The forecast is looking great for this Saturday’s High Poweredlaunch in Elsberry, MO. With no rain in the forecast the weather looks great for October. Set will start around 09:15am.
Forecast for Saturday’s launch according to weather underground
9am – Partly Cloudy 56° - 0mph S wind
10am – Sunny 49° - 1mph SSW wind
12pm – Mostly Sunny 71° - 2mph SW wind
2pm – Mostly Sunny 74° - 2mph SW wind
4pm – Sunny 75° - 2mph SSW wind
6pm – Sunny 69° - 1mph SSW wind
Our waiver will be open from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. The range may or may not remain open until 4:00 pm, depending on how many people attend and how many rockets we have to fly. Our waiver is 6,000′ AGL with call-in windows to 14,000′ AGL.
Note: We would like to try to minimize impact to FAA traffic, so please email Jason Garbus if you will need a window for your flight so we can try to group the flights together.
Date and time: 10/24/2026, pending landowner permission due to weather forecast for the week leading up to the launch. The waiver will be active between 10:00 AM CST and 4:00 PM CST.
****PLEASE FOLLOW THE MAP BELOW TO ENTER THE FIELD ****
If a cancellation is made, we will do our best to communicate as early as possible, but no later than Friday evening. Cancellation announcements will be made via the website and Facebook webpage.
Location: Elsberry, MO.
Our waiver will be open from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. The range may or may not remain open until 4:00 pm, depending on how many people attend and how many rockets we have to fly. Our waiver is 6,000′ AGL with call-in windows to 14,000′ AGL.
Note: We would like to try to minimize impact to FAA traffic, so please email Jason Garbus if you will need a window for your flight so we can try to group the flights together.
The club equipment trailer should arrive at the field around 9:00 am for us to begin setup. We would greatly appreciate as much help as possible with setup and cleanup, so please plan to arrive early if you can.
We will be broadcasting all announcements on both the PA system and FM 99.5 If you have a portable radio, it would be handy to have it at your range table to listen along to the flights.
There will be neither food concessions nor restroom facilities at this site, but it is a ten minute drive into town for fuel, food and restroom.
For current SLRA members, there will be no launch fee
If you’re not a current SLRA member, low power rocket fees are $5, and high power fees will be $10.
You must be a current Tripoli or NAR member to be on the flight line. You will be required to provide proof of current membership prior to being admitted to the event. If you are handling any rocketry related material while on site you must check in, provide proof of NAR or TRA membership and sign a waiver. Membership is not required for spectators.
IF YOU DO NOT HAVE PROOF OF MEMEBRSHIP YOU WILL NOT BE PERMITTED TO FLY OR WORK ON ANY ROCKET RELATED ACTIVITIES.
All participants will be required to sign a hold harmless agreement. A copy may be filled out prior to arrival to save time in the field. THIS WILL BE REQUIRED AT EACH FLIGHT
We plan to have various sizes of launch pads set up, from the 1/8′′ model rocket rods up to 1515 rails.
If you are wanting to make any of the following flights, please reach out to Jason Garbus (contact info above) as soon as possible: ● A certification attempt, whether with NAR or TRA. Please include details such as Name, Certifying Agency, What level you want to attempt, and if you are wanting to do a L2 attempt. Tripoli testing is available online and should be completed prior to the launch. Please bring your passing result report. ● A multi-stage flight attempt that is not black powder (i.e. using composites and electronic staging) with details of your flight. ● As mentioned above, in need of a window for your flight ( Flights > 6,000′, and less than 14,000′)
As always, please be courteous to our hosts and respectful of their property, including driving slowly on all farm roads. Once we get on site, we will clarify where it is okay to drive and park. Do not attempt to drive on the field.
Launch site location and directions to field:
From the St. Louis area, take MO highway 79 north to Hatfield Rd. (If you get into the town of Elsberry itself, you’ve gone too far.) You will cross over the ACTIVE railroad tracks and past a new water treatment plant on the right. Follow Hatfield Rd ~0.6 miles and turn right into the field and follow the path.
PLEASE FOLLOW THE BELOW ROUTE TO THE FIELD. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO ACCESS THE FIELD FROM THE “WOODEN BRIDGE” ENTRY. IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, PLEASE STOP AND CALL
The Weekend forecast is looking great for this Saturday’s Spooktacular Night launch at Buder Park. After thunderstorms till early hours on Friday morning then it’s all clear and sunny for Saturday. Set will start around 4:00PM. Launching will be 4:30 till 10:00pm.
Forecast for Saturday’s Buder Park launch according to weather underground
These dates are tentative and subject to change with the following day (Sunday as a possible backup date) and more dates to be added for 2027.
October 24th - if cops are all in
November 14th
November 28th
December 12th
As always these dates are pending land owner approval, weather conditions, and other pre-requisites. The Sunday (following day) may be a backup date if possible.
Range setup will begin at 9:00am and we can start flying rockets as soon as setup is done – so the more people that come early to help, the sooner we can start!
This will be a Tripoli launch held under Tripoli Research rules, so experimental motors are allowed for Tripoli members with the proper certification (although the RSO of course has the final say). We will have 1/8″, 3/16″ and 1/4″ launch rods along with 1010 and 1515 rails. If you are launching a rocket weighing more than about 25 pounds and need our “monster” launch pad, you must let us know ahead of time, as we may not bring it if it’s not needed.
Our FAA waiver permits flights up to 7,000 feet MSL (approximately 6,250 feet AGL) with call-in windows to 15,000 MSL (14,250 AGL). If you are planning a flight over 10,000 feet AGL, please bring simulation results to show to the RSO, to avoid any risk of violating that waiver altitude. (We have a great relationship with the FAA and want to keep it that way!)
For non current SLRA members, there will be a daily launch fee: $10 for high-power fliers or $5 for Model rocket flyers.
As always check the website for current updates on status of all launches.
Club’s equipment will start setting up at our normal time of 08:30 with SLRA sport launching to follow.
The October Fly competition will start around 12:00 noon. These competitors will most likely use their personal launch equipment.
October Fly may also continue on for Sunday the 4th. Check with John B. for more October Fly info. (SLRA equipment and sport launch will only be for Saturday at this time of posting)
The forecast is basically the same from yesterday’s post with no rain in the evening. We will start setting up at 08:30 to have around 09:00 start time.
Still watching the weather for this weekend – small showers in the 7pm hours on Saturday but the forecast is constantly changing for the weekend. At this point I’m still planning on Saturday with having Sunday as a backup.
Forecast for Saturday’s Buder Park launch according to weather underground
