To Dave T from a visitor: 'Your rocket is cute'. Not quite the adjective he had in mind.
Any flight in which the parachute opens before the rocket hits the ground is a good flight.
"The secret of winning the annual FOG challenge is to be called Dave". Dave Bishop.
Visit to FOG by IMechE. We gave a presentation about rocketry in the village hall followed by demonstration flights by club members. Demolition of the hall started the next day. It wasn't us - honest!
Least vertical flight of the year 2009 was Tom's (much rebuilt) "Thunder Piglet". It went the length of the field under power and buried itself into a hedge with only the fins showing.
I bet you can't do that again! Dave B's twin gliders. It was so perfect that the rocket gods felt obliged to intervene. The first glider crashed into the launch pad and shattered, while the second parked itself up a tree. Karen caught it on video!
Best Excuse: Mike's "That was the longest 3 second delay I have ever seen" following the crash of his Mega Viper.
Most impressive first flight: Gareth's V2. It was a windy day, and he flew a nicely crafted scale V2. Encouraged by another club flier he decided to put a D12-5 into the rocket. The boost was awesome, apogee was high, the deployment smooth, and the rocket was last seen heading for Bristol under parachute. It might still be up there. Gareth's launch stats: Total Launches 1: Lost Rockets 1. A perfect record.
Most forgettable launch: The flight of the Pig. Phil's "Pork Scratchings" rocket powered pig on a G69. An awesome boost (those smokey sams are very photogenic) was followed by separation. The head drifted down under the parachute, the body came in ballistically. No animals were hurt during this flight - just Phil's pride.
Most attempts to ignite the same rocket. Dave B took 8 attempts to ignite his UFFO. That's 8 countdowns, 8 sets of photographs, 8 igniters.... you get the idea. This was in 2006, and It took until 2019 for Tom to equal it!
Least Vertical Flight of 2006. This competition was hotly contended. Just about everyone had an entry in this class. The winner was Dave T with his rack rocket that managed to cross two fields under power without exceeding an altitude of 200 ft.
Some rocketry philosophy:
"The only way to find out is to press the button"
"Distance is our friend"
"The earlier you launch it the more time you'll have to search for it"
Any flight in which the parachute opens before the rocket hits the ground is a good flight.
"The secret of winning the annual FOG challenge is to be called Dave". Dave Bishop.
Visit to FOG by IMechE. We gave a presentation about rocketry in the village hall followed by demonstration flights by club members. Demolition of the hall started the next day. It wasn't us - honest!
Least vertical flight of the year 2009 was Tom's (much rebuilt) "Thunder Piglet". It went the length of the field under power and buried itself into a hedge with only the fins showing.
I bet you can't do that again! Dave B's twin gliders. It was so perfect that the rocket gods felt obliged to intervene. The first glider crashed into the launch pad and shattered, while the second parked itself up a tree. Karen caught it on video!
Best Excuse: Mike's "That was the longest 3 second delay I have ever seen" following the crash of his Mega Viper.
Most impressive first flight: Gareth's V2. It was a windy day, and he flew a nicely crafted scale V2. Encouraged by another club flier he decided to put a D12-5 into the rocket. The boost was awesome, apogee was high, the deployment smooth, and the rocket was last seen heading for Bristol under parachute. It might still be up there. Gareth's launch stats: Total Launches 1: Lost Rockets 1. A perfect record.
Most forgettable launch: The flight of the Pig. Phil's "Pork Scratchings" rocket powered pig on a G69. An awesome boost (those smokey sams are very photogenic) was followed by separation. The head drifted down under the parachute, the body came in ballistically. No animals were hurt during this flight - just Phil's pride.
Most attempts to ignite the same rocket. Dave B took 8 attempts to ignite his UFFO. That's 8 countdowns, 8 sets of photographs, 8 igniters.... you get the idea. This was in 2006, and It took until 2019 for Tom to equal it!
Least Vertical Flight of 2006. This competition was hotly contended. Just about everyone had an entry in this class. The winner was Dave T with his rack rocket that managed to cross two fields under power without exceeding an altitude of 200 ft.
Some rocketry philosophy:
"The only way to find out is to press the button"
"Distance is our friend"
"The earlier you launch it the more time you'll have to search for it"
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