Model Forum / General / Rockets / December 2009

My son just "graduated" from the Starbase Atlantis Model Rocket Club
taught at NAS Whiting through his schools 5th grade class. He was 1 of
4 5th graders to get a special award for making 100% on the class
which to my understanding, was the first year this has happened and
the program started in the late 1980's or early 1990's.
 He just launched another rocket he built in our large back yard, at
~400 ft AGL a strong gust hit (this is right after / as a cold front
was going through), and made it go horizontal about another 800 ft and
we never recovered the rocket as I packed a chute for a larger rocket
instead of making one for that rocket, so it must have been too tight,
as when the ejection charge went off, we saw the engine come out of
the business end of the rocket, and I was a skydiver through the 90's,
LOL.
 But I am really proud of him, as I may know more of the chemistry
aspect of making fuels, but he has really excelled in designing the
rockets. But as a 5th grader, we are sticking with the Estes motors, I
told him when he got his drivers license, we would start teaching him
the rocket fuel chemistry (well, one exception, I have made sugar
rocket motors for him, but we are staying away from the Ammonium
Perchlorate and other volitile - based fuels for at least 5 1/2 more
years).

  Sorry if this was off topic a bit, but since there was a comment of
not many new threads in a while, i thought I would share this story
with you all.

Happy Holidays,
Walter & Skylar J.