Rocket Racing League

On Fri, 7 Oct 2005 00:02:40 -0400, "Morgans" wrote:


"Ron Wanttaja" wrote

As a NOVELTY item, though...it sounds pretty cool. I'll probably go, if one's
held locally. Might even watch it on TV...but it sounds like an event that just
screams for TIVO.

You are being very kind, tonight. It sounds like it will have all the drama
of watching paint dry, to me.

MXC has been into repeats for quite a while...guess I'm getting desperate for
quasi-sports. :-)

The analogy didn't occur to me until a bit later, but what the "racing" actually
consists of is near-simultaneous independent time trials. EVERYONE is just
flying against the clock. Like I said, they can arrange the routes so that all
the given trials end at the same time, but that's artificial.

This is all supposing that it happens, which I suspect it won't. The money
man didn't get the money by being stupid, and sooner of later, he will
understand that he has been conned.

Diamandis is the man behind the X-Prize. I've indicated my opinion of the
uselessness of sub-orbital flight in past postings, but the man's tactic worked.
A rocket was built to take the prize, and several other contestants were getting
close. Instead of the ground-hugging rocket league, if Diamandis just put his
efforts into a "Y-Prize" (for the first spacecraft to stay above 100 km for more
than 90 minutes, and repeat the flight within two weeks) that would REALLY be
worth something. We need cheap travel to low Earth orbit more than terrestrial
bread and circuses.

I don't see the rocket league as a money-making enterprise, but, hey, it's his
money. If he gets his rocks off by collecting rocket ships and sycophants,
that's his business.

Of course, some people say they watch racing to see wrecks. Those people
will no doubt enjoy seeing the explosions that will happen during the pit
stop. Not if, but when; if they try to rush this type of refueling
activity. Once again, smarter heads will prevail, I suspect.

Who would be willing to sit in a plane of this type, while it is being
refueled? Not the pilots mentioned, with the possible exception of zoomie.
Who will be a pit crew member, once they realized what they are being asked
to do? I can't imagine who, can you?

Well...remember, the Xcor-type rockets are fueled with alcohol. No more
dangerous, really, the fuels used any other type of racing.

True, they also have to include a big load of liquid oxygen. Xcor's Long-EZ
puts the oxygen in tanks where the passenger normally sits. I really know
nothing about handing LOX, but I wouldn't want to sit in the front seat during
loading.

Still, remember that these are NOT competitive vehicles. The designers can add
safety barriers and whatnot, and it won't affect racing because all the aircraft
are of identical design.

Your point about "watching races to see wrecks" has another corollary. In
NASCAR, wrecks are expected and don't interrupt the show longer than it takes to
sweep the plastic and metal off the track. A wreck during a rocket league event
is different...the airfield would close down, and that's the end of it. The
average NASCAR fan will probably be quite incensed.

And just think how the other pilots feel if one of them splatters the only
runway when all the other racers have expended their four minutes of rocket
fuel.

Ron "Vr...and Bingo!" Wanttaja