Paris, We Have Lift Off!

Heath Side Boys Rocketry is traveling to the International Rocketry Challenge Friday, June 24, in the Parisian suburb of Le Bourget, France, after winning the May 14 Team America Rocketry Challenge. The International Rocketry Challenge is the world's largest rocket building contest, part of the 49th International Paris Air Show. Raytheon sponsors the winning team's trip to Paris for the international competition.

Beating 99 teams, the four-member team from Rockwall-Heath High School in Heath, Texas (part of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex), launched its winning rocket to a near-perfect 752 feet. The team is comprised of seniors John Easum, Michael Gerritsen and Colt McNally, junior Landon Fisher and advisor Susan Vogel.

"It's pretty unbelievable," said Easum, who serves as team captain, of the win. "It's a dream come true. We're a team that works in the clutch."

The team says the keys to winning are persistence and perseverance — learning from failures that often yield success. Their practices consist mostly of rocket launches and data acquisition and analysis to ensure they're well prepared for all types of conditions that may affect the launch pad.

In the coming days, we'll be featuring profiles of the students and their advisors, highlighting their interest in rocketry, passion for science, technology, engineering and math and excitement for Paris.

Visit the MathMovesU Facebook fan page and the Heath Side Boys' Facebook and YouTube pages for more information, including photos and videos. You can also follow @raytheoncompany on Twitter for exclusive content related to the Paris Air Show.