It almost made me weep

[Dr.Zooch]

Just a little side-story from the most recent Red Glare here at MDRA. I volunteered to "do the rocket bucket" meaning that the club's bucket of beat-up donated 18mm rockets was in my charge- along with all of the kids who were at their first launch and wanted to fly their first rocket. Most folks may think that a pain- but for me, it was a sales booster. Not only was I introducing lots of folks to rocketry, but I was also selling a lot more than I usually do at Red Glare.

Anyhow, while sitting there at my table on Saturday, this teenage sort of fellow and his buddy comes up holding an Areoteck 18mm D21. He pointed at one of the rockets in the kid's bucket and says, "Will this work in one of those?" Rather puzzled I replied "Yeah... why?" He explained that he's just won it in the raffle and wanted to shoot it while he was there!:surprised::cry: He said he was fairly familure with model rockets and demonstrated that he know how to use a Copperhead igniter- he'd just never seen a D21 before.

I tried to talk him out of it... I tried to trade him a handfull of my own 18mm engines for the Aero-D21... I tried... oh I tried... he reached into the rocket bucket, took a little beat-up rocket out and walked away. A bit later he came back and dropped the little rocket back in the bucket... "That was cool." he said.

I almost wept.:cry:

 

[graylensman]

On the other hand, maybe, just maybe, he's been infected with the rocket virus, and he'll show up again later?

 

[2muchstuff]

....I almost wept.:cry:

Ok, I'll bite. Why?

The guy won a motor and flew it. So it was a D-21. What would you have done with it?


tms

 

[Necromancer]

Whats special with a D21 ? ?

I won one in the raffle at Red Glare and just gave it away to a neighbor since i don't deal with flea power.

 

[n3tjm]

He flew a small rocket with a D21 and got it back?

 

[graylensman]

Whats special with a D21 ? ?

I won one in the raffle at Red Glare and just gave it away to a neighbor since i don't deal with flea power.

Flea power?? That's HPR compared to what I'm flying these days.

 

[conleyt]

Maybe he's thinking of the very rare Enerjet D21?

 

[Bravo52]

Whats special with a D21 ? ?

I won one in the raffle at Red Glare and just gave it away to a neighbor since i don't deal with flea power.

I understand fleas hate flea powder. I know I went to " Front Line" cause the old flea powder irritated the fleas and cause my dog to itch.

Jerry

 

[Gillard]

he flew a small model rocket on a D21, and then was able to recover it and bring it back:surprised: - i'd be crying 'cos small rockets nearly always "hide" from me on C motors.

 

[DexterLB]

D21 in a 18mm small rocket!?

What a waste, what a waste... :cry::chicken:

 

[gpoehlein]

Naw - I think you guys have it all wrong - what would have been a waste would have been not participating in the first place. It would have been a waste to have won a motor and just take it home, stuff it in a drawer and forget about it. At least he got to taste the joys of rocketry, and, just perhaps, he will be interested enough to build one or two, come back and fly them. Flying a motor is never a waste!

 

[Gillard]

Naw - I think you guys have it all wrong - what would have been a waste would have been not participating in the first place. It would have been a waste to have won a motor and just take it home, stuff it in a drawer and forget about it. At least he got to taste the joys of rocketry, and, just perhaps, he will be interested enough to build one or two, come back and fly them. Flying a motor is never a waste!

but he had the chance to swap the D21 for other 18mm motors. I have yet to see a D21 in Britain.
but you are right - always better to fly than have a full motor box.

 

[kelltym88]

Or maybe the fact that he didn't even have a rocket to begin with, won the motor, asked if he could borrow a beat up rocket, flew it and then returned it. It''s not so much about the motor, but the circumstances surrounding it's use.

 

[bcanino]

He flew a D21 and it didn't cato? Amazing.

 

[joecooler]

I'm with the guys who are amazed he got the rocket back! Personally I'm with the kid, tho - how fun to launch a tiny bird on a big motor - must have been one hell of a flight! And if he doesn't catch the bug after that, he never will ...

 

[foose4string]

I think you had to see the rockets in the "kid bucket" to appreciate the motor selection and the fact it was recovered at all. There were a couple dozen rockets, typical bulk pack style rockets, balsa fins and nose, various paint schemes. Minimum diameter, minimum drag, and lucky if it weighed an ounce...total.....on a D21??? C6 is usually pushing one's luck trying to track and retrieve a rocket that size.

That kid is hooked for sure! Unfortunately, having experienced a HPR launch first hand(especially a Red Glare!), and having sucessfully pushed the limits of LPR, he'll be jaded. I'm afraid "lowly" rocket like the Big Bertha will never satisfy his hunger from here on out.