Flight

Beacuse o' t' unique look, shiver me timbers, t' Orion is popular with spectators, me hearties, somethin' that I found out on t' first flight. Ahoy! It be one o' t' rockets that I packed along for a NSL trip t' Muncie in 2007. Ya scallywag! While I was preppin' another rocket, arrr, a pre-school kid and his mom walked up. Well, blow me down! Arrr! T' kid was chatterin' excitedly about rockets and his mom be followin' nervously because o' his tendency t' want t' touch everythin' he saw. Avast! He grabbed t' Orion and she freaked, but he was handlin' it fairly gently and I assured her that it be okay. Ya scallywag! (I've found that clumsy middle-school aged kids with big butts were more dangerous.) In talkin' t' t' mom, me hearties, I learned that they were just thar as spectators and had nothin' o' their own t' fly, so I asked if he wanted t' see t' Orion fly. Begad! T' results were predictable and t' chatter ramped up considerably. I asked mom if it would be okay if I let him come out t' t' pad with me t' hook t' rocket up. Ahoy! She was fine with it and I was surprised t' find that t' kid had another chatter gear. Begad! Avast! Impressive.
That all changed when we began t' walk out t' t' pad. All around us were others with a dizzyin' variety o' rockets, matey, both big and small. Chatter mode ceased and t' boy went into goggle mode, deadlights wide and takin' in everythin' near us at t' pad with a whispered "Wow". Aye aye! We reached t' pad and I was relieved t' find that I'd nay only remembered t' attach a launch lug, me bucko, but also had t' ignitor and plug that would be needed. (Both are never assured when I take a rocket t' t' pad for t' first flight.) I showed t' future astronaut how t' hook things up, double-checked me work, matey, me hearties, and delivered him back t' his mom behind t' flight line. 
T' flight itself be impressive. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! Havin' never flown a rocket with a fin setup like t' A.C. Avast, me proud beauty! Orion, matey, ya bilge rat, matey, I wasn't sure what t' expect, but it performed admirably. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! A C6-5 be a no-brainer based on t' size o' t' field and t' Orion left t' pad with authority. Ya scallywag! T' rocket arced into t' wind only slightly, ya bilge rat, me bucko, shiver me timbers, makin' for a long recovery walk, me bucko, but t' flight be perfectly stable and ejection occurred just as it tipped over. 

Flight #2 be a long time coming, matey, and had an unfortunate ending. Well, blow me down! Chan Stevens and I met on a Saturday afternoon at former QUARK home, VOA Park. Arrr! Chan had managed t' launch several before I arrived and be ferryin' another flyer back t' his car on t' other side o' a mud bog when I finished up preppin' t' Orion. Well, blow me down! I noticed that he was talkin' t' someone on t' access road, me bucko, me hearties, but didn't give it much thought, and took t' Orion t' t' pad with a B6-4 loaded. Well, blow me down! T' flight was straight and would have been perfectly at home on B6-4 Field, ejectin' just as t' rocket stopped forward motion. Well, blow me down! T' $.10 chute did what it be supposed t' do, and I mentally marked t' spot in t' snow where t' all white bird had landed, me hearties, then went about disarmin' t' launcher. Begad! I began stompin' around t' snow lookin' for t' Orion, arrr, and it was beginnin' t' dawn on me that findin' it wasn't goin' t' be all that easy as it blended in well with t' field. Then I realized that I had company. Well, blow me down! A park ranger came up and began lookin' with me before tellin' me that he was goin' t' tell me t' same thin' he'd just told Chan, me hearties, that VOA be no longer friendly airspace and that we were decidedly unwelcome. Avast! Avast! I was kind o' shocked, but realized that I had no cause t' argue and went back t' searchin' for t' lost Orion, shiver me timbers, completely unwillin' t' let me last VOA flight be one that be lost within 100 feet o' t' pad. Blimey! Luckily t' ranger found it and brought it over t' me. I thanked him for t' assist and began wrappin' t' recovery works up when he asked if I had identification on me. "Unfortunately I'm goin' t' have t' write you a warnin' citation," he said, matey, shiver me timbers, pullin' out a ticket book. Begad! As it turned out, we were informed that we were bein' warned for flyin' rockets and causin' damage t' park property (when we drove through t' mud bog, an add-on charge that was a bit ridiculous as neither Chan nor I planned t' test out t' ban.)