Originally Posted by luke strawwalker

Sounds like one of my first two stage flights on my Estes Vigilante...

I was launching it at a friends house in the neighboring town... he lived at the end of a long street, where it turned to gravel, went down the slope of the creekbank to the culverts and to the city water works or something on the other side up the slope... we went down to the culverts to launch so we'd be clear of the trees lining the creek banks...

She lifted off beautifully, but I failed to account for the wind above the trees... basically as soon as she cleared the trees, the wind hit her and keeled her over nearly 90 degrees and of course at that moment she staged... the booster dropped straight back down nearly onto the pad (maybe 10 feet away) and the sustainer was heading due south like a ballistic missile... she burned out and coasted and we were following her as best we could and we saw the ejection charge and chute pop just before she dropped below the trees and houses on the other side of the neighborhood behind us. We went looking for it and checking rooftops and houses and yards as we went, and after working over about 2-3 streets, we finally found it... the creek curved around behind the neighborhood to the south and then turned west and ran along the edge of the neighborhood on the south side, and down the mown slope, about 3 feet out in the cattails, in a tiny little 'clearing' that looked like it was made just for it, was the Vigilante sustainer, sticking up out of the mud that it had core sampled into, perfectly vertical, the motor casing still slightly smoking. The rubber shock cord had of course snapped (as the stupid Estes rubber bands usually did after awhile) and the nose cone and chute drifted off across the creek and fence on the other side and out into the pasture of the ranch beyond. My buddy had seen it and been following it and he went over a few blocks and crossed the creek and jumped the fence and about 15 minutes later returned with the chute and nosecone. I reached out into the mud/water rather precariously and retrieved the rocket, not really the worse for wear except for a muddy core sample and last 3 inches or so of body tube.

Still have that rocket... she's retired to a place of honor now though...

Later! OL J R