NOTE: The terms contest, meet and event are used somewhat interchangeably.
The NAR promulgates the United States Model Rocket Sporting Code (USMRSC), affectionately known as the 'Pink Book', which governs NAR sanctioned model rocket competition in the United States. An online version is available on the NAR web site. There is a link on the TCC home page (http://www.tccnar.org). You can also download the document.
Contest Directors must be very familiar with the Pink Book. Read from “About the Sporting Code” through section 18: Provisional Competition. Also read the rules for the events you are hosting.
Any NAR section or senior member can request a contest sanction from their Regional Contest Board (RCB) Chairman. Texas is in the Southwest Region. States, regions and RCB Chairmen are listed on the NAR web site in the NAR Contacts Directory and in the USMRSC.
http://www.nar.org/NARadmin.html
The NAR contest year runs from 1 JUL to 30 JUN of each year. (Rule6.2)
Competition Points are awarded for places 1-4, and for Flight Points (Rule 13.1)
10 points per event for placing first
6 points per event for placing second
4 points per event for placing third2 points per event for placing fourth
1 point per event for making at least one qualified, official flight (flight points)
Each event in a contest has a Weighting Factor (Rule 13.3) and each contest has a maximum Contest Factor (Rule 13.4). Points for each event are calculated by multiplying the Competition Points by the event Weighting Factor by the meet Contest Factor. Thus, the NAR limits the points that can be won at a particular contest.
There are four types of contests which can be sanctioned. Record Trials and the national meet (NARAM) are special cases that are treated separately. Each contest type has a contest factor assigned and a maximum number of weighting factors.
Section 1 CF and 40 WF
Local 1 CF and 40 WF
Open 2 CF and 60 WF
Regional 3 and 80 WF
Rule 13.5 reads in part: For example, a contestant places first in Scale Competition at an Open Meet. First place gives the contestant10 points; Scale has a Weighting Factor of 32; and an Open Meet has a Contest Factor of 2. Multiply 10 x 32 x 2 to obtain the number of competition points to be awarded to the contestant for the event: 640 points.
Here is the sticky point for scheduling contests. Each NAR section and member can only host/compete in a total of 12 contest factors in a contest year. If four sections each host a regional in a year, each would have only used 3 contest factors. However, if each section had at least 1 member who officially represented that section in each regional, then each section would have used up all 12 contest factors. To maximize points, each section must carefully monitor which contests their members enter as officially representing the section. The more members competing in each contest, the more points your section can earn.
Thus, the NAR regulates (to some extent) the number of points that one section/member can win in a contest year. A section or member has only 12 contest factors per contest year. When even ONE section member officially represents a section then that section and the member are each charged for the contest factors for that meet.
O. Lee James, III
NAR 15058 SR L0
TCC Custodian