Hi Frank,
Thanks for taking the initiative to "relaunch" the winter build string. I found last year's string an inspiration to get out of my post-holiday "rut" and start building for the upcoming season. This year again, the thread has had similar a inspirational effect for me. So thanks for that.
So my build goals this year are somewhat modest...No major projects for me this winter. (I've reluctantly decided to shelve my "dream" of the past few years to buy and build an ARR Blue Phenix for a L1 attempt). Instead, I've set the more realistic goal for myself of just burning down my backlog of unbuilt kits. (I can actually see myself getting thru them all!)
Here's this winter's build list:
1. Finishing up my Estes Astron Sprint XL
2. Starting my Flis Kits Rose-A-Roc (my first helicopter recovery model)
3. Building another wood & dowel rack for display and transport of recently built rockets
4. Proudly watching my son, Ben as he builds his 2-stage Flis Kits Cheetah, completely on his own, after a couple years away from building rockets.
This last one was actually a bit of a pleasant surprise. Ben and I have been building and flying rockets together for several years (mostly at CMASS launches, but occasionally at the joint launches with MMMSC in Berwick & RIMRA in S. Kingston, or at "special" launches in upstate NY...We've been to LDRS 34, URRF 3, and NYPOWER 21 in recent years). We used to do a lot of rocketry stuff together when Ben was younger, but as he's gotten older (he's now a Jr in HS), and gotten into other things, we seem to spend a little less time each year doing rocketry. (Only did the 1 NYPOWER launch together last year.) As those of you with kids know, this tends to happen as the kids grow older.
A couple of weeks ago, Ben got an unusual assignment in his High School English class, as they were studying some works of literature on transcendentalism. The class was challenged to spend one "Thoreau-like" week completely unplugged from technology during their leisure time, and to give a presentation on how they spent their time, and reflect on the experience . Much to my surprise, Ben decided to "pick up a dormant hobby" during his week off the screens for this assignment, and decided to finally build his Cheetah rocket. His presentation touched on the quality father-son time we've spent together in the workshop, and out in the country / on the farms at rocket launches (and occasionally tromping thru the woods looking for lost rockets!). I was blown away by the way he embraced his project! And his Cheetah rocket is coming along nicely and will definitely be ready to fly in the early spring.
We are planning to attend the NAR National Sport Launch together this spring over Memorial Day weekend. With this being Ben's Jr Year in HS, this will probably realistically be one of the last times we'll do a BIG father-son rocketry weekend like this. We're both looking forward to it, and we'll definitely have some new birds to fly.
Hoping a few CMASS folks decide to make the trip out to Geneseo for the NSL 2018. It's a spectacular field, and the MARS club does a great job putting on their annual Memorial Day weekend launch. (NYPOWER 21 was awesome last year!). Those who decide to make the trip won't be disappointed.
Also hoping we might also be able to sneak in one more CMASS launch together at the Amesbury field before Ben moves into his busy Sr year and the college search & application process. So many great memories of those Amesbury launches over the years...We'll see.
Hoping 2018 will be a good year for us all, (rocketry-wise and otherwise)
Dan Tyszka
CMASS member since 2013
NAR # 95916