my usual trip to Arabba for the Snowheads Birthday Bash, I decided to go on the pre-Birthday Bash the week before, in Kronplatz. That was an area I'd been meaning to try for some time, and this year that wish came true. It's an interesting area, also on the same Dolomiti Superski pass as the main Sella Ronda, and also with a bus link from just outside the hotel (well 2 min walk) up to Alta Badia. So we made use of that bus and some cars to ski some Sella Ronda parts, plus spend more time up at Cinque Torre and the Hidden Valley than we would normally do from Arabba. The main Kronplatz area is very deceptive, with the top to bottom runs much longer than you would expect from the piste map.

Some nice ice sculptures in the Kronplatz area...

My first trip to Marmolada for a while. It's quite an ascent to get up there, with 3 end to end cable cars, and about 1 mile vertical.

But stunning views down on to the Sella massif...

Chris, Amily, Jamie, Graham, Ronald, and the 3rd of 3 consecutive cable cars in the background...

For once, the hidden valley was not hidden. Last time I skied it, it was all murk and no views. Lovely run down though, with a couple of ace rifugios for lunch near the bottom, and a horse+sleigh tow back to Armentarola.

Skiing in Zillertal

So it's January again already, and time for one of my usual weekend trips down to Austria to get some turns in on snow, before my main winter ski vacation. As usual I went to Zillertal, but staying over in Innsbruck.

On arrival, the place was green down in the valley (only about 550m ASL), with only the Kaltenbach gondola cabins giving a clue as to what the conditions were like further up the mountain...

Encouraging to see some actual snow falling...

That's a bit more like it!

What a difference a day makes though! The next day I went to Zell am Ziller, just up the road in the same valley, and on the same lift pass. And the snow was right down to the valley floor, covering the Rodelbahn (mini rollercoaster)...

And with a bit of blue sky and snow everywhere, the Alps look pretty...

And the Rodelbahn also starting too look pretty at dusk. It seems quite popular for an Apres Ski activity.

ALRS 2014

Once again, my last rocketry event of the year was a trip down to Switzerland for the ALRS launch. I didn't fly all that much, but definitely flew the Art Applewhite Saucer (probably on an D12), and the Thargoid foamboard model on an Aerotech E15-W motor. Pretty impressive flying foamboard saucers etc. on such meaty little AP motors :)

I really ought to do an upscale of my trusty Estes Black Brant some time...

With upscale flame effects of course...

Meanwhile, Juerg (or was it somebody else?) was demonstrating that a single canted outboard motor is perfectly OK for a safe flight, so long as it is canted to point through the CG, and sized with enough thrust to propel the rocket to a stable flight speed.