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| We have lift-off: the rocket enthusiasts having a blast in Scotland | |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| There's time. There's space time. And then there's rocket time. For John Bonsor – or Rocket Man, as he's often called in his home village of Glengarnock in Ayrshire – rocket time is the moments after a launch. "Time slows down," he says. "Each flight may last only a matter of seconds, but each second feels stretched out to a minute. Every detail of the flight is fixed in my mind: the fin that isn't keeping the rocket on track, the motor that cuts out fractionally early. Everything." | There's time. There's space time. And then there's rocket time. For John Bonsor – or Rocket Man, as he's often called in his home village of Glengarnock in Ayrshire – rocket time is the moments after a launch. "Time slows down," he says. "Each flight may last only a matter of seconds, but each second feels stretched out to a minute. Every detail of the flight is fixed in my mind: the fin that isn't keeping the rocket on track, the motor that cuts out fractionally early. Everything." |
| For me, rocket time means something a little different. It means looking out of the window of an outbuilding at Lapwing Lodge, a former tuberculosis hospital 20 miles west of Glasgow, where a couple of dozen people, mostly men, have gathered for International Rocket Week (IRW), wondering if the wind and rain will relent in time for anyone to launch a rocket. "You do need a lot of patience for this," Bonsor says. He's not wrong. | For me, rocket time means something a little different. It means looking out of the window of an outbuilding at Lapwing Lodge, a former tuberculosis hospital 20 miles west of Glasgow, where a couple of dozen people, mostly men, have gathered for International Rocket Week (IRW), wondering if the wind and rain will relent in time for anyone to launch a rocket. "You do need a lot of patience for this," Bonsor says. He's not wrong. |
| Bonsor is more than a rocket enthusiast; he's an obsessive. He's now 62, and has lived and breathed rockets ever since the first satellites were launched in the 1950s. His flat is almost buried under rocketry. His bedroom is piled high with more than 50 rockets in various stages of repair, and you can barely see his bed; the walls are covered with rocket charts. There is, literally, no room for anything in his life but rockets. | Bonsor is more than a rocket enthusiast; he's an obsessive. He's now 62, and has lived and breathed rockets ever since the first satellites were launched in the 1950s. His flat is almost buried under rocketry. His bedroom is piled high with more than 50 rockets in various stages of repair, and you can barely see his bed; the walls are covered with rocket charts. There is, literally, no room for anything in his life but rockets. |
| For more than 20 years now, Bonsor has been the principal organiser of IRW. It started in 1986 as a weekend celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Paisley Rocketeers Society (a group of amateur pioneers that has long since disbanded), and has proved so popular that it was extended to a week-long event about 15 years ago. Most of the participants are Scottish and English, but over the years rocketeers have turned up from Poland, Switzerland, the US, Canada, Austria, Germany, Holland and Turkey. Last year, two men appeared from Libya. "That took us a bit by surprise," Bonsor admits. "This year, a young man called Rainer arrived from Estonia." It turned out he didn't know anything about rocketry and hadn't really intended to come, but Bonsor soon had him building a rocket. | For more than 20 years now, Bonsor has been the principal organiser of IRW. It started in 1986 as a weekend celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Paisley Rocketeers Society (a group of amateur pioneers that has long since disbanded), and has proved so popular that it was extended to a week-long event about 15 years ago. Most of the participants are Scottish and English, but over the years rocketeers have turned up from Poland, Switzerland, the US, Canada, Austria, Germany, Holland and Turkey. Last year, two men appeared from Libya. "That took us a bit by surprise," Bonsor admits. "This year, a young man called Rainer arrived from Estonia." It turned out he didn't know anything about rocketry and hadn't really intended to come, but Bonsor soon had him building a rocket. |
| Despite the weather, Scotland does have its attractions as a rocketeer's destination. With its wide open spaces, it is, on a clear day, an ideal launch site. Sixteen miles from Lapwing Lodge is the Fairlie Moor Rocket Site. To my untrained eye, it looks pretty much like any other stretch of Scottish moorland, but it's here that the rocketeers get to realise their dreams and visions. Or not. Crashes and other disasters do happen. "A rocket of mine broke up once and crashed into the windscreen of a parked car," Andy Issiott, from Preston, says ruefully. "Still, that's why I pay my insurance premiums." If you look for long enough between the tussocks, the chances of finding pieces of rocket debris are quite high. | Despite the weather, Scotland does have its attractions as a rocketeer's destination. With its wide open spaces, it is, on a clear day, an ideal launch site. Sixteen miles from Lapwing Lodge is the Fairlie Moor Rocket Site. To my untrained eye, it looks pretty much like any other stretch of Scottish moorland, but it's here that the rocketeers get to realise their dreams and visions. Or not. Crashes and other disasters do happen. "A rocket of mine broke up once and crashed into the windscreen of a parked car," Andy Issiott, from Preston, says ruefully. "Still, that's why I pay my insurance premiums." If you look for long enough between the tussocks, the chances of finding pieces of rocket debris are quite high. |
| If it sounds a bit cowboy, it isn't. The rockets vary in size from ones that are little more than a foot long with a simple motor, to huge 20ft, two-stage beasts powered by complex solid and liquid fuel hybrid engines. The aim isn't always to see how high they can fly, though altitudes of 15,000ft are quite easily obtainable with the necessary air traffic control permissions from Glasgow and Prestwick airports; the aerodynamics of rocketry dictate that the thinner the diameter of a rocket, the higher it should fly, and some rocketeers prefer to make "spectator rockets" that fly slower and lower, and whose trajectory can be easily tracked from the ground. The day before I arrive, someone launched a Martian lander that rolled over on landing, before bouncing upright on to its tripod. No one seems too sure whether or not that counts as a success. | If it sounds a bit cowboy, it isn't. The rockets vary in size from ones that are little more than a foot long with a simple motor, to huge 20ft, two-stage beasts powered by complex solid and liquid fuel hybrid engines. The aim isn't always to see how high they can fly, though altitudes of 15,000ft are quite easily obtainable with the necessary air traffic control permissions from Glasgow and Prestwick airports; the aerodynamics of rocketry dictate that the thinner the diameter of a rocket, the higher it should fly, and some rocketeers prefer to make "spectator rockets" that fly slower and lower, and whose trajectory can be easily tracked from the ground. The day before I arrive, someone launched a Martian lander that rolled over on landing, before bouncing upright on to its tripod. No one seems too sure whether or not that counts as a success. |
| What matters is getting your rocket back in one piece. Or two, because even the smallest rockets come with a detonation system to split them open shortly after they have reached their flight apogee and release a parachute: without one, the rocket would either break up or bury itself on hitting the ground. Losing equipment in this way is expensive: a small rocket kit costs upwards of £25, while the bigger ones may run into a couple of thousand pounds, not counting the days – years even – of building and preparation. Just as bad is the loss of face. A serious rocketeer is judged as much by his powers of retrieval as anything else. Which is why many now fit radio receivers and GPSs inside their rockets. These are not infallible, though, because GPS works only on line of sight, and if your rocket has disappeared over a hillside, you may have a couple of days' hard slog to find it. | What matters is getting your rocket back in one piece. Or two, because even the smallest rockets come with a detonation system to split them open shortly after they have reached their flight apogee and release a parachute: without one, the rocket would either break up or bury itself on hitting the ground. Losing equipment in this way is expensive: a small rocket kit costs upwards of £25, while the bigger ones may run into a couple of thousand pounds, not counting the days – years even – of building and preparation. Just as bad is the loss of face. A serious rocketeer is judged as much by his powers of retrieval as anything else. Which is why many now fit radio receivers and GPSs inside their rockets. These are not infallible, though, because GPS works only on line of sight, and if your rocket has disappeared over a hillside, you may have a couple of days' hard slog to find it. |
| "It's all part of the fun," says Jonathan Rhodes, an intensive-care consultant at Edinburgh Western General hospital, who has been a regular at IRW since the early 2000s. "Like most of us, I got into rocketry by accident. I was on holiday with my family in Florida and my mother-in-law wanted to go out to the shopping mall at 11pm. I took her and found a store selling model rocket kits, so I bought one. It seemed a better idea than buying a gun from the only other shop that was open." | "It's all part of the fun," says Jonathan Rhodes, an intensive-care consultant at Edinburgh Western General hospital, who has been a regular at IRW since the early 2000s. "Like most of us, I got into rocketry by accident. I was on holiday with my family in Florida and my mother-in-law wanted to go out to the shopping mall at 11pm. I took her and found a store selling model rocket kits, so I bought one. It seemed a better idea than buying a gun from the only other shop that was open." |
| Rhodes returned home, bought a small motor, built the rocket and flew it with his daughter, Verity, on open ground near his home. Verity's interest didn't last and his wife's never even flickered, but Rhodes found himself hooked and has gone on to build bigger and more complex rockets. Earlier this year, he passed his level three rocketry exam – the highest qualification obtainable – with a two-stage hybrid rocket that he built and designed himself. "I enjoy the challenge of it. The parts for the bigger rockets often come with no, or misleading, instructions, because they are made by tiny private companies in the US who don't always know quite what they are doing. I've frequently had to email them to let them know they've got something wrong. Flying the rocket is just a small part, the finishing touch, of the pleasure. I just love camping here for a week, building rockets and chatting to friends. What else would a grown-up trainspotter do?" | Rhodes returned home, bought a small motor, built the rocket and flew it with his daughter, Verity, on open ground near his home. Verity's interest didn't last and his wife's never even flickered, but Rhodes found himself hooked and has gone on to build bigger and more complex rockets. Earlier this year, he passed his level three rocketry exam – the highest qualification obtainable – with a two-stage hybrid rocket that he built and designed himself. "I enjoy the challenge of it. The parts for the bigger rockets often come with no, or misleading, instructions, because they are made by tiny private companies in the US who don't always know quite what they are doing. I've frequently had to email them to let them know they've got something wrong. Flying the rocket is just a small part, the finishing touch, of the pleasure. I just love camping here for a week, building rockets and chatting to friends. What else would a grown-up trainspotter do?" |
| Rocketry can be a serious business. Indeed, with some rockets having engines that can break the sound barrier, it has to be: there are strict regulations controlling the use of motors, with some explosives requiring acquire and keep certificates. "We did once have a bloke turn up who asked me how to build a rocket powerful enough to stop a train," Bonsor says. "I told him to clear off and that if I ever heard from him again, I'd inform the police." It is also forbidden to fly anything that is alive; I got some funny looks when I asked if anyone had considered flying a mouse. Eggs are popular passengers, though, because landing a rocket without breaking one is an achievement. So, too, are teddies: there are plenty of stuffed bears with more successful rocket flights than any British astronaut. | Rocketry can be a serious business. Indeed, with some rockets having engines that can break the sound barrier, it has to be: there are strict regulations controlling the use of motors, with some explosives requiring acquire and keep certificates. "We did once have a bloke turn up who asked me how to build a rocket powerful enough to stop a train," Bonsor says. "I told him to clear off and that if I ever heard from him again, I'd inform the police." It is also forbidden to fly anything that is alive; I got some funny looks when I asked if anyone had considered flying a mouse. Eggs are popular passengers, though, because landing a rocket without breaking one is an achievement. So, too, are teddies: there are plenty of stuffed bears with more successful rocket flights than any British astronaut. |
| Bonsor is a passionate advocate for the benefits of rocketry: how it has great educational value for kids; how amateurs are keeping alive Britain's place in space exploration. But it's the sheer fun of it that gets people coming back to IRW. That and the booze. On almost every workstation at Lapwing Lodge, there are half-empty bottles and, judging by the state of several rocketeers, not a lot of serious rocket building got done the night before. | Bonsor is a passionate advocate for the benefits of rocketry: how it has great educational value for kids; how amateurs are keeping alive Britain's place in space exploration. But it's the sheer fun of it that gets people coming back to IRW. That and the booze. On almost every workstation at Lapwing Lodge, there are half-empty bottles and, judging by the state of several rocketeers, not a lot of serious rocket building got done the night before. |
| "We do like to have a good time as well," says Shaun Longhorn, a twentysomething software tester from Leeds. Longhorn has come with his girlfriend, Katie Grimley; their last weekend away was to the Download festival at Donington Park. "I used to come here with my dad and I recently found a box of old rockets in the attic, so I thought, 'Why not give it another go?' And here we are. I love the sound of power; the crackle and the thunder." He is busy wiring seven motors together in a cluster so they fire as a single unit. Grimley has spent several hours sanding and gluing the fins to her own rocket. "It's kind of therapeutic," she says, though it's hard to tell if she will be back next year. | "We do like to have a good time as well," says Shaun Longhorn, a twentysomething software tester from Leeds. Longhorn has come with his girlfriend, Katie Grimley; their last weekend away was to the Download festival at Donington Park. "I used to come here with my dad and I recently found a box of old rockets in the attic, so I thought, 'Why not give it another go?' And here we are. I love the sound of power; the crackle and the thunder." He is busy wiring seven motors together in a cluster so they fire as a single unit. Grimley has spent several hours sanding and gluing the fins to her own rocket. "It's kind of therapeutic," she says, though it's hard to tell if she will be back next year. |
| As the rain continues to tip down, Bonsor suggests I build my own rocket and steers me off towards Malcolm Jennings, aka dealer-in-chief for everyone's rocket requirements. Jennings has built model cars, planes, boats and tanks since he was a kid, and added rockets to the list about 20 years ago. Not long after, he bought a business importing rocket kits and parts from the US, and now he drives up to Scotland every August with a load of goodies to sell in the back of his Mondeo. Jennings can't be doing with camping, though. He prefers to sleep in the car. Isn't that a bit uncomfortable? "Not at all," he says. "My son and I sit in the front seats; he pushes his back to lie down, but I prefer to sleep sitting up." | As the rain continues to tip down, Bonsor suggests I build my own rocket and steers me off towards Malcolm Jennings, aka dealer-in-chief for everyone's rocket requirements. Jennings has built model cars, planes, boats and tanks since he was a kid, and added rockets to the list about 20 years ago. Not long after, he bought a business importing rocket kits and parts from the US, and now he drives up to Scotland every August with a load of goodies to sell in the back of his Mondeo. Jennings can't be doing with camping, though. He prefers to sleep in the car. Isn't that a bit uncomfortable? "Not at all," he says. "My son and I sit in the front seats; he pushes his back to lie down, but I prefer to sleep sitting up." |
| It may take a while to track down the more sophisticated electronics and motors, but Jennings has everything that most people could reasonably need laid out in a back room of the hut. Cardboard tubes, motors, wiring systems, launch pads, glues, paints, resins, wood and dozens of different build-your-own kits. | It may take a while to track down the more sophisticated electronics and motors, but Jennings has everything that most people could reasonably need laid out in a back room of the hut. Cardboard tubes, motors, wiring systems, launch pads, glues, paints, resins, wood and dozens of different build-your-own kits. |
| "So what kind of rocket do you fancy making?" he asks. | "So what kind of rocket do you fancy making?" he asks. |
| "Something that is dead easy to build and will go as high as possible," I reply. When it comes to rockets, I'm low on design aesthetics. Jennings rummages through various boxes until he pulls out the Eliminator. "This should do it," he says. "It's very narrow, so it will fly high, and an 11-year-old can put this together in about an hour and a half." | "Something that is dead easy to build and will go as high as possible," I reply. When it comes to rockets, I'm low on design aesthetics. Jennings rummages through various boxes until he pulls out the Eliminator. "This should do it," he says. "It's very narrow, so it will fly high, and an 11-year-old can put this together in about an hour and a half." |
| I look at the instructions – such as they are – and feel defeated before I even start. Fortunately, there is an 11-year-old, Hogan Kerr, who has been coming to rocket week for several years and knows exactly what he is doing. | I look at the instructions – such as they are – and feel defeated before I even start. Fortunately, there is an 11-year-old, Hogan Kerr, who has been coming to rocket week for several years and knows exactly what he is doing. |
| The rain eventually stops, but the wind has picked up and it's clear I'm not ever going to see my £20 rocket launched. I look at it lying on the work bench as Hogan is about to attach its motor. I also look at the other two motors I had to buy for £10 because they come in packs of three. "Is it possible to put all three motors on this rocket and see how high you can make it fly tomorrow?" I ask. "I don't really care about getting it back." | The rain eventually stops, but the wind has picked up and it's clear I'm not ever going to see my £20 rocket launched. I look at it lying on the work bench as Hogan is about to attach its motor. I also look at the other two motors I had to buy for £10 because they come in packs of three. "Is it possible to put all three motors on this rocket and see how high you can make it fly tomorrow?" I ask. "I don't really care about getting it back." |
| Andy Issiott has been supervising Hogan's build. "I think we can do that." He grins. "It will take a bit of modification. We'll have to build some new fins and make sure the motors are wired to fire correctly. Just give me a couple of hours or so and this thing will fly for miles." | Andy Issiott has been supervising Hogan's build. "I think we can do that." He grins. "It will take a bit of modification. We'll have to build some new fins and make sure the motors are wired to fire correctly. Just give me a couple of hours or so and this thing will fly for miles." |
| That evening, I return home, but the next day I receive an email from Hogan's father, Iain. "Today the weather was probably a bit windy to launch the rocket, but we launched it anyway. Hogan and Andy modified the rocket to make sure it would be stable due to the extra weight of the two extra motors. Extra weight was added to the nose and it passed the all-important swing test. A flight card was completed and the rocket was named 'Guardian Eliminator'. A call was then made to the airport to arrange clearance, as the rocket had the potential to go above our normal agreed ceiling limit. Better to be safe. Once that was sorted, Hogan did the countdown and the rocket had a nice vertical launch, then it dipped and became more horizontal in its flight as the second motor kicked in. The third motor continued in the same way and the rocket continued horizontally! The rocket eventually crashed with some force into the side of the hill in the distance where it still remains." | That evening, I return home, but the next day I receive an email from Hogan's father, Iain. "Today the weather was probably a bit windy to launch the rocket, but we launched it anyway. Hogan and Andy modified the rocket to make sure it would be stable due to the extra weight of the two extra motors. Extra weight was added to the nose and it passed the all-important swing test. A flight card was completed and the rocket was named 'Guardian Eliminator'. A call was then made to the airport to arrange clearance, as the rocket had the potential to go above our normal agreed ceiling limit. Better to be safe. Once that was sorted, Hogan did the countdown and the rocket had a nice vertical launch, then it dipped and became more horizontal in its flight as the second motor kicked in. The third motor continued in the same way and the rocket continued horizontally! The rocket eventually crashed with some force into the side of the hill in the distance where it still remains." |
| I couldn't have come up with a better ending for it. | I couldn't have come up with a better ending for it. |
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