Stetson, The Rocket Dog
Robert Byrd
get a kick out of this.
My dog is into model rocketry. I noticed how exited he got when I
took him to the feild so I thought it would be fun and challenging to
teach him to launch rockets. I built him a PAL (Paw Activated
Launching) mechanism. It allows him to fire a rocket by stepping on it
with his paw. It works great and he loves it.
I wonder if anyone has ever done anything like this before.
Before you call me a liar, check out his web site:
http://www.beyondcellular.com/stetson/
I am interested to hear your comments.
Thomas Parson
--
T. E. Parson
NAR #78955 L1
PHITS Member NAR Section #565
.
"Robert Byrd" <r...@beyondcellular.com> wrote in message
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YoYo
Great dog!
Give him a biscuit for me
"Robert Byrd" <r...@beyondcellular.com> wrote in message
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neonknight
had run away, but when we got home she was huddled up on the porch
"Robert Byrd" <r...@beyondcellular.com> wrote in message
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Bob Kaplow
Does he bark out the countdown?
Bob Kaplow NAR # 18L TRA # "Ctrl-Alt-Del"
Kaplow Klips & Baffle: http://www.nira.chicago.il.us/Leading_Edge/MayJun00.pdf
NIRA: http://www.nira.chicago.il.us NAR: http://www.nar.org
Come to think of it, there are already a million monkeys on a million
typewriters, and Usenet is NOTHING like Shakespeare. -- Blair Houghton. 1988
RayDunakin
http://www.beyondcellular.com/stetson/
I am interested to hear your comments. >>
What fun! That is just too cool for words!
Gene Costanza
How's that "Seafood and Burger" place in the last pic? :-)>
That dog is not only beautiful but WAY too cute.
--
METRA BOD TRA #07017 L3 NAR #74503 L3
I give in to sin,
Because I like to practice what I preach...
"Robert Byrd" <r...@beyondcellular.com> wrote in message
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Josh Cowger
year old punk sense!
"Robert Byrd" <r...@beyondcellular.com> wrote in message
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Jonathan Wachter
smelly in the rocket so the dog can fetch it once it lands!
Cute!
Jonathan
Jackbearjr
>typewriters, and Usenet is NOTHING like Shakespeare. -- Blair Houghton. 1988
Still true. ROFL.
Jack W. Kale, Jr. NAR #70384 Insured, Tripoli #5798 Level 2
Triple the shock cord! Use more epoxy! Always fly straight up- you need the
exercise anyway.
Rhhickok
look pretty much the same? -- Richard "could be" Hickok
Art Fuldodger
> Is that launch site on Georgia Ave extended in Maryland or does ALL of America
> look pretty much the same? -- Richard "could be" Hickok
About 15 minutes north of Olney? Looks similar, but I don't
think it's the same place.
clink84
--
/^\
/ N \
/c A S\
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|i # C|
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/|k 2 5|\
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remove nospam. to e-mail me
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Robert Byrd <r...@beyondcellular.com> wrote in message
news:1e8ed0e7.01082...@posting.google.com...
Panama Floyd
>Date: 8/26/01 1:40 PM Eastern Daylight Time
>Message-id: <1e8ed0e7.01082...@posting.google.com>
>
>I have been monitoring this group for a while and thought you guys may
>get a kick out of this.
You're right!
>My dog is into model rocketry. I noticed how exited he got when I
>took him to the feild so I thought it would be fun and challenging to
>teach him to launch rockets. I built him a PAL (Paw Activated
>Launching) mechanism. It allows him to fire a rocket by stepping on it
>with his paw. It works great and he loves it.
Great training! I've had Labs (my dad bred them), and my g/f has a great S&R
Shepard (dang! I never knew they were so smart!). How'd you get him to wait?
The page only mentions that you'd done it..but you've done so in a way that
suggests that you had a very well-trained dog in the first place..<g>
>I wonder if anyone has ever done anything like this before.
>
>Before you call me a liar, check out his web site:
>http://www.beyondcellular.com/stetson/
>
>I am interested to hear your comments.
Way cool! But...shove the technology. I think I knew *that* could be done.
Gimme the OT details about training the dog!! <bfg>
BTW: Nice Merc/Redstone. Mine's got crash damage. :(
Panama Floyd, Atlanta.
NAR 71541 L1
Jim Z in VT
> > My dog is into model rocketry. I noticed how exited he got when I
> > took him to the feild so I thought it would be fun and challenging to
> > teach him to launch rockets. I built him a PAL (Paw Activated
> > Launching) mechanism. It allows him to fire a rocket by stepping on it
> > with his paw. It works great and he loves it.
Cool! Our dog "Fox" was a rocket dog too. Never taught him to
launch them, but when the countdown started he would crouch down and watch
intently. At the count of "one" he would jump up and race toward the pad,
sprinting through the exhaust cloud just after liftoff. We always called him
off from retrieving the rocket, but he would often track and retrieve the
wadding (yech!) Unfortunately he was done in by a car a year or so ago.
(I'll put a picture of him up on ABMR and YahooGroups ABMR) Our new dog is
indifferent about rockets.
Jim
David Urbanek
Here is my comment and PLEASE act on the suggestion:
You simply MUST take those pictures and the article and send it to Sport
Rocketry. Tom Beach always needs material and this is absolutely top
shelf, grade AAAA, wonderful material.
Please, please, please sent coppies of the pictures and the text to Sport
Rocketry.
Do it, today . . . why are you still reading this? Go do it!!!!
--
==========================================================================
"Pessimists have already begun to worry about what is going to replace
automation." -- John Tudor
__
\ \_____
David Urbanek @@**=[==_____> Rocky Mountain Rocketry
/_/
http://RockyMountainRocketry.com
Da...@fesys.com ==or== Da...@RockyMountainRocketry.com
urb...@budweiser.com
Robert Byrd
I have not had the pleasure of eating there, but I guess I should try it.
> That dog is not only beautiful but WAY too cute.
Thanks, he is a really great dog!
Robert Byrd
fetch it once it lands!
You be sure and let me know how the smelly rocket thing works out. I
can see all sorts of problems with that one on a domestic level...
Robert Byrd
I will try to get it diagramed this week and post it on Stetson's web
site www.beyondcellular.com/stetson. I'll let you know when I do.
Robert Byrd
> How'd you get him to wait?
The trigger word is "LAUNCH" and the hand signal is the "Thumb Up" I
use both to eliminate confusion. I can count down, sing a song or
dance a jig, he won't launch until I say "LAUNCH"
I will say this, my biggest challenge is getting him to calm down
between launches. He gets really gets exited when the rocket takes
off.
> The page only mentions that you'd done it..but you've done so in a way that
> suggests that you had a very well-trained dog in the first place..<g>
Stetson knows so many tricks that I forget some of them myself, I
guess I should write them down.
Robert Byrd
> Gimme the OT details about training the dog!! <bfg>
Here is Stetson's basic training recap for this trick, since he is a
herding dog he has a stong chase instict that I often use to train
him. In this case the first step was to get him to put his paw on the
pad which was just a painted block of wood to begin with In the
Mercury Redstone photo, its the black & yellow pad on the floor beside
Stetson. To get him to put his paw on it I would just slide it around
on the floor and say "LAUNCH". Each time he would place his paw on it,
or pounce as it were, I would reward him. The next step was just to
get him to put his paw on it while stationary. from there it was a
matter of getting him dialed in on the word "LAUNCH" nad nothing else.
For example, he started pressing early when I would count down, so to
solve this i just paused, and repeated the countdown and "LAUNCH"
command and only rewarded him when he got it right. If he got it
wrong, I simply paused and started over again. After a while he picks
up on the correct behaivior and locks it in his little dog brain.
The main ingredients for sucess are a paitience, repetition, and a
smart dog.
The next challenge is going to be to get him to calm down. he goes
bonkers at the feild when the rocket goes off. When he is bouncing
around like a kangaroo it is hard to get him to do anything. I am
still working on that issue.
> BTW: Nice Merc/Redstone. Mine's got crash damage. :(
Thanks, The Merc is my favorite model. I like it so much I am not
going to fly it ;)
Robert Byrd
>
> You simply MUST take those pictures and the article and send it to Sport
> Rocketry. Tom Beach always needs material and this is absolutely top
> shelf, grade AAAA, wonderful material.
>
> Please, please, please sent coppies of the pictures and the text to Sport
> Rocketry.
>
> Do it, today . . . why are you still reading this? Go do it!!!!
Thanks for the tip, I did it today and here was Toms Reply...
Robert,
Very amusing :-) I've known several "rocket dogs" but none that
actually fly the rocket themselves.
I have been to your web page. Do you have higher resolution images
(or prints) of the pictures? The magazine requires at least 150 dpi
in final size (after cropping and resizing).
Thanks,
--Tom Beach
Robert Byrd
> look pretty much the same?
That feild is in Baytown, TX the armpit of the world.
Anthony
Anthony
"Robert Byrd" <r...@beyondcellular.com> wrote in message
news:1e8ed0e7.01082...@posting.google.com...
Robert Byrd
I have had a lot of fun sharing Stetson's escapades with you. But now
I am afaind I have some bad news. Stetson and I went out again this
past Sunday to practice live launches, and well. Stetson lost his
first rocket. It is a sad story and he is pretty tore up about it.
I updated Stetson's web site http://www.beyondcellular.com/stetson
with photos and details of the story.
Thank you in advance for your kind words.
Robert Byrd
Bob Kaplow
> Cool! Our dog "Fox" was a rocket dog too. Never taught him to
> launch them, but when the countdown started he would crouch down and watch
> intently. At the count of "one" he would jump up and race toward the pad,
> sprinting through the exhaust cloud just after liftoff. We always called him
> off from retrieving the rocket, but he would often track and retrieve the
Our Sheltie, Belker, used to freeze when a countdown started, and go into
bearcat scanner mode, trying to figure out which pad was about to fly. She'd
tear out to the pad at launch, herding the smoke. But if you faked a
countdown, at home, or even at the field, she'd immediately start barking
back at you. She could always tell.
I really miss her..
Bob Kaplow NAR # 18L TRA # "Ctrl-Alt-Del"
Kaplow Klips & Baffle: http://www.nira.chicago.il.us/Leading_Edge/MayJun00.pdf
NIRA: http://www.nira.chicago.il.us NAR: http://www.nar.org
Come to think of it, there are already a million monkeys on a million
Panama Floyd
>Date: 8/28/01 5:37 PM Eastern Daylight Time
>Message-id: <1e8ed0e7.01082...@posting.google.com>
>
>> Way cool! But...shove the technology. I think I knew *that* could be done.
>> Gimme the OT details about training the dog!! <bfg>
>
>Here is Stetson's basic training recap for this trick, since he is a
>herding dog he has a stong chase instict that I often use to train
>him. In this case the first step was to get him to put his paw on the
>pad which was just a painted block of wood to begin with In the
>Mercury Redstone photo, its the black & yellow pad on the floor beside
>Stetson. To get him to put his paw on it I would just slide it around
>on the floor and say "LAUNCH". Each time he would place his paw on it,
>or pounce as it were, I would reward him. The next step was just to
>get him to put his paw on it while stationary. from there it was a
>matter of getting him dialed in on the word "LAUNCH" nad nothing else.
> For example, he started pressing early when I would count down, so to
>solve this i just paused, and repeated the countdown and "LAUNCH"
>command and only rewarded him when he got it right. If he got it
>wrong, I simply paused and started over again. After a while he picks
>up on the correct behaivior and locks it in his little dog brain.
Excellent! Normal training techniques applied to a `new' skill. Well done.
>The main ingredients for sucess are a paitience, repetition, and a
>smart dog.
As always! <g>
>The next challenge is going to be to get him to calm down. he goes
>bonkers at the feild when the rocket goes off. When he is bouncing
>around like a kangaroo it is hard to get him to do anything. I am
>still working on that issue.
Hmm.. I noticed upon another reply on the thread your use of hand signals. I
had not heard of these until watching my g/f work her Shepard..my dad & I used
whistles, since we were training hunting dogs (the hunter would remain under
cover). Perhaps some sort of sound command training (a bo'sun or referee's
whistle?) might work.
Hey, it'd give you a reason to spend more time with him, anyway...;)
>> BTW: Nice Merc/Redstone. Mine's got crash damage. :(
>
>Thanks, The Merc is my favorite model. I like it so much I am not
>going to fly it ;)
In the past, I've used that excuse to own *two* of something..<g>
RayDunakin
launches. He gets really gets exited when the rocket takes off. >>
Heck, so do a lot of us two-legged rocketeers! :)
RayDunakin
afaind I have some bad news. Stetson and I went out again this past Sunday to
practice live launches, and well. Stetson lost his first rocket. It is a sad
story and he is pretty tore up about it. >>
Aw, poor Stetson! But I'm glad it was only his rocket that got squished, and
not him! You'll have to be very careful about that, so he doesn't end up
chasing the rocket into the road.
Alan Jones
<urb...@surfree.com> wrote:
>Robert Byrd wrote:
>>
>> I have been monitoring this group for a while and thought you guys may
>> get a kick out of this.
>>
>> My dog is into model rocketry. I noticed how exited he got when I
>> took him to the feild so I thought it would be fun and challenging to
>> teach him to launch rockets. I built him a PAL (Paw Activated
>> Launching) mechanism. It allows him to fire a rocket by stepping on it
>> with his paw. It works great and he loves it.
>>
>> I wonder if anyone has ever done anything like this before.
>>
>> Before you call me a liar, check out his web site:
>> http://www.beyondcellular.com/stetson/
>>
>> I am interested to hear your comments.
>
>Here is my comment and PLEASE act on the suggestion:
>
>You simply MUST take those pictures and the article and send it to Sport
>Rocketry. Tom Beach always needs material and this is absolutely top
>shelf, grade AAAA, wonderful material.
>
>Please, please, please sent coppies of the pictures and the text to Sport
>Rocketry.
>
>Do it, today . . . why are you still reading this? Go do it!!!!
Nah, get that dog on Letterman's stupid pet tricks, or some other
venue with more exposure to the mases.
Alan Jones
Lew Garrow
>From: r...@beyondcellular.com (Robert Byrd)
>Date: 8/28/2001 9:11 PM Eastern Daylight Time
>Message-id: <1e8ed0e7.01082...@posting.google.com>
>
Poor Stetson! My pet ant, Spot, used to get real excited at launches, his
little antennae would start to wriggle about, his thorax would be throbbing,
yep, as soon as the rocket was away he'd dart right after it. Two or three days
later he would show up at the launcher with the rocket in tow....of course by
then we'd all been home for quite some time..............
Lew Garrow
TRA 7181 L3
NAR 77928 L3
METRA BOD
Maryland Delaware Assn
Robert Byrd
> bearcat scanner mode, trying to figure out which pad was about to fly. She'd
> tear out to the pad at launch, herding the smoke. But if you faked a
> countdown, at home, or even at the field, she'd immediately start barking
> back at you. She could always tell.
That is EXACTLY what Stetson was doing. Now that he is launching
them, he has to concentrate during the countdown. This is really tough
for him.
Robert Byrd
> not him!
Thanks for the sympathy, Stetson is doing well considering his loss.
I expect I will build him another rocket soon. He has expressed an
interest in scale models. Perhaps a Bull "PUP".
> You'll have to be very careful about that, so he doesn't end up chasing the rocket into the road.
Thats one of the first things he was taught, he only goes into the
road at my side.
Robert Byrd
slow motion video is especially cool. His reaction time is
astounding. He is already spinning to chase the rocket and I am still
there holding up my thumb and looking goofy.
I am going to try and get some even better video in the next week or
two.
Check it out and let me know what you think.
www.beyondcellular.com/stetson
Hey does anybody know how to get good quality photos from a JVC
Digital Video Camera with firewire. I am using the Ulead Video Studio
3.0 and a firewire card. It will do captures, but the quality is
poor. Tom with the Rocketry magazine has asked for some better
photos, so if anyone has any ideas, I am all ears.
Thanks, Robert Byrd
Keeper of The Rocket Dog
Dave V.
Robert Byrd wrote:
>
(snip)
> Hey does anybody know how to get good quality photos from a JVC
> Digital Video Camera with firewire. I am using the Ulead Video Studio
> 3.0 and a firewire card. It will do captures, but the quality is
> poor. Tom with the Rocketry magazine has asked for some better
> photos, so if anyone has any ideas, I am all ears.
>
> Thanks, Robert Byrd
> Keeper of The Rocket Dog
Robert,
Does your camcorder have Progressive Scan mode? This mode records each
frame in a fashion very much like a still image; it's designed to
improve playback on computers (digital) as opposed to televisions
(analog/interlaced).
--
Fly 'em high, land 'em soft!
Dave Virga
Black Forest, CO
NAR #77896 L1
COSROCS, Section 515
Mark Simpson
near Glassboro and smell the miles of peach blossoms sometime. I spent my
first 18 years of life in the rural suburbs in South Jersey. I could get
fresh Silver Queen corn, Cling peaches, Beefsteak tomatoes and just about any
type of mellon within a few miles from my house. Why do you think it's called
"The Garden State"?
Mark (You from Joizey? What exit?) Simpson
NAR 71503 Level II
Mike Pearson <see .sig>
> Why do you think it's called "The Garden State"?
IIRC, that was a corruption from the original, "The Guardin' State", a
reference to what you must do to any valuable property you owned or had
with you in the state to prevent having it disappear under cover of
darkness.
;-)
--
Mike
NAR #70953 - Sr/HPR Level-1 ~ SeaNAR - The Seattle NAR Section #568
NO Junk Email, please! Real email to: amphoto [at] blarg [dot] net.
<Vegetables aren't food; vegetables are what the food eats!>
mrtriton
You just described the area where I live! (Kendall,NY) Except I'm 25 miles
from Rochester, (NY) so I'm MUCH more suburban. I think it's called "the
boondocks"!
Mark
--
Mark Doty
Tripoli Rocketry Association #1977 Level II
Buffalo Rocket Society #069
National Association of Rocketry #50950 Level II
Metallica Club Member #40505
http://www.metallica.com/
E-mail: mdot...@rochester.rr.com
Web Page: http://home.rochester.rr.com/mrtriton/site.htm
Remember, there are three kinds of mathematicians: Those who can
count...and those who can't.
"Mark Simpson" <mark.s...@home.com> wrote in message
news:3B8EE2FA...@home.com...
David Urbanek
> IIRC, that was a corruption from the original, "The Guardin' State", a
> reference to what you must do to any valuable property you owned or had
> with you in the state to prevent having it disappear under cover of
> darkness.
As a comedian once said, when you live in New York City, you don't own
anything; you're just holding it for the guy who will eventually steal it.
--
==========================================================================
"Politics is not the art of the possible. It consists of choosing between
the disastrous and the unpalatable." -- John Kenneth Galbraith
Mark Simpson
you're from Seeeattle....Nevermind....... ;-)
Mark Simpson
NAR 71503 Level II
Leslie Bonser
1e8ed0e7.01082...@posting.google.com, "Robert Byrd"
<r...@beyondcellular.com> wrote:
Rob,
What's Stetson's NAR and/or TRA membership number? If nothing but for fun,
you ought to submit a membership for him...
Les
PS: Teddy and Smokey say woof, woof!
--
Les Bonser
TRA 8963, Level 1
"RocketDog" (the other one...)
Writer, photographer, chef, dog lover, rocketeer, just another Perl hack,
shooter (skeet, trap, pistols)
Bob Kaplow
> What's Stetson's NAR and/or TRA membership number? If nothing but for fun,
> you ought to submit a membership for him...
I really thought about signing up my rocket dog, Belker, years ago. Was even
going to ask for NAR #54321 since that was what she responded to.
Mike Pearson <see .sig>
> That's it! Wher's my knife?!! Somebody's gonna pay for that one. Oh,
> you're from Seeeattle....Nevermind....... ;-)
Yeah, but I grew up in Mount Vernon, NY (where the Bronx and Yonkers
meet), left for 12 years in the USAF, then returned for another 8 years
working at Bankers Trust (big tall black building right next to the
World Trade Center towers).
I will admit that at times I used to envy the folks living in NJ,
though, especially as I sat looking out my 38th floor window overlooking
NY Harbor, Ellis Island, the Statue of Liverty, the Verrazano Narrows
Bridge, and Jersey City. The folks that lived over there had a *much*
nicer view when looking across the Hudson River than we had to endure.
Robert Byrd
> you ought to submit a membership for him...
I will look into it, seems like Stetson, The Rocket Dog should be
official.
> PS: Teddy and Smokey say woof, woof!
Stetson says "Arf" to Teddy 7 Smokey. By the way, did you know they
were sending Stetson e-mail when you were out. Better start turning
off that computer when you leave. Keep them away from your credit
cards, you may end up with a ton of Alpo or something being dropped
off at your front door.
Les Bonser
> > What's Stetson's NAR and/or TRA membership number? If nothing but for fun,
> > you ought to submit a membership for him...
>
> I will look into it, seems like Stetson, The Rocket Dog should be
> official.
Cool!
>
> > PS: Teddy and Smokey say woof, woof!
>
> Stetson says "Arf" to Teddy 7 Smokey. By the way, did you know they
> were sending Stetson e-mail when you were out. Better start turning
> off that computer when you leave. Keep them away from your credit
> cards, you may end up with a ton of Alpo or something being dropped
> off at your front door.
Yeah, they do that sometimes... :-)
So far, they haven't ordered anything on the 'net, but boy you should
see the pictures they download! :-)
Later,
Les
Robert Byrd
> frame in a fashion very much like a still image; it's designed to
> improve playback on computers (digital) as opposed to televisions
> (analog/interlaced).
No it does not have Progressive Scan mode. The camera is a JVC
GR-DVM70 Digital Video Camera. It records in DV Format only, the
signal format is NTSC and it uses Digital Component Recording.
Robert Byrd
> see the pictures they download! :-)
I can only imagine...
Mike Pearson <see .sig>
> So far, they haven't ordered anything on the 'net, but boy you should
> see the pictures they download! :-)
Let me guess...
kitty porn!