Parachute Payload System

[xiangyu]

Has anyone competed at an invitational using this approach and can confirm it was considered legal?

That would certainly make this easier if that's true - i.e. tube opening being sufficient and allowed?

was legal at northview. I don't see why the event supervisors at that regionals mandated a nose "cone", the tube definitely passes both the bluntness and bottle cap test

Did anyone appeal? Idk how the appeal process works but it seems only fair to give teams a chance to explain...

[builderguy135]

Has anyone competed at an invitational using this approach and can confirm it was considered legal?

That would certainly make this easier if that's true - i.e. tube opening being sufficient and allowed?

was legal at northview. I don't see why the event supervisors at that regionals mandated a nose "cone", the tube definitely passes both the bluntness and bottle cap test

they pulled a "spirit of the rules" card on me, lol.

[gmui]

Has anyone competed at an invitational using this approach and can confirm it was considered legal?

That would certainly make this easier if that's true - i.e. tube opening being sufficient and allowed?

was legal at northview. I don't see why the event supervisors at that regionals mandated a nose "cone", the tube definitely passes both the bluntness and bottle cap test

they pulled a "spirit of the rules" card on me, lol.

Sorry to hear that. I'd assume that invitationals are more lenient with the rules but that's why I wouldn't risk going with an 'open tube' nose cone as it's too up for interpretation on whether the edge is considered blunt or not. That's probably the more difficult part of this event though so I kind of get that it wasn't intended to be that easy.

[xiangyu]

was legal at northview. I don't see why the event supervisors at that regionals mandated a nose "cone", the tube definitely passes both the bluntness and bottle cap test

they pulled a "spirit of the rules" card on me, lol.

Sorry to hear that. I'd assume that invitationals are more lenient with the rules but that's why I wouldn't risk going with an 'open tube' nose cone as it's too up for interpretation on whether the edge is considered blunt or not. That's probably the more difficult part of this event though so I kind of get that it wasn't intended to be that easy.

I think if we just bring an extra actual nosecone we'll be safe right? If the judge won't allow the open tube design we can just quickly put that extra nosecone on top...

[megrimlockawesom]

In the rules it says “the ping pong ball attached to the parachute assembly makes up the parachute payload system.” Does this mean that taping things like coins or extra weight onto the ball is not allowed? I’m having in issue where the ping pong ball isn’t heavy enough to drag down the parachute and it ends up flopping on its side. However, when I taped more weight onto the ball, it was much more stable when falling.

I would assume that would be a violation of the rules, yes.

If your ping pong ball is too heavy, try using heavier adhesives to attach the string to the ball.

[SPP SciO]

For whatever it’s worth - Our teams have had success making a “basket” for the ball out of a small piece of plastic. We found that not having to tape shroud lines directly to the ball reduced tangles or twisting and deployment was more consistent. Dry cleaning bags and thin cotton string have been the preferred materials for us.

[will0416]

For whatever it’s worth - Our teams have had success making a “basket” for the ball out of a small piece of plastic. We found that not having to tape shroud lines directly to the ball reduced tangles or twisting and deployment was more consistent. Dry cleaning bags and thin cotton string have been the preferred materials for us.

I don't think that most event supervisors would consider that a "payload system". Relying on that basket as a stability booster at a competition could be a toss-up between a construction violation or not based on my interpretation of rule 2b.

[xiangyu]

For whatever it’s worth - Our teams have had success making a “basket” for the ball out of a small piece of plastic. We found that not having to tape shroud lines directly to the ball reduced tangles or twisting and deployment was more consistent. Dry cleaning bags and thin cotton string have been the preferred materials for us.

I don't think that most event supervisors would consider that a "payload system". Relying on that basket as a stability booster at a competition could be a toss-up between a construction violation or not based on my interpretation of rule 2a.

Also based on my interpretation of rule 2b, you have to tape string directly to ping pong.

[SPP SciO]

For whatever it’s worth - Our teams have had success making a “basket” for the ball out of a small piece of plastic. We found that not having to tape shroud lines directly to the ball reduced tangles or twisting and deployment was more consistent. Dry cleaning bags and thin cotton string have been the preferred materials for us.

I don't think that most event supervisors would consider that a "payload system". Relying on that basket as a stability booster at a competition could be a toss-up between a construction violation or not based on my interpretation of rule 2a.

Also based on my interpretation of rule 2b, you have to tape string directly to ping pong.

Interesting interpretation. They haven’t used that in an official competition so it hasn’t been an issue yet. Rule 2b doesn’t mention string whatsoever though - just “parachute”. I had been interpreting “tape only” to mean no glue or ball-altering hardware.

[will0416]

I don't think that most event supervisors would consider that a "payload system". Relying on that basket as a stability booster at a competition could be a toss-up between a construction violation or not based on my interpretation of rule 2a.

Also based on my interpretation of rule 2b, you have to tape string directly to ping pong.

Interesting interpretation. They haven’t used that in an official competition so it hasn’t been an issue yet. Rule 2b doesn’t mention string whatsoever though - just “parachute”. I had been interpreting “tape only” to mean no glue or ball-altering hardware.

I think xiangyu's train of thought was that the rule describing that parachutes "must be attached to ping pong balls with tape only" implied that you have to attach your string (or whatever you are using to connect the parachute to the ball) to the ping pong ball directly rather than to a vessel carrying the ball. I interpreted the rule similarly, focusing more on the part describing the attachment to the ping pong balls rather than the part addressing the tape.