Category: Texas Highways

Rockets 2019 Central Texas/Stonewall Friday Launch Report

Saturday started off as a delayed launch until noon until the cloud window decided to hand a break  for a few hours before clouding up again around lunch. Crews rushed to the site to try to get rockets on the rails and in the skies. As it was, it was still hurry and wait as the clouds and weather never quite behave as  predicted. Even so, the second day of launches at the new site in Stonewall at the Sammy Segner Ranch was a great success.

The SystemsGo team and volunteer staff loaded and launched 8 rockets. Add to that a great recovery effort for the day. At day’s end all rockets shot for the weekend so far, with the exception of one, #77 have been recovered. I believe, that even so, #77 has at least a chute in possession at Mission Control.

We truly have an enthusiastic group of recovery volunteers this year. They are all having such a blast on this addictive game of lost and found.

George Burns put it best with his answer to the question, “what are you doing this weekend?” He said, “I am going out to a pasture I don’t know to run around looking for a needle in a haystack!”

Of course we are all enjoying ourselves and love the program or we would not be here doing what we do. Land owners Sammy Segner, Troy Spies, and Richard Koone are on recovery as well, and really enjoying the hunt.

Along with hunting Mr. Segner, had the added experience of pulling the LCRA truck out of the mud right in between Mission Control and the launch pad. Definitely not and ideal place for him to be stuck. 

Tomorrow will start early for the whole group as we have a start time of 0700. We have a full docket as our three original schools, Akins, Alamo Heights, and London, are being joined by Liberty Christian which moved from Friday, and the nine rockets from the trailer which didn’t get to launch due to weather Friday night. They include Hamilton, Marble Falls, McGregor, and Roosevelt. The schools whose rockets were in the trailer will not be in attendance but left their vehicles for SystemsGo to launch at the first opportunity provided they could watch them on Livestream. That is a total of 16 rockets for Saturday as far as I am informed.

Pictures from the progress at the site to this point are on SystemsGo Facebook page, as well as my Facebook page. They can be found here:

https://www.facebook.com/SystemsGoEducation/

https://www.facebook.com/ginger.burow

Festivities continue tomorrow as weather permits. Fortunately, tomorrow is predicted to be a better weather day for Stonewall Rockets 2019, and Sunday will be even better.

Unfortunately it has been raining here in Gillespie County since about 1645 and is still predicted to go until about 0200. This means it will be a bit of a messy start in the morning, but hopefully the sun will come through and dry it out a little. There still might be some delays in the morning from weather,  clouds, or flooding depending on how long the storms last this evening so be sure to watch for updates on SystemsGo‘s Facebook page.

Stages 1 and 2 will continue to be at the Stonewall Chamber of Commerce building.

This site is be open to public viewing of launches. If you plan to attend any of these launches please register for your attendance ticket ahead of time or obtain them at the gate. These are free but required for admittance to each site as they also include a waiver for access to the site.  Reserving them ahead at the website is preferred to obtaining them at the gate because the latter slows entrance to the site and may result in you missing the viewing of your intended launch.

The Central Texas/Stonewall launch dates, locations, map links, ticket links, Livestream Links and schools are also listed here for your convenience or can be found at http://www.systemsgo.org/events/ .

Central Texas/Stonewall:

  • Saturday, May 4
  • New Launch Site: 2187 Double Horn Road, Stonewall, Texas 78671
    Stage 1 & 2 at Stonewall Chamber of Commerce: 250 Peach Street, Stonewall, TX 78671
  • https://www.greateventseats.com/FBG-SystemsGo
  • Central Texas-Stonewall 2019 Flight Schedule
  • This schedule is still valid with the addition of Liberty Christian HS which moved to Saturday with one 1/1,  and the rockets from the trailer from Friday for schools, Hamilton HS with one of each 1/1 and Transonic, McGregor HS with one of each 1/1 and Transonic, Marble Falls HS with one of each 1/1 and Transonic, and Roosevelt with three, two 1/1 and one Transonic.
  • Google Map Link: https://goo.gl/maps/84VMTwMqFvy
    Directions (PDF)
  • Schools participating: Fabens HS, Fredericksburg HS, Granger HS, Hamilton HS, Kingwood HS, Lampasas HS, Llano HS, Marble Falls HS, McGregor HS, Roosevelt HS, Summer Creek HS, Decatur HS, Georgetown HS, Kermit HS, Liberty Christian School, Terrell HS, Tom Moore Ingram HS, Union Grove HS, Victoria East HS
  • 48 expected rockets for testing-7 on Saturday
  • A live feed for each launch will be provided and will be available at www.systemsgo.org as each launch date arrives. Friday’s is as follows: May 4- Day 3

The site will open for admittance at 8:00 a.m. and launches will commence at 8:30 a.m.  Of course rockets are subject to winds, weather and workmanship, all of which can stall a launch. Come join in the action and cheer on these students. Admission is free, but the look on your students’ faces when their vehicle goes up and then is recovered, is far from priceless.

More event details will be available here in upcoming days as events progress. Daily reports featuring schedule links, school names, results, pictures and some editorial content will be posted each day of the event if information is available.

Please watch the SystemsGo website, SystemsGo Facebook page,  SystemsGo Twitter feed: https://twitter.com/SystemsGoNews and this blog for upcoming information on theses events.

www.systemsgo.org as always is the place for more information on this program. You may also email them at info@systemsgo.org . Take the time to get your school involved, the future of your students will be greatly benefited.

Hope to see you at the launches! #RideTheSkies #texasrockettrail #Rockets2019

 

 

 

Rockets 2019 Central Texas/Stonewall Thursday Launch Report

We had a slow start today due to low cloud ceilings for our first day of launches at the new Stonewall site at the Sammy Segner Ranch. The schedule began with 11 schools and 25 rockets and quickly decreased to 7 schools and 17 rockets as 4 schools canceled due to weather concerns.

The original list included Fabens, Fredericksburg, Granger, Hamilton, Kingwood, Lampasas, Llano, Marble Falls, McGregor, Roosevelt, and Summer Creek. OF the four schools that canceled, I have not been able to confirmation as to whether they have rescheduled to another day, or dropped out for this year. These schools include Fabens, Lampasas, Llano, and Summer Creek. At this time schedules have not been updated on SystemsGo to confirm changes so I will continue to post them for up coming days as they are. SystemsGo did post a bulletin yesterday offering Sunday as a weather contingency day to make up launches. We have no word yet if any schools have moved to that day.

The team and volunteers did manage 9 rockets on the rails today of which, 6 launched, and three returned to Stage 3. Of the 6 only Frederickburg’s Transonic and McGregor’s 1 pound/1 mile were not recovered before the site had to be shut down for a severe thunderstorm approaching. Roosevelt was still in Stage 3 finishing their rocket at that time. Eight other rockets were ready for the rails and stored in the SystemsGo trailer for protection for the night.

Property owner, Sammy Segner, and son-in-law, Troy Spies, helped on recovery today. They participated as part of 8 teams in the field watching, and documenting rockets as they sailed the skies and returned to the ground. Mr. Segner is seen here on the second recovery of the day as he retrieves Kingwood’s #76 rocket from a tree with the help of Steve Burow. Standing by were Mr. Segner’s recovery partner, George Burns, and Burow’s partner, Ginger(me), who were navigating the new ArcGIS Survey for the Recovery of Rockets, by AlphaSAR, that Erin Arkinson,  with Alpha Search and Rescue from Houston, was helping our teams to implement to better track the vehicles’ recoveries.

We really appreciate the use of Mr. Segner’s place for this concert in the sky, as well as his enthusiastic participation in our recovery efforts.

Pictures from the progress at the site to this point are on SystemsGo Facebook page, as well as my Facebook page. They can be found here:

https://www.facebook.com/SystemsGoEducation/

https://www.facebook.com/ginger.burow

Festivities continue tomorrow as weather permits. Unfortunately, tomorrow is predicted to be the worst weather day for the stint of Stonewall Rockets 2019. Hopefully it will allow for some launches. Right now there is an 80% prediction of more storms during the night tonight as well as all day tomorrow. This could cause delays in our start times tomorrow as well as subsequent launches throughout the day.

Watch SystemsGo‘s Facebook page as well as their web page for updates about delays in the morning and throughout the day.

As for tomorrow, launches will continue as possible at the Sammy Segner Ranch on Double Horn Road and  Stages 1 and 2 will be at the Stonewall Chamber of Commerce building.

Remember if you and your school have not been to the sites already today, these are also a new locations. Be sure you have the updated maps and directions to your intended locations.   Links are posted below.

The site is open to public viewing of launches. However, if you plan to attend any of these launch days please register for your attendance ticket ahead of time or obtain them at the gate. These are free but required for admittance to each site as they also include a waiver for access to the site.  Reserving them ahead at the website is preferred to obtaining them at the gate because the latter slows entrance to the site and may result in you missing the viewing of your intended launch.

The Central Texas/Stonewall launch dates, locations, map links, ticket links, Livestream links and schools are also listed here for your convenience or can be found at http://www.systemsgo.org/events/ .

Central Texas/Stonewall:

The sites will be open for admittance at 8:00 a.m. and launches will commence at 8:30 a.m.  Of course rockets are subject to winds, weather and workmanship, all of which can stall a launch. Come join in the action and cheer on these students. Admission is free, but the look on your students’ faces when their vehicle goes up and then is recovered, is far from priceless.

More event details will be available here in upcoming days as events get closer. Daily reports featuring schedule links, school names, results, pictures and some editorial content will be posted during the events if information is available.

Please watch the SystemsGo website, SystemsGo Facebook page,  SystemsGo Twitter feed: https://twitter.com/SystemsGoNews and this blog for upcoming information on theses events.

www.systemsgo.org as always is the place for more information on this program. You may also email them at info@systemsgo.org . Take the time to get your school involved, the future of your students will be greatly benefited.

Hope to see you at the launches! #RideTheSkies #texasrockettrail #Rockets2019

 

 

 

Rockets 2019 Central Texas/Stonewall Launch Rides the Skies Tomorrow, Thursday

Central Texas/Stonewall  Rockets 2019 starts tomorrow! This launch is third in the series for the Rockets 2019 season. This site has moved from Willow City to the Sammy Segner Ranch in Stonewall, Texas, please be aware of that change. More information below.

Currently there are 48 rockets scheduled for launch by 21 schools at the new  Stonewall location. This schedule may be updated this week with the possibility of a few schools that were scheduled for the North Texas launch that could not make it, shifting to this launch. Also rain is in the forecast for most of the launch days. Due to this SystemsGo has issue a weather contingency plan adding Sunday as an alternative. PLEASE see that information quoted below the regular launch information.

Stages 1 and 2 will be at the Stonewall Chamber of Commerce building.  This is also a new location.   This testing site  now covers mostly the Fredericksburg and Hill Country area schools.

The Central Texas/Stonewall launch dates, locations, map links, ticket links, Livestream links and schools are also listed here for your convenience or can be found at http://www.systemsgo.org/events/ .

Central Texas/Stonewall:

  • Thursday, May 2
  • New Launch Site: 2187 Double Horn Road, Stonewall, Texas 78671
    Stage 1 & 2 at Stonewall Chamber of Commerce: 250 Peach Street, Stonewall, TX 78671
  • https://www.greateventseats.com/FBG-SystemsGo
  • Central Texas-Stonewall 2019 Flight Schedule
  • Google Map Link: https://goo.gl/maps/84VMTwMqFvy
    Directions (PDF)
  • Schools participating: Fabens HS, Fredericksburg HS, Granger HS, Hamilton HS, Kingwood HS, Lampasas HS, Llano HS, Marble Falls HS, McGregor HS, Roosevelt HS, Summer Creek HS, Decatur HS, Georgetown HS, Kermit HS, Liberty Christian School, Terrell HS, Tom Moore Ingram HS, Union Grove HS, Victoria East HS
  • 48 total expected rockets for testing-25 Thursday
  • A live feed for each launch will be provided and will be available at www.systemsgo.org as each launch date arrives. Thursday’s is as follows:
  • May 2- Day 1

*************************************************************************

Weather Contingency Advisory from SystemsGo:

Subject: Central Texas Launch Advisory:

Greeting teachers scheduled to launch in Stonewall May 2-4! If you have monitored the weather at all, you know we are in store for a wet event!  Being mindful that our FAA waiver prohibits us from launching into cloud cover and/or lightning in the vicinity, our opportunities to launch will be limited particularly on Thursday and Friday. We want to make sure you are aware of this and the options available. We do have Sunday scheduled as a weather contingency day.  That being said, you have the following options.

Option 1: You continue as planned with your scheduled launch date.  This may mean your rocket will not launch as scheduled. You will have the option to stay and see if we can launch it the following day OR you can leave it with us, we will launch it at our first opportunity.   Should you choose this, we will contact you prior to launch so you can put out the word so your students/parents can watch it on live stream.

Option 2:  Reschedule travel plans and launch day for Saturday or Sunday.  Contact Christy at 830-997-3567 IMMEDIATELY if you would like to reschedule for Saturday or Sunday depending on space available.

We are still looking forward to a great event, but are unable to control the weather. We regret any inconvenience!  Rest assured we will do everything within our power to launch your students rockets.

We do have a safety plan in the event of lightning in the vicinity that involves sheltering in place in the buses.  We appreciate your cooperation!

Rebekah Hyatt

*************************************************************************

The sites will be open for admittance at 8:00 a.m. and launches will commence at 8:30 a.m.  Of course as noted above, rockets are subject to winds, weather and workmanship, all of which can stall a launch. Come join in the action and cheer on these students. Admission is free, but the look on your students’ faces when their vehicle goes up and then is recovered, is far from priceless.

If you plan to attend any of these launches please register for your attendance ticket ahead of time or obtain them at the gate. These are free but required for admittance to each site as they also include a waiver for access to the site. Reserving them ahead at the website is preferred to obtaining them at the gate because the latter slows entrance to the site and may result in you missing the viewing of your intended launch.

Here is a quick look at how our new home is shaping up for tomorrow. Pictures courtesy of Steve Burow. The intro picture for this article is Stage 3/Mission Control from here also.

More event details will be available here each evening during the even. Daily reports featuring schedule links, school names, results, pictures and some editorial content will be posted in these updates if information is available.

Please watch the SystemsGo website, SystemsGo Facebook page,  SystemsGo Twitter feed: https://twitter.com/SystemsGoNews and this blog for upcoming information on theses events.

www.systemsgo.org as always is the place for more information on this program. You may also email them at info@systemsgo.org . Take the time to get your school involved, the future of your students will be greatly benefited.

Hope to see you at the launches! #RideTheSkies #texasrockettrail #Rockets2019

 

 

 

Rockets 2019 Central Texas/Stonewall Launch Rides the Skies From a New Location, This Week

The Central Texas/Stonewall launch is third in the series for the Rockets 2019 season. This site has moved from Willow City to the Sammy Segner Ranch in Stonewall, Texas.

The “Fredericksburg” launch is the original  and therefore the longest  operating launch in the program. The rocket class began in 1996  as Principes of Technology, with a single one pound/one mile rocket developed and launched from a trailer in Lady Bird Johnson Park in 1997. In 1998 they launched the first Transonic vehicle, and in 1999 the first launch at White Sands Missile Range was conducted.

In 2003 the formal program know then as Ignite and now as SystemsGo was created and shared with other schools.

In 2007, five schools joined Fredericksburg in launching 1 pound/1 mile and transonic rockets at a one day event at the Meek Ranch off of State Hwy 16 South of Fredericksburg. This was the programs first official expanded group launch site where it remained  through 2009 until necessity called for a new place away from a major highway.

In 2010 they moved to the Camey Stewart Ranch in Willow City where it remained for 9 years, closing its season there in 2018.  Now in 2019 it continues activities at a new location in Stonewall.

In past years the volume has grown  substantially.  In 2017,  87 rockets were tested in that one  4 day weekend at the Stewart Ranch.  Even with the addition of the Houston launch site in 2012, taking some of the roster, the Fredericksburg launch carried a heavy load.

In 2018 some Southeast Texas schools still coming to Fredericksburg were asked to participate in Houston to try to even the load further. In doing this, they added a third day to the Houston launch and decreased Fredericksburg’s launch from four days to three.

The Fredericksburg site covered the Fredericksburg and Hill Country area schools, as well as North Texas,  and West Texas schools. Now with the addition of Jal, New Mexico and the New North Texas launches, the Fredericksburg load has reduced by about 1/3. With the program growing, these numbers will also continue to grow, but now each site has a renewed potential for expanded volume.

Currently there are 48 rockets scheduled for launch by 21 schools at the new  Stonewall location for Rockets 2019. This schedule may be updated this week with the possibility of a few schools that were scheduled for the North Texas launch that could not make it, shifting to this launch. These will be tested at the Sammy Segner Ranch in Stonewall.

Stages 1 and 2 will be at the Stonewall Chamber of Commerce building.  This is also a new location.   This testing site  now covers mostly the Fredericksburg and Hill Country area schools.

If you follow this program and like to view the launches, Rockets 2019  will continue with one more launch in May. The final launch of the junior level rockets will be held in Smith Point just south of Anahuac, Texas (the Southeast Texas/Smith Point launch) for schools in the Houston  and Southeast Texas area.

The senior groups are tentatively scheduled to launch their Goddard level rockets at White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) in New Mexico in late June.  These are not available for public viewing or Livestream due to being tested on a military facility, but blog and SystemsGo updates will be posted online as available during that week. This will be the fifth launch sequence and will finalize the Rockets 2019 season.

All sites will be open to public viewing of launches except White Sands Missile Range. However, if you plan to attend any of these launches please register for your attendance ticket ahead of time or obtain them at the gate. These are free but required for admittance to each site as they also include a waiver for access to the site.  Reserving them ahead at the website is preferred to obtaining them at the gate because the latter slows entrance to the site and may result in you missing the viewing of your intended launch.

The Central Texas/Stonewall launch dates, locations, map links, ticket links, and schools are also listed here for your convenience or can be found at http://www.systemsgo.org/events/ .

Central Texas/Stonewall:

The sites will be open for admittance at 8:00 a.m. and launches will commence at 8:30 a.m.  Of course rockets are subject to winds, weather and workmanship, all of which can stall a launch. Come join in the action and cheer on these students. Admission is free, but the look on your students’ faces when their vehicle goes up and then is recovered, is far from priceless.

A live feed for each launch will be provided and will be available at www.systemsgo.org as each launch date arrives.

More event details will be available here in upcoming days as events get closer. Daily reports featuring schedule links, school names, results, pictures and some editorial content will be posted during the events if information is available.

Please watch the SystemsGo website, SystemsGo Facebook page,  SystemsGo Twitter feed: https://twitter.com/SystemsGoNews and this blog for upcoming information on theses events.

www.systemsgo.org as always is the place for more information on this program. You may also email them at info@systemsgo.org . Take the time to get your school involved, the future of your students will be greatly benefited.

Hope to see you at the launches! #RideTheSkies #Texasrockettrail #Rockets2019

 

 

 

History, Haunts, and Heart Beats

A new form of entertainment has manifested in Fredericksburg, Texas. It is the Fredericksburg Ghost Tours. This new venue is a walking tour of Fredericksburg starting  and ending at the Nimitz Museum (National Museum of the Pacific War). It is filled with interesting, little known stories and histories of many places along Main Street and it’s  alleyways.

Your host/tour guide is dressed in 1800’s attire as he leads you around town, regaling your with stories, not found in the normal Fredericksburg history books. Each account given is tied to a place along the tour and the residing ghosts of that area.

The tour itself is not scary, but rather entertaining and informational. Though the stories are a historical basis for ghosts, there is much humor in them as well. Derrick  Spence coordinates the guides and tours. He has also done the research and compiled the stories shared on the tour. The guides are cheerful,  and they do their best to see you learn a little and have a good time. Daniel was our guide this particular evening, and he was knowledgeable, entertaining and fun.

Be sure to bring your phones, or other cameras and take pictures. It is highly encouraged and if you find you have visitors in your photos  you can send them in to their website at fbgghosttours@gmail.com and they may feature them on their website.

The stops currently on the tour, are just a handful of the many haunted places in town. Your guide will mention a few not on the tour at this time and encourage you to go investigate them on your own.

Tours run Thursday through Sunday evenings with tours at 8:00, 8:30, or 9:30 p.m. It is encouraged to meet at the Admiral Chester W. Nimitz statue at least 10 minutes before the start of your tour, with your previously purchased ticket in hand.

You may purchase tickets online at https://www.fredericksburgghosts.com/ , or call 830-383-3122 and speak to founder Rick Koch or one of his employees, they will be happy to help you reserve your tickets and then pick them up at the Vintage Vault at 406 West Main Street, next to the Amish Market.

My friends and I embarked on the tour at 8:00 this past Sunday evening, October 7th. We had a wonderful time and are ready to do it again with other friends and family who have not gone yet. We were encouraged to take pictures along the route. During the tour we really didn’t see much more than Fredericksburg sites and allies in the dark, but as the guide explained, what you do not see with your eyes, may be watching you, and may not be camera-shy.

They do encourage you to share photos to their page if you think you have caught a ghostly  image, or just a really interesting photo from the tour. They may feature it on their site. That being said, I will share some here and will probably send them in after this  post.

After reviewing mine the next day, I definitely think I caught some images to share. I hope you can see what I see, but you may have to enlarge the photos, that is how I confirmed my sightings.

My best possible sightings were the ones from the Nimitz, Keidel Hospital, and one of the back alley stops.

Here are a few of mine. In all of them, my friends and I see something. Do you? Share your thoughts in the comments. I would love to hear what you think.

Here is the Nimitz. Pay close attention to the dark window on the middle section, just below the window that is lit up, in the first and third photos.

  

 How about a creepy back alley to look down? Look closely, there is more than meets the eye.

And last, here is the old Keidel Hospital building (home to Der Kuchen Laden and Rathskellar Restaurant).  Pay close attention to the large window at the top, above the door. A ghostly pair looks back at you.  Then look at the window to the left of the large window, in its bottom left pane, and also the column to the right of the door, there are ghosts in all of these. Two frames are provided so that you can compare. Most of the visitors appear in the right frame. Honestly we did not see these things as we looked at the places that evening, but then there they were in the pictures.  That definitely gets you thinking and your heart beating a little faster.

Let me know if you see them.  Maybe this is a coincidence, but also in the Keidel photos, there is a very strange water mark in between the two bottom windows. It is quite a creepy creature looking back from the rocks.

There are many other stops along the tour, I just wanted to give you a glimpse.

I hope  I have peaked your interest and you and your friends will come take the tour. The ghosts are waiting to greet you!

June 18-2 More Days Until Goddard Level Rocket Launches- Here’s What’s Happening for WSMR

The SystemsGo team leaves in shifts starting today for New Mexico to launch rockets at White Sands Missile Range (WSMR). Rebekah Hyatt and Scott Netherland head out this morning. They have some business meetings in New Mexico ahead of the launch days. Then the rest of the team and schools leave on Wednesday, June 20. That is two days from today. The list and schedules have been finalized and packing is underway.

The schedule will proceed as follows:

Wednesday will be a travel day to Alamogordo, NM to the hotel.
Thursday morning will be T-1 briefing preceded by a live viewing of a missile test at the range.
Thursday afternoon they will travel to West Center 50 Range and do site set up and rocket prep-Fredericksburg rocket will be left on the launch rail ready for first launch on Friday morning.
Friday launch order: Fredericksburg, Brazoswood, Booker T., and Anahuac
Saturday launch order: Union Grove, Alamo Heights
Sunday launch order: Contingency day with four available launch times if needed, or travel home if all vehicles have tested.
Monday will be travel back home day for the group if they are unable to leave on Sunday.

The final list of schools participating in this year’s WSMR tests is:

  • Alamo Heights High School
  • Anahuac High School
  • Brazoswood High School
  • Booker T. Washington High School
  • Fredericksburg High School
  • Union Grove High School

Parents and students already on the approved list with SystemsGo, and attending, be sure you have your proper identification with you. State driver’s license, federal pass port, or state id card are required for access to the base. Also be sure they have medical insurance information with them in case of an emergency.

Please be advised that WSMR is an Army base and does not allow spectators in to view these launches. Only the students, personnel, and parents who have been previously approved through SystemsGo and added to the list may enter the base with the group. Please do not drive to White Sands and attempt to enter on your own, or expect to do so with the group, because you will be turned away.

Event details will continue to be available here. I will provide information as made available to me from team members on site as to how launches have gone for those schools testing on that particular day. Pictures are not allowed on the range, but some pictures of teams getting ready to leave for the range with their vehicles might be available. If anything is available and passed on, I will post it for your viewing pleasure.

www.systemsgo.org as always is the place for more information on this program. You may also email them at info@systemsgo.org .Take the time to get your school involved, the future of your students will be greatly benefited.

Fredericksburg’s Engineering Rocket Program-Pre-Launch Week Red Bird #19 Update

Red Bird #19 is scheduled for testing at White Sands Missile Range(WSMR) next Friday, June 22. This marks the last big event for Rockets 2018 and the Fredericksburg STEM Academy for this season.

These are the Goddard level rockets, which are the culmination of all the skills the students have learned throughout their years in the STEM program. This marks the final senior project for those schools that participate in this level of the SystemsGo program.

As of today, June 15, the Fredericksburg Engineering Red Bird #19 rocket team is due to pick up the vehicle from SRM tomorrow,  now that the welding is completed. The team still has to complete the assembly of the motor and then integrate it, as well as the,  injector valve, payload, and parachutes.  They will be attempting to finish the FRR tonight. In spite of the remaining tasks they are on schedule to make their launch at WSMR.

Red Bird #19 has an 8 inch diameter and is 25 feet long. The team outsourced the payload to the district IT employee and former FMS science teacher, Keith Jenkins. He created a sensor for the vehicle that will measure methane levels at the time of nose cone deployment.

When asked about the rocket’s expectations, Harrison Spisak stated, “My expectations are about 65,00 feet, but after NASA evaluated it they estimated 102,000.” Therefore that is the hopeful estimate if all goes perfectly.

Today, team members, Joey Leal and Harrison Spisak were working on the FRR, and T-1 briefing as seen in the photos below.

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Here the nose cone and injection system also await integration.

Here Joey Leal checks on the rockets progress at SRM machine shop.

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Harrison Spisak’s father will be hauling the rocket on his trailer to White Sands for the team.

Pictured here is this year’s Red Bird #19 Team:  Back Row:  Harrison Spisak, Jacob Wienecke, Evan Knapp, Bryce Erwin, Sergio Walle. Front Row:  Corbin Smajstrla, Rebecca Sechrist, Pierce Vasquez, Joey Leal.  Not pictured in the seniors picture was Chris Calzada.

Launches are scheduled for June 22nd and June 23rd, with a contingency day on the 24th if needed. The team will travel out to WSMR on Wednesday, June 20th, and back home again on the 23rd.

There are 5 schools scheduled to launch 6  rockets. These schools include:

  • Alamo Heights
  • Anahuac
  • Booker T. Washington
  • Brazoswood
  • Fredericksburg
  • Union Grove

The current launch schedule is as follows:

  • Wednesday, June 2oth          Travel Day
  • Thursday, June 21st              T-1 and Site Set up/Rocket Prep at WC- 50
  • Friday, June 22rd                   Launch Day One (Four Rockets-Fredericksburg,  Brazoswood, Booker T., Anahuac)
  • Saturday, June 23rd              Launch Day Two (Two Rockets–Union Grove, Alamo Heights)
  • Sunday, June 24th                 Contingency Day/ Travel Day
  • Monday, June 25th                Travel Day if needed

This article is the eighth for the 2017/2018 school year in a series of periodic updates that has followed the Fredericksburg Engineering/Rocket program. This school is a participant of the SystemsGo STEM program. This series of articles is intended to support and encourage students in the program as they share their working status and accomplishments throughout the year in the program. These publications will be available for tags and re-posting.

www.systemsgo.org as always is the place for more information on this program. You may also email them at info@systemsgo.org .Take the time to get your school involved, the future of your students will be greatly benefited.

#Rockets2018 #SystemsGo #FredricksburgSTEMAcademy #Launcher01 #RideTheSky

Rockets 2018 Saturday, Day 2 For Houston -Recap and Sunday’s Schedule

Today was another success filled day at Houston Rockets as six schools were slated to launch a total of 24 rockets. The number dropped to 19 though as 5 from different schools were scrubbed. That is a total of 40 rockets so far for the weekend. The Recovery map shows 35 found with 5 lost or in process of location. At this point they are at an 88% recovery rate. That is not bad, Fredericksburg’s crews finished their weekend with a 91% recovery rate. I will be curious to see which recovery group will finish with the highest percentage. Just thought I would add in a little friendly competition between recovery groups. Besides the better we all do, the better it is for the students.

Well weather seemed to be a repeat of yesterday with a sunny/partly cloudy but breezy day. Not bad rocket weather. It definitely didn’t hamper the launches because they put up all 19 by 17:26(5:26) this evening. That is an awesome time schedule for the day. As Phil stated on the Livestream, “We are going to get to eat supper before 10:30 tonight.”

Interesting events for the day included a “Dog-onaut” which literally did Ride The Sky on four of Northstar High School’s rockets today. His name was Logan, the stuffed dalmatian dog that they affixed to the vehicles and recovered him to ride again and again. After his fourth flight they did allow him retirement and he will always be remembered in the high school rocket launch hall of fame. Unfortunately I did not get my own shot of him, but this one is from the SystemsGo Facebook post about him.

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The last launch of the day took the theme from #RideTheSky to #WriteYourOwnStoryInTheSky. As Northstar High School launched a rocket designed to look like a giant pencil. Here it is pictured below.

 

 

Launches will continue  Sunday. The schedule is posted below, as well as an online link to it.  Four schools and 11 rockets are due for testing.

The current launch schedule for Sunday is shown below and may also be downloaded from SystemsGo website at the following address: http://www.systemsgo.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2018-Houston-Flight-Schedule-4-17-18.pdf

Sunday, May 13, 2018
School Name / Teacher 1/1 Trans
Anahuac HS
Kirk Moore		 1 1
Booker T Washington HS
Nghia Le		 2  1
Kingwood Park HS
Glenn Taylor		 4
McGregor HS

Taylor Wilson

  1  1
Schools Launching                         4
Totals 8 3
Total Rockets 11

Please remember that since there is public access to this event, there are registration tickets for order and those may be found on the SystemsGo website as well at this  link:  https://www.greateventseats.com/SystemsGo . They are FREE, but REQUIRED. There is a waiver for admission you will sign along with your admittance ticket. You can get them at the gate but it is strongly advised to do this online ahead of time so that you do not slow yourself or anyone else down getting onto the range. This could cause you and others to miss your intended launches.

More event details will be available here after the completion of Sunday’s event.  Reports featuring schedules, school names, results, pictures and some editorial content will be posted during the events.

Pictures  will be available here in this blog and in Facebook albums for you to view at the end of each days launches, as well as during the day from Phil and SystemsGo on Facebook. Links to both our Facebook pages are below.

https://www.facebook.com/ginger.burow

Unfortunately I only had WiFi available for a short portion of the end of the day, so I only got a few screen grabs, and no photos from a team members but I will post what I have.

https://www.facebook.com/SystemsGoEducation/

If you follow this program and like to view the launches, Rockets 2018  will have Livestream available at the Smith Point launches so you will be able to view them online at the following address: https://livestream.com/systemsgo.

If you have been to the Houston area launches in the past you may want to check out the SystemsGo website for information because this location is only in its second year for that area. Information and a map link are available.

www.systemsgo.org as always is the place for more information on this program. You may also email them at info@systemsgo.org . Take the time to get your school involved, the future of your students will be greatly benefited.

Hope to see you at the races, nope, but I will race you for a rocket!  #RideTheSky! #Launcher01 #ItISrocketScience #Rockets2018

I would like to  wish all the schools and students a picture perfect flight and recovery.

 

Rockets 2018-Friday, Day 1 For Houston-Recap and Saturday’s Schedule

Today, Friday was the first day of Houston rocket launches. Five schools tested a total of 21 rockets today. The weather was sunny/partly cloudy and windy.

The first launch of the day, was Rocket #85 from Brazosport High School. The vehicle left the rail nicely but soon went into a spiral and came down. The upside is that is was fully recovered so they will be able to analyze their data and determine what happened. Students commented after the launch that they were happy that it did leave the rail. Congratulations Brazosport on your launch and recovery!

The second launch of the day, was by the Aeronautics and Rocket Club of the University of Texas at San Antonio. This is an actual club, not a class at UTSA that students join on their own. The utilize their own time in order to research, develop, draft, design, build, and fund their rocket. The students are all class levels. Today’s Rocket # 87 is a Transonic rocket predicted to surpass at least the first sound barrier. They have a double payload including a video device inside the rocket attached to the altimeter to video activity inside the vehicle during flight, and a GoPro camera mounted to record the flight from the outside as it is traveling. Ironically, the student in the interview said this was to back up the Live feed because sometimes it goes out, at which time it did go out, and I missed the rest of the interview! They had a very impressive launch, unfortunately it flew so well, that it is as of yet unrecovered.

Alpha Search and Rescue is there again this year, heading up the recovery efforts. Erin spoke with Phil and explained how their system works with a real-time mapping, GPS, and azimuth to locate the rockets after launch. Their mapping system allows viewers to follow the progress of the rockets, and know if their vehicle has been recovered and where it was found, or if it is still being actively searched for, or determined to be unrecoverable.

The link for that mapping system is shown on SystemsGo‘s website and listed here. You will be able to follow the progress of the recovery throughout the weekend on it. https://bit.ly/2FRSjVx

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is also available on site again this weekend. Take the time to visit with their rep about the opportunities available for your students.

Well unfortunately I lost my feed after 1700, but according to the search and rescue map all 21 were launched and all but 3 were recovered. That does not mean each was a perfect launch,  but then that is why they are considered test vehicles, and in spite of that they are all considered successful because of the students’ accomplishments in getting them here today to test. All in all it was a good day with fabulous weather, and a great location with good results. And they get to do it all over again Saturday.

Launches will continue all day Saturday, and  Sunday. Saturday’s schedule, posted below, and with a link to it online, boasts six schools and 24 rockets.

The current launch schedule for Friday is shown below and may also be downloaded from SystemsGo website at the following address: http://www.systemsgo.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2018-Houston-Flight-Schedule-4-17-18.pdf

Saturday, May 12, 2018
School Name / Teacher 1/1 Trans
Brazoswood HS
Dale Hobbs		 3
Channelview HS
Alan Stone		 3
Hardin-Jefferson HS
Mike Fogo		 2 1
Liberty HS
Matthew Williams		 1 1
Northstar HS
Byron Appelt		 1 2
SF Austin HS
Richard Hubbard		 10
Schools Launching             6
Totals 20 4
Total Rockets 24

Please remember that since there is public access to this event, there are registration tickets for order and those may be found on the SystemsGo website as well at this  link:  https://www.greateventseats.com/SystemsGo . They are FREE, but REQUIRED. There is a waiver for admission you will sign along with your admittance ticket. You can get them at the gate but it is strongly advised to do this online ahead of time so that you do not slow yourself or anyone else down getting onto the range. This could cause you and others to miss your intended launches.

I will post each days schedules in this blog. They can also be found in original format on the SystemsGo website Events page.

More event details will be available here after the completion of Friday’s event.

Pictures  will be available here in this blog and in Facebook albums for you to view at the end of each days launches, as well as during the day from Phil and SystemsGo on Facebook as well. Links to both our Facebook pages are below.

https://www.facebook.com/ginger.burow

Unfortunately I only got a few screen grabs, and only one photo from a team member but I will post what I have.

https://www.facebook.com/SystemsGoEducation/

If you follow this program and like to view the launches, Rockets 2018  will have Livestream available at the Smith Point launches so you will be able to view them online at the following address: https://livestream.com/systemsgo.

If you have been to the Houston area launches in the past you may want to check out the SystemsGo website for information because this location is only in its second year for that area. Information and a map link are available.

More event details will be available here in upcoming days as events get closer. Daily reports featuring schedules, school names, results, pictures and some editorial content will be posted during the events.

www.systemsgo.org as always is the place for more information on this program. You may also email them at info@systemsgo.org . Take the time to get your school involved, the future of your students will be greatly benefited.

Hope to see you at the races, nope, but I will race you for a rocket!  #RideTheSky! #Launcher01 #ItISrocketScience #Rockets2018

I would like to  wish all the schools and students a picture perfect flight and recovery.

 

 

Fredericksburg Rockets 2018-Thursday Day 1 Report – Friday Schedule

Thursday went well, and Rockets 2018 in Willow City is off and going. We had nice weather, warm but still with a cool breeze all day. It was bright and sunny with very little cloud cover so launches went off without any weather delays despite rain on Wednesday evening which helped to settle the dust on the range.

The team put up 19 rockets for the day and recovered all but maybe 2 which were long transonic flights at the end of the day. No worries though, there are still two more days in which to locate them.

Dave Willden from SystemsGo New Mexico is on board helping with the Pad. Phil even commandeered him for an interview during an early morning slow spot.

 

All in all it was a great and mostly uneventful day with a lot of really nice flights.

Come out and see us tomorrow as the action resumes again around 8:30 a.m.

Please remember that since there is public access to this event, there are registration tickets for order and those may be found on the SystemsGo website as well at this  link: https://www.greateventseats.com/events.php They are FREE, but REQUIRED. There is a waiver for admission you will sign along with your admittance ticket. You can get them at the gate but it is strongly advised to do this online ahead of time so that you do not slow yourself or anyone else down getting onto the range. This could cause you and others to miss your intended launches.

Here is the link to the live stream again. https://livestream.com/systemsgo

A map to the site is on the SystemsGo website at the following link:

http://www.systemsgo.org/events/

But just in case here is a picture of the same map:

Pictures  will be available here in this blog and in Facebook albums for you to view at the end of each days launches, as well as during the day from Phil and SystemsGo on Facebook as well. Links to both our Facebook pages are below.

https://www.facebook.com/ginger.burow

https://www.facebook.com/SystemsGoEducation/

Here is the schedule of schools launching Friday. Currently 7 schools and 25 rockets:

School Name / Teacher 1/1 Trans
Buinger CTE Academy
Michael Skrzynski		 1 2
Fabens HS
Manny Moreno		 2 1
Kingwood HS
Louis Mascolo		 3 2
Marble Falls HS
Leslie Alexander		 1 1
Tom Moore (Ingram) HS
David Bunch		 2 2
University HS
Dennis Oubre		 3 3
Victoria East HS
Adam Wertman		 2
Schools Launching   7
Totals 14 11
Total Rockets                   25

I will post each days schedules in this blog. They can also be found in original format on the SystemsGo website Events page.

More event details will be available here after the completion of Saturday’s event.

If you follow this program and like to view the launches, Rockets 2018  will continue with one more launch series at this level in May. This launch will be held in Smith Point just south of Anahuac, Texas for schools in the Houston area, on the weekend of May 11-13, 2018.  They currently have 56 vehicles scheduled for test by 15 schools at this site.  If you have been to the Houston area launches in the past you may want to check out the SystemsGo website for information because this location is only in its second year for that area. Information and a map link are available.

The senior/graduate groups are tentatively scheduled to launch their Goddard level rockets at White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) in New Mexico in late June.  These are not available for public viewing or Livestream due to being tested on a military facility, but blog and SystemsGo updates will be posted online as available during that week.

More event details will be available here in upcoming days as events get closer. Daily reports featuring schedules, school names, results, pictures and some editorial content will be posted during the events.

www.systemsgo.org as always is the place for more information on this program. You may also email them at info@systemsgo.org . Take the time to get your school involved, the future of your students will be greatly benefited.

Hope to see you at the races, nope, but I will race you for a rocket!  #RideTheSky! #Launcher01 #ItISrocketScience #Rockets2018

Your local Recovery Team rocket Junkie wishes all the schools and students a picture perfect flight and recovery.