General Schedule of Operations For 2025

General Schedule

Meeting Topics

Special Events

Contests

Complete Schedule

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

General Schedule

First Tuesday

Membership meeting at the Springer Cultural Center, 301 N. Randolph St. in downtown Champaign or occasional special events elsewhere.
We generally have a presentation or particular topic planned for these meetings. However, there is always plenty of time for discussion of any and all rocketry topics.

Third Tuesday

CIA business meeting will be held at various restaurants around C-U. Locations will be announced on the email list.

Second & Fourth Saturdays

Rocket launches at Dodds Park. Rockets are limited to 4000' MSL (~3250' AGL) altitude and "H" motor impulse by FAA waiver and site dimension restrictions. In late fall and early spring we will hold some of our launches at our alternate high-power sites at the Rantoul Aviation Center and near Forsyth, Illinois. At these sites we have a waiver to 10,000 feet. Contact our Director of Operations, Greg Smith, at operations@ciarocketry.org if you plan to fly motors of "L" impulse or greater.

Fifth Saturdays

On months with 5 Saturdays we may schedule an extra rocket launch on the fifth Saturday.

Launch Times The times listed for most of our launches are "Noon - 6 p.m." This generally means we will meet around noon to set up, and flying will commence around 1. However, at Dodds Park launches when there is soccer in the park morning we may have to wait until they have finished before setting up. GARLO and other special events may start earlier than noon. During the winter, when the sun sets earlier and we need to end the launch earlier, we will start our launches at 11 a.m. The ending times will depend on a number of factors. We can often fly until dark, so we sometimes stay later than 6, and sometimes we have to end earlier than that, depending on the time of the year. We also have to end early occasionally due to changes in the weather conditions.

These dates may vary depending on holidays and various other schedule conflicts.

There are often other events added, such as a "bad movie night" at a member's home, or a rocket build-and-fly workshop. To receive announcements of launches, meetings and other CIA activities subscribe to the CIA email list. Find out about the list and subscribe here. Contact cia-list-owner@ciarocketry.org if you have any trouble with the list.

2025 Meeting Topics

January	Tuesday 7	Membership Meeting Meeting Topic: Rocket Media Bring book, videos, etc. to share.	7 - 9 p.m.	Springer Center
February	Tuesday 4	Membership Meeting Meeting Topic: Forum on rocket design, construction and repair methods.	7 - 9 p.m.	Springer Center
March	Tuesday 4	Membership Meeting Annual membership meeting and election of club officers. Meeting Topic: Recovery Systems & Dual Deployment "How To"	7 - 9 p.m.	Springer Center
April	Tuesday 1	Membership Meeting Meeting Topic: Rocket Photography	7 - 9 p.m.	Springer Center
May	Tuesday 6	Membership Meeting Meeting Topic: Introduction to model rocketry for new members and anyone who is interested. New board members take office. Note: This meeting is being held at the Martens Center. Not at the Springer Center.	7 - 9 p.m.	Martens Center
June	Tuesday 3	Membership Meeting Meeting Topic: GARLO Prep	7 - 9 p.m.	Springer Center
July	Tuesday 1	Membership Meeting Meeting Topic: GARLO Wrapup	7 - 9 p.m.	Springer Center
August	Tuesday 5	Membership Meeting Meeting Topic: Introduction to Medium and High Power Rocketry	7 - 9 p.m.	Springer Center
September	Tuesday 2	Membership Meeting Meeting Topic: Rocketry Electronics	7 - 9 p.m.	Springer Center
October	Tuesday 7	Membership Meeting Meeting Topic: Our annual swap meet. Bring your surplus rocket related equipment and supplies to buy, sell and trade with other members.	7 - 9 p.m.	Springer Center
November	Tuesday 4	Membership Meeting Meeting Topic: Rocketry Software (OpenRocket, RockSim, etc.)	7 - 9 p.m.	Springer Center
December	Tuesday 2	Membership Meeting Meeting Topic: Annual Wrapup, Rocket nostalgia and "Tall Tales". Bring stories and artifacts to share.	7 - 9 p.m.	Springer Center

2025 Special Events

2024 Contests

We hope to hold some NAR competitions each year. The dates listed are the first dates we will try to hold these events. If the launch is cancelled, due to bad weather for example, then we will attempt to hold the contest at the next scheduled launch. If a contest gets postponed too many times we may have to cancel it.

Basic information about competition can be found at NAR Rocketry Competition.

For a quick overview of the different events for beginners check out the document Competition for Casual Competitor (PDF - 155 KB)

Details of the contest events can be found in the NAR U.S. Model Rocket Sporting Code (AKA "Pink Book").

May

Saturday 23

Rocket Launch CIA Section Meet: Illinois Missile Crisis In addition to the usual sport launches of the day there will be the following contest events. 1/2A Boost Glider Duration 1/2A Streamer Duration 1/2A Altitude (Altimeter) B Payload Altitude (Altimeter) This launch has been cancelled

Noon - 6 p.m.

Dodds Park