Brief:
The D&L Company's Stomp Rocket Junior is a great way to get kids hooked on rockets at a very young age (recommended for children 3 years old and up). These are foam rockets that are powered by a small (but quite rugged) air bladder that you step on to launch the rockets into the air. Since the rockets are lightweight, they recover ballistically.

Also, they were given to us as a gift so I do not know where it was purchased.

Construction:
There are only a few pieces in the box and assembly takes but only a couple of minutes. There are 4 foam rockets, the three-piece tripod, and the bladder with hose and nozzle, which attaches to the tripod by a simple wingnut and screw. The tripod easily goes together for quick setup and comes apart (but not too easily) so that putting everything back into the box only takes a few seconds.

One night as I was cleaning up around the house, I noticed something coming from the toys had an eerie greenish glow. Turning out the lights to determine the culprit, I discovered that the rockets were glowing! What an added bonus that we could do some night launches!

Finishing:
None needed.

Construction Rating: 5 out of 5

Flight:
The height of each flight is determined completely by the force of whomever is stopping on the air bladder. The packaging indicates a maximum height of 100 feet, which I feel is slightly optimistic, however, the upside is that these rockets can be launched in the convenience of most yards--no trips to a special field are necessary!

My 3 and a half year old son and I have done several launches, both during the day and at night. When we've launched them during the day--including at a club launch--it always attracts other young children to try it out. And a pleasant surprise is that there were pretty much zero squabbling over who gets the next turn. (That's a HUGE endorsement for these alone!)

The flights are pretty consistent, too. While you can adjust the launch angle, I don't recommend it. The rockets weathercock pretty quickly after they leave the nozzle due to their light weight. Your best bet is just to leave the nozzle pointed straight up for best performance and safety.

Also, on a particularly calm evening I had the crazy idea to stack a rocket on top of one mounted on the nozzle. With a steady hand, I was able to get it to stay there as my son jumped on the bladder. Both flew successfully and stayed together until they reached apogee (not your typical 2-stage flight profile mind you). I would have attempted a three-stage flight, but the tops of the rockets are slightly rounded (and hardly pointed) so stacking them more than two high would require a surgeon's steady hand, absolutely zero wind, and uncanny care to make sure to not prematurely bump or move the launch bladder or nozzle. (I don't see why it wouldn't work, but good luck if you manage to somehow pull it off!) PROs: Can launch these rockets day or night in a small yard. And they always attract a crowd of kids who want to try them out. CONs: You should keep an eye on children placing the bladder too close or walking up when launching so that no one gets hit by a rocket as it is being launched. There is no mechanism in place to stop a mischievous child from launching a "landshark".

Recovery:
With calm winds the rockets almost always landed within 10 feet of the pad whenever dad (me) launched rockets. My son's rockets usually landed within 2 or 3 feet of the pad.

On windy days, the rockets didn't drift more than double the distance on calm days. A word of advice if you happen to launch too close (or angle the launch "rod" too much) to the house on those windy days: Don't panic. There's little need to break out a ladder to fetch a rocket on the roof... Just give the winds a couple of minutes to blow the rocket(s) down off the roof.

Regardless, we've gotten the best performance (and closest recoveries) by keeping the launcher aimed completely vertical.

Flight Rating: 5 out of 5

Summary:
If you ever wanted to introduce some young (as early as 3 years old) children to rockets, I can't think of a better way. They get to do the whole process (prep, launch, and recover) the rockets all by themselves with little adult interaction. It's all very safe, they stay low enough that it can be done in a small yard (as well as allowing the kids to see the entire flight), and takes almost zero time to set up, move, and put away. Plus the rockets glow in the dark so you can even fly them at night!

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5