What is John Carmack trying to prove?
Granted! I now respect his hard work and perseverence.
His project has suffered setbacks not of his own making.
But!...What's he trying to prove with these "hovering tests"?
Isn't it common-sense that the MORE fuel you spend
on hovering maneuvers leaves you LESS fuel for high-altitude
ascent, assuming you want to get into space 100 kilometer up.
His hovering maneuvers really don't make much sense,
considering you need as much fuel as you can carry
to accelerate you to a speed needed to reach extreme-altitudes.
Jacob