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vdopro
05-02-2011, 03:36 PM
Do you love rockets? Do you love destruction? Are you tired of the same old rocket competitions? Then we've got just the thing for you: The WOOSH AntiRocket Challenge!

Loosely inspired by the Antimov Competition for Robotics, the WOOSH Anti-Rocket Challenge challenges you to design a rocket which goes against the spirit of traditional rocketry (except for endangering humans or damaging property, of course) for the sheer stupidity of the endeavor.

An amateur rocket is traditionally designed to perform the seemingly scientific task of delivering a payload to a specified altitude as efficiently as possible and returning both payload and rocket safely to the ground. (By the way, flying a payload of air as high as the motor will take it actually FITS this traditional design parameter.)

However, building a competent and efficient rocket that completes its task unharmed is SO last year.

We want you to build a rocket that does the following instead:

1. Performs a trivial, non-scientific task involving at least one non-traditional rocketry item in the most inefficient and laborious way possible;

2. Supports an overall theme that is related to the trivial, non-scientific task;

3. Destroys itself in the process of performing the trivial, non-scientific task, but not in any manner that violates the rocketry safety code or any local, state or federal laws. The rule of thumb is that the rocket can NOT be immediately reloaded and flown again without substantial effort upon completion of the trivial, non-scientific task.

We ultimately wanted a competition that focuses less on rocket science and engineering abilities and more on creative ingenuity and blatant, humorous frivolity.


Rules (This is an incomplete list and is subject to change):

1. Safety is paramount. A violation of any part of the rocketry safety code or any local, state or federal laws will be grounds for immediate disqualification.
2. The rocket must complete at least one trivial, non-scientific task involving at least one non-traditional rocketry item.
3. Optional (but strongly recommended): The rocket should be part of an overall theme that is related to the trivial, non-scientific task.
4. Upon completion of the trivial, non-scientific task, the rocket should render itself non-flyable and in a condition that it can NOT be immediately reloaded and flown again without substantial effort.
5. The rocket may use any prop, structure, or external device that can be safely placed in, and removed from, the launch area.
6. All rockets will be given three chances to complete their launch.

Scoring: Challenge scoring will be based on the set four criteria listed below. Each criterion is 25 points for a possible total of 100 points. All scoring is pari-mutuel – in other words, all contestants score all other contestants. Final score for each contestant is an average of all scores received.

1. Inefficiency (0-25 points) – Base on the inefficiency and laborious nature of the task as well as the complexity of the non-traditional nature of the item involved. Inefficiency coupled with complexity is to be rewarded!

2. Frivolity (0-25 points) – The pointlessness of the entire affair. The more frivolous and humorous, the more points received.

3. Theme (0-25) points) – The thematic element of the presentation. For this criteria, showmanship and window dressing matter.

4. Destruction (0-25 points) - The completeness the rocket's self-destruction as well as the evil, twisted creativity behind its demise. An ugly, horrible death means a much higher the score.

Prohibited Items:

* Firearms or lethal weaponry of any kind
* Explosives and pyrotechnics outside of traditional rocketry devices and materials
* Corrosive or flammable liquids or gases
* High-powered lasers
* Anything that endangers the safety of bystanders or property of others

Prizes: Trophies, bragging rights and the adulation of your fellow rocketeers

Date: Saturday, June 11, 2011 (Rain date: Sunday, June 12)

Time: Registration begins at 10AM, Flights must be completed by 3PM. Presentations are at 4PM

Location: Bong Recreational Area

Contact: Marc Stevens msvdopro@yahoo.com

Rex R
05-02-2011, 04:09 PM
a suggestion, starting a grass fire should(Imo) carry a hefty penelty.
rex

ECayemberg
05-17-2011, 02:19 PM
I try to make it to at least one Woosh launch a year; and with Marc's crazy competition it looks like this will be it. I've been planning my project for some time and will try to post a few construction photos as progress commences. I'm not going to spill the beans completely, but here's a few hints and teasers.

Theme: For those that fly regularly at Bong, you are aware that we rocket people are not the only inhabitants of the launching area, whether it be the runway or Lot E, etc. There are others that have become much more prominent, aggressive, and some may even say invasive in the last few years. Well, this project is devoted to those lovely inhabitants. Project name D** P***** D************. Fellow Bong mates will likely figure out the first two words.

Components: Keeping with the theme of mass destruction (while fully adhering to Safety Rules), I've come up with a fairly complex project based on standard Semroc, Flis, and Estes Parts. Here are a few highlights:

-(20) 24mm motors
-3 Stages
-20 separate pieces being safely recovered per Safety Rules
-One single piece of BT-80 airframe
-16 pieces of BT-60 airframe
-8 nose cones
-15 parachutes

This should be interesting...certainly not my largest rocket but certainly complex, and most definitely rediculous!

-Eric-

mycrofte
05-17-2011, 03:16 PM
hmmm.... I have a few thoughts already!

Bill
05-17-2011, 07:56 PM
Components: Keeping with the theme of mass destruction (while fully adhering to Safety Rules), I've come up with a fairly complex project based on standard Semroc, Flis, and Estes Parts. Here are a few highlights:

-(20) 24mm motors
-3 Stages
-20 separate pieces being safely recovered per Safety Rules
-One single piece of BT-80 airframe
-16 pieces of BT-60 airframe
-8 nose cones
-15 parachutes

This should be interesting...certainly not my largest rocket but certainly complex, and most definitely rediculous!



Holy Pikadon, Batman...I hope there will be people hiding behind their cameras when that one is launched.


Bill

vdopro
05-18-2011, 10:02 AM
Eric,

Sounds like a fun idea - and one that is destined to go horribly wrong ... which is a good thing! Can't wait to see it.

Marc

Sather
05-24-2011, 12:23 AM
This should be interesting...certainly not my largest rocket but certainly complex, and most definitely ridiculous!

Sounds like a fun, ambitious, challenging, and slightly deranged project. I'm coming to Bong just to see what you came up with, Eric.

P.S. Comparatively, my entry is very simple. And it involves a Jayhawk.

Sather

ECayemberg
05-27-2011, 07:56 AM
Sather, I can't believe you're basing your project on a Jayhawk :chuckle: . Looking forward to your creativity!

Two weeks out, time to start building something! Photobucket failed to upload some of the desired photos :( , but here's a couple anyway. I used a combination of Zap medium CA for tacking and Titebond for filleting. Beauty on this project is not important, functionality...or rather disfunctionality is critical.

Let's start with motor mounts: 16 of the 20 D motors require BT-60 to BT-50 motor mounts. This amounts to a stack of 32 Centering Rings courtesy of Semroc (a few less shown here as I had already constructed two baseline mounts.)

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/257.jpg

First mounts to be built are the fin boosters: four mounts that direct stage to the fin sustainers. A masking tape thrust ring on the aft end prevents the motor from passing through the mount. The mounts shown below mount into the 2.75" long BT-60 w/ coupler in the background.

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/258.jpg

After the mounts were glued into the fin booster airframes, these subassemblies were complete. On to the mounts for the fin sustainers. Same as the fin boosters, only with a engine block on the forward end and the aft CR slid forward a ways to clear the BT-60 coupler. Here the mounts are complete with the exception of the thrust rings. Each mount was matched up with a specific booster and airframe to assure proper fit.

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/259.jpg

The sustainer mount was placed on top of the booster mount, thrust ring glued in place using a stack of D12's as spacers.

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/263-1.jpg

Mounts were glued into the fin sustainer airframes and allowed to dry.

ECayemberg
05-27-2011, 08:09 AM
It's only 10:30 pm, plenty of time to cut some fins. I started with 3/16" x 6" balsa stock. Sized and printed appropriately sized pheasants for fins. The phins are sized slightly larger than the pheasants; I was originally going to cut the fins out to the exact profile of the bird; however in the interest of time I've gone to straight edged fins with impending black background.

Phour phins were phreed to phit the pheasants.

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/260.jpg

Pheasant phins phitted to the airphrame for photobucket YORPH phorum posting.

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/261.jpg

The phins will be phixed to the sustainer (brown) airframe using titebond initially, then glassed in place using epoxy and 4 oz glass...same as I've used for monocopters that phly in a similar phasion.

Phiberglassing of the phins to take place in the next phew days.

-Eric-

Sather
05-27-2011, 08:55 AM
Phew.....!

chadrog
05-27-2011, 09:25 AM
Phantastic Phins!

ECayemberg
06-07-2011, 07:46 AM
Thanks Chad, Sather!

Holy cats, only a couple more build days before Saturday's event. Time to make some progress.

Let's start with motor mounts assembled into airframes; lots of them. From Left to Right: Sustainers, Sustainer Boosters, Pheasant Phin Boosters, and Pheasant Phin Sustainers.
http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/6-6-11006.jpg

Now that external motor mounts are complete, time to work on the core of the chaos; what I call the "mother hen". A Flis 4*24 motor mount was assembled into the BT-80 core airframe. The Phin boosters and Sustainer boosters were glued together in pairs.
http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/6-6-11154.jpg

ECayemberg
06-07-2011, 07:56 AM
After the booster pairs were dry, it was time to cluster around the core. In order to get the right circumference, 1/16" square balsa stock was Zap'd into place under the Sustainer boosters and sanded down until the fit was just right. The assembly was mated using one single batch of 15 minute epoxy and masking tape to hold it all together.

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/6-6-11155.jpg

Pheasant fins were then tacked to their respective airframes using Zap Med. CA. Joints were filleted using 15 min. epoxy. Yesterday afternoon, I was able to reinforce the fins and airframe joint with scrap 5.7oz carbon fiber and 4 oz E-glass. Consistent with the theme of this project, I used scrap and worked quickly, so it's not beautiful! Time for a bit of a fit up to see how it's all coming together:

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/6-6-11158-1.jpg

And a view from the rear:

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/6-6-11159.jpg

At this stage, "Mother Hen" is nearly complete. After the photos were taken, a launch lug was added and short alignment fins were added to the phin boosters to keep the pheasant phins in proper alignment.

Getting closer!

-Eric-

ECayemberg
06-09-2011, 09:01 AM
Mother hen is complete. This assembly houses 16 motors...12 in the first stage, 4 in the second.

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/6-9-11019.jpg

Now for the nearly complete D.P.D. Two slightly different angles:

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/6-9-11020.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/6-9-11021.jpg

ECayemberg
06-09-2011, 09:15 AM
The whole assembly has 36 fins! Each sustainer has 6 fins, 4 pheasant phins, and 8 small alignment fins on mother hen. Here's a close up of how they all fit together (between airframes, over nosecones, and through the woods to grandmother's house we go).

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/6-9-11022.jpg

Finally filleting! After confirming everything fits as intended, it's time to fillet the 6 sustainer fins.

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/6-9-11025.jpg

Here's another shot of the sustainers pre-fillets. The cartoon on the fins is somewhat respresentative of the project's theme.

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/6-9-11024.jpg

Time is running short, but the remaining steps are too. I need to paint the sustainers, add noseweight, add whistles, test fly a sustainer, and prep for Saturday's flight!

-Eric-

SteveLohr
06-10-2011, 06:14 AM
Wow. I'm impressed

SteveLohr
06-10-2011, 06:16 AM
One question-Is that the nosecone of an Estes "ROCK IT" I see poking out of the booster?

ECayemberg
06-10-2011, 07:25 AM
Steve,

Yes sir, that is an Estes Rock-It nosecone; although that's the only part actually stolen from that kit. I think the airframe went to a 2.6" 4*24 cluster Patriot, and the motor mount went to the parts box.

Thanks!

-Eric-

ECayemberg
06-10-2011, 09:06 AM
DPD is done...mostly. I need to prep a LOT of chutes and streamers, otherwise the bird is complete. Here's a pair of photos of the finished product....apologies for the crappy photos, snapped them on the way out the door.

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/5-18-11016-1.jpg

A little closer in, showing the fin area. Note whistles on fin tips, and snacks for the birds and dogs on the bench. Also, several packs of Q2G2 long leads to get the project moving. No time for primer on this project, so the sustainer paint is the worst I've done in probably decades...oh well.

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/ECayemberg/WOOSH%20DPD/5-18-11002-1.jpg

Now to prep the recovery systems and make the drive South to Bong!

-Eric-

chadrog
06-11-2011, 06:22 AM
This is gonna be sooooo cool! I wonder if the D. P. will come to watch?!?

chadrog
06-12-2011, 07:59 AM
And the winner is...
http://youtu.be/_M65GUSV4S4

chadrog
06-12-2011, 08:16 AM
http://youtu.be/FZ7CUjcIxe4

More to come later, it's time for me to fly!!

Sather
06-13-2011, 11:41 AM
Here are some pix of Eric's winning entry from the Inaugural Anti-Rocketry Challenge...

Sather
06-13-2011, 11:46 AM
and a few others from the weekend...

the second one is Paul's entry, super-glued to the rod. :chuckle:

jamjammer53150
06-13-2011, 12:03 PM
You didnt happen to catch Arial's shred in flight? BTW thanks forhelping sweep it up so it can fly again

Sather
06-13-2011, 12:45 PM
You didnt happen to catch Arial's shred in flight? BTW thanks for helping sweep it up so it can fly again

I got the launch but the shred was out of frame. I move slower every year...

I was hoping she got it all back. You were brave to fly it. (a vintage Estes Cato for those not present. The parts are irreplaceable.)

Bill
06-13-2011, 03:42 PM
You didnt happen to catch Arial's shred in flight? BTW thanks forhelping sweep it up so it can fly again


Ah, dustpan recovery...


Bill

X-wooshprez
06-15-2011, 11:09 PM
I'll work on more of the video I have but here is Eric's flight as well as the intro to the contest by Marc and a prerecorded interview. More to come.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFS0RwlU2rk

chadrog
06-16-2011, 12:46 AM
John, the CATO flight is in my compilation now on youtube, I can send you the file if you want it. Sather, GREAT SHOTS!!! Scotty, GREAT VIDEO!!! That was a tough one to catch, I didn't get much. Awesome weekend.

X-wooshprez
06-16-2011, 04:23 PM
Thanks Chad, I'm going to put a video together for each contestant.
I think we need to do this again next year.

ECayemberg
06-17-2011, 07:19 AM
Great vids Chad and Scott! Great photos Sather! Thanks for sharing your talents!

This event was a lot of fun...weather wasn't ideal but thankfully the inefficiency of the rockets allowed for flying within conditions.

Fun stuff!

-Eric-

vdopro
06-17-2011, 01:53 PM
Guys, I will definitely consider sponsoring another Anti-Rocket Challenge next year. It was a blast this year and hopefully we'll get a lot more contestants if we do it again.

Marc

X-wooshprez
06-17-2011, 05:00 PM
Marc,
If you submit your reciept for the trophies I am certain that we
will be able to reimburse you for them.
The club funds should be used for fun events like this.
Scott

chadrog
06-17-2011, 05:52 PM
I won't have quite as many projects in the works next year, so I'll definately participate! AHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Paul S
06-18-2011, 07:57 AM
and a few others from the weekend...

the second one is Paul's entry, super-glued to the rod. :chuckle:

I'm embarrassed to say that my attempt to build a rocket that destroys itself in flight has now flown three times, and is still in condition to fly again.

I believe that qualifies me for a Level -1 Certification.

Paul