Wednesday, January 25, 2017

New Logo for The Rocketry Show


Above, see our brand new logo for The Rocketry Show podcast! I think it looks great, and I can't wait to get it on a t-shirt.

CG and I are registered for NARCON 2017, the National Association of Rocketry's annual conference, in Herndon, VA. We'll be going to learn some cool new stuff about rocketry and hopefully get some great interviews for the podcast. There will be some very interesting people speaking, including:
  • Trip Barber, former NAR president, researcher in model rocket staging, and creator of Team America Rocketry Challenge (TARC), discussing TARC flight testing
  • Jim Barrowman, who changed everything for model rocket design by creating a mathematical method for calculating the center of pressure on a subsonic model rocket - a method now used in all rocket simulators, meaning any rocketeer can easily design a stable rocket from scratch - discussing that very subject!
  • Tim Van Milligan, owner of Apogee Components, giving a couple talks on various aspects of design and construction of competition rockets
  • Ted Cochran, the most recent former NAR president, on steampunk model building
  • Several speakers from NASA, as well as from Northrup Grumman and the Federal Aviation Administration
  • John Lyngdal and upcoming Rocketry Show guest Ken Biba of the ARLISS Program, discussing rocketry challenge programs beyond TARC
...and many others. A lot of exciting possibilities at this year's NARCON, which will be my first.

Not to mention a banquet and a keynote speech by Lee Peister on the history of the Centuri Engineering Company, a classic model rocket company which was eventually absorbed by Estes Industries, but which is well remembered by longtime rocketeers today.

* * *

The new logo and our ability to cover NARCON and other national and regional events are made possible not only by our show's sponsors past and present - Sirius Rocktery, Insane Rocketry, JonRocket, BuyRocketMotors, North Coast Rocketry - but by our patrons on Patreon.

Patreon is a way to help financially support things you like in very small monthly amounts. Patreon donors support creators of podcasts they listen to, online video content they enjoy, filmmaking projects, comedy, music, science, education... Lots of stuff. On Patreon, you can give as much or as little as you want per month.

Of course, The Rocketry Show is free to listen to. And we don't make money doing it - that may be obvious, or maybe not, but in case you were wondering, there's no paycheck for hobby rocketry podcasting. For CG, Gheem and me, it's part of the hobby.

But there are costs involved in creating a podcast - production costs, web hosting, etc. And as the podcast grows, we want to get out to cover regional and national events. We want the podcast to be varied, fun and informative. With Patreon, you can give even a really small amount - $2.00 a month is equal to about $1.00 per podcast, and believe it or not, that small amount helps.

Our patrons on Patreon sometimes get little perks - sneak previews of shows, behind-the-scenes stuff, etc. We tested out a live feed of a recording session once, and plan to do that again.

The show's audience is currently growing at a surprising rate. If everybody chipped in a few bucks per month, it would be easy for us to afford to cover more events around the country. NARCON, NARAM and LDRS are three of the national events we plan to hit this year, but of course there are others. And we're in the process of upgrading my recording equipment, so that my end of the show sounds better.

If you'd like to support the show but you just can't spare any money right now, there are other ways to support the podcast as well.

The first is to tell your rocketry friends about the podcast. While it's true the audience is growing, it's also true that most rocketeers haven't heard about it yet. And it's currently the only podcast on the subject of model and high power rocketry out there.

Another is to rate and review the show on iTunes. Even if you listen to The Rocketry Show through another app, most podcatchers get their ratings and reviews information directly from iTunes, so a high rating or a good review can help more people to stumble across the podcast and check it out.


And finally, if you buy rocket stuff through one of the show's sponsors, let them know you appreciate them supporting the podcast. Our sponsors aren't huge corporations - they're small vendors. They support the podcast because it's part of the hobby for them too.

* * *

By the way, at the top, I mentioned getting a t-shirt with the new logo on it. We plan on having those available for listeners. Some time in the next couple of months, shirts should be available. Patreon patrons above a certain monthly donation level (to be determined) will get a free one, or you should be able to purchase a shirt. All the proceeds will go back into improving the podcast.

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