A Month before this fete I had gone to the school myself and given the school's P.T.A. (Parent/Teacher Association) a short rocket demo and during the demo we came up with the idea of a drawing competition where the winners would get their own rocket to paint and then launch at the fete. 4 Wizards were purchased the next day and I set about making them. Two weeks before the fete Anita and Pat of the P.T.A. came round with 70!!! drawings of rockets. With a little help I picked 4 winners from the 70 (one from each year) and then took the drawings back to Anita with the unpainted Wizards.
The Saturday of the fete arrived and myself and 4 other members of H.A.R.T. meet up and went to the fete at 11.00 am after Alan did some amazing rocket packing - he somehow managed to pack 2 large rockets (H.A.R.T. Attack and a Maxi-force), a dozen smaller rockets, 5 launch pads and 3 members of H.A.R.T. all into his Fiesta.
We arrived at the school and were given two large tables to set up on. Soon after the tables and rockets were all set up and looked very impressive before the younger members of H.A.R.T. all vanished to explore the fete before it opened at midday.
Robert, Alan and Martin soon returned and we all waited for the fete to start. At 12.00 the gates were opened and people and kids flooded into the field and explored the great looking fete. Alan and myself were soon busy answering various rocketry questions from the parents while the younger members got the kids questions.
2.30 p.m. soon arrived and the loud speakers announced the rocket display was about to start. With this the whole crowd descended around us.
Jake and Martin were in charge of the launching, Robert moved to the likely landing area and Alan and myself started to arm all the engines and rockets. The First to be launched was a Alpha 3 on a 1/2A6-2 engine. The rocket reached a height of around 100 feet with the whole crowd either screaming or shouting before what looked like hundreds of kids ran for the rocket.
Robert managed to get to the rocket first but only just. but now the kids were ready and waiting. Jake launched another Alpha 3 before teaching the winners how to launch their wizards. With the crowd shouting the countdowns the 4 wizards soon left the pads with the kids all giving chase and trying to be first to rockets.
We managed to launch around 20 times before the display rockets got damaged and the time had come to launch the Mongoose. We planed to launch it on two stages but the site was so small that I decided to launch it on just one.
The rocket was launched on a C6-7 and after the other rockets being launched on 1/2A's the crowd gave a big cheer as the rocket powered it way to around 800 feet before deploying it's streamer and landing in a nearby garden.
Overall the fete was a great success and already the school have asked if we will come again next year.
My many thanks must go to Alan, Jake, Robert and Martin, the 4 members of H.A.R.T. which helped make this a great day for H.A.R.T. and a day which Langton’s school will not forget.