What the vendors mean to my family

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Cl(VII)

Chris Bender, Lab Rat
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This was spurred on by the terrible news about Carl, but I didn't think it appropriate to post thie in the condolenses thread, so here it is.

I am speaking here to the "good" vendors whose creativity and dedication produce some really fantastic products for all of us to enjoy.

I've been a BAR for over a year now, I got back into rocketry to have a science related activity to share with my young boys. The experience has been beyond anything I initially dreamed it could be. I want to explicitly give a few examples, so the vendors and producers of these products know that their work is appreciated.

- I spent over an hour yesterday with my 5 year old as he intently worked on his Estes Patriot. My wife and I were extatic at the concentration and attention he showed. This is a big deal for my son, he is a very smart kid, but he has the attention span of a gnat (he surely got that from me). Working on a rocket is the ONLY thing I have seen him focus on for greater than an hour. Building rockets engages him to such a degree that it is giving him a chance to develop a skill he will soon need, the ability to focus.

- On the days my two year old son wakes up early enough that I am still home I get him from his room. When he realizes it is me he excitedly asks "Is it rocket day?" The look on his face then and the belly laugh he gives off when he pushes the button to launch his favorite rocket (LOC Aura on an E20) is simply priceless. He often runs off through the field to get it, and insists on carrying it back to our popup once recovered.

- Once a month we go to our group launch, and almost every kid that walks by our popup stops to ask about, and marvel at, our Baddazz Defender MkII. Seeing that excitement their faces is so great that even if it is too windy to fly that little rocket to 2000 ft that day I still take it along and leave it on our table for the day. And when it does fly (teleport on an F39) the kids love it (me too honestly).

- Ironically, just last night I was working on a Semroc Trident. When I showed the picture of what it was going to look like (or as close as my skills will get me) to the boys they went nuts. After he stopped doing the jumping foot to foot hands on cheaks excited dance, my oldest wanted to know how the ejection worked. I told him to try to figure it out looking at the parts and picture...he didn't get it completely right, but he sure focused on a problem and thought about it really hard. Again, he was engaged by a pile of tubes and balsa that through someone's (in this case Carl and Sheryl) hard work became a tool for learning, imagination, and cerainly fun.

Obviously, I too enjoy building and flying these rockets, although I have never pushed the button as a BAR (the kids have >100 flights to their credit). I will probably continue doing this if/when the kids lose interest, but the greatest value to my wife and I will always be the memories of the times my sons have spent launching, building, and talking about rockets. Undoubedly, we would not have this experience without the companies and vendors that put so much work into this hobby. Are they selling a product to meet a demand and making a profit doing so like any other buisness, I hope so but I imagine it's not that great a profit in most cases. I can honestly say that dollar for dollar, producing what for me will be lasting memories with my kids, I get a much greater return on rocketry than just about any other regular activity we participate in.



Sherly,

I don't know if you will see this, but if you do please remember that Carl, and you, have a legacy that goes beyond what you will ever personally witness. I am sure there are a great many other parents like myself who are building many memories with their kids building, flying, and talking about the fruit of your labors.

Thanks,
Chris
 
+1. If I could give it more than that I would... Actually I will give it a +4 for the rest of our family members.

You have said very eloquently what many in this community feel during the good times when we are out with our families (both immediate and those we have met from this hobby) launching and more pointedly when we lose someone like Carl.

Enjoy those special times. It sounds like you have a great Mission Control team!
 
Flying rockets and building rockets with my twin boys(7) is a great bonding experience. There are so many great things to learn from rocketry and many great companies keeping the spirit of the hobby alive. As an example,at our club launch today my son Greg carried on a little conversation with Jim Fliss of Fliskits who answered all of his questions patiently. Other venders like Semroc go above and beyond as well. Everyone in my family loves to launch rockets. (yes even Mommy likes to see the birds fly.)
 
Thank you Chris. Stories like yours ment/mean the world to us. One of the most precious gifts God gave us is our family. Cherish every minute with them.

Sheryl
 
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