This is the 10th anniversary of the ClappTrap, invented by the club's Doug Clapp. This portable observatory was unleashed into the public domain in the July 1987 issue of Sky & Telescope. Doug is rumoured to be working on a new and improved version which can be remotely set up via a shortwave interface with the Internet.

This year's StarBeQue was a rousing success. There was enough food to feed a small army and Tara McWatters ensured that everyone (especially the young children present) overdosed on toasted marshmallows. A fine array of telescopes were set up on the hill: Jerry and Kwai's little Pronto, John Clemmer's exquisite schiefspeigler (try saying that with your mouth full of marshmallows!), Rick and Cindy's workhorse C8 and Robert and Janice's massive 14.5 inch Dob. The seeing was so-so, but we still had moments of excellent viewing. We were treated to an hour long canine chorus — no doubt they were celebrating the heliacal rising of Sirius, marking the dog days of summer.