Argonia Cup 2021
March 31, 2021
After a one-year break due to the pandemic, the Argonia Cup returned to the Rocket Pasture with a record 17 registered teams this year! In addition to the collegiate competition, it was a great weekend for flying in general, too.
I was particularly excited for this weekend because the Sunday of the launch would coincide with my birthday. Thankfully after the previous 2 launches this year cancelled due to weather, rain and cold temperatures the week prior, it warmed up and cleared up just in time to fly rockets all weekend. Sam, Kenzie, and I arrived at the Rocket Pasture Friday evening to camp and set up for the launches. Saturday was windy but warmed up nicely with a number of unsuccessful collegiate competition flights throughout the day, mostly due to recovery issues.
I launched Miss Kenzie on an I357T to test out the Eggtimer Quark I soldered together. It came down great, but I didn’t put enough black powder in the main charges, so it landed harder than intended under drogue only. Fortunately, all the mud from the previous weekend’s rain made the ground still very soft, so it sustained no damage. Both apogee and main charges fired, so it appears to be fully functional!
Towards the end of the day, I also launched my mid-power rocket on an F27R, but at burnout it disappeared against the sun and clouds and wasn’t seen again, even after 3 hours of wandering the nearby fields where it may have landed. That was a bummer; I had yet to lose a rocket in Argonia in 4 years, but it looks as though my streak has come to an end.
However, congratulations are in order to a long-time rocket friend, Katelyn, who completed her Level 3 Certification successfully! She’s been incredibly active as part of the OSU Rocketry Team all 4 years she attended OSU, so this was a strong way to cap off her time at the Rocket Pasture.
I camped on my own Saturday night, and awoke Sunday morning in a bit of a funk from losing my rocket and Katelyn’s last rocket launch. Once I got up and moving, however, things improved because after all, it was my birthday! Sam brought donuts upon her return, and we got to work readying some rockets for flight! She flew her L1/L2 cert rocket, It’s Fine, on a J275W, and I launched my 3x29mm cluster rocket, Thrice as Nice, on (3) F40W motors. Not all the motors lit right away, so it took off from the pad a bit slow, and then upon clearing the rail, accelerated as the final motor ignited.
I readied my last rocket of the weekend, sending up Odyssey II, my L3 project, for the 5th time, this time on a K1103X which pulled 25Gs on ascent. It cleared 5000ft and landed in the same place as on its first test flight in August 2017 on a J800T. It was a fun birthday launch, and with that, Sam and I got to pay attention to the rest of the competition.
Oklahoma State University ended up winning the 4th Argonia Cup for the 4th time; however, this go-around it was because of an autonomous glider that flew down from 10000ft of altitude and more than a mile downrange to come within 350ft of the target. SWOSU placed second with a piloted quadcopter that, despite inadvertently reversed flight controls, landed 500ft away, only falling short because of a small battery that drained prematurely. Maybe next year, multiple flight vehicles will land exactly on the target, and then the competition will be about which rocket can obtain the highest altitude along the way.
It was a really special birthday weekend, and I only wish the next launch wasn’t another 3+ months away. Thank you to the Kloudbusters for hosting such a successful event. My prediction for 2022 is 25 registered teams!