THE NEW SPACE AGE IS HERE
As some of you may know, back in 2004, I did something that many people thought was crazy. Hello, Ken Baxter, AKA Rocketman here, coming to you from the Nevada desert in sunny Las Vegas, and thanks for stopping by.
It started the day watched an episode of 60 Minutes, when a segment aired about a bold new startup venture called Virgin Galactic. Virgin’s charismatic CEO, Sir Richard Branson, explained how the company would open the doors of space to everyday civilians, like me. As I watched that interview, something clicked deep inside me. Before the credits rolled, I knew I had to be on this flight. I called the next day and became Virgin Galactic’s very first ticket holder.
It took nearly two decades, but on September 18, 2023, I finally climbed aboard VSS Unity, and became an official astronaut, #666. After waiting 19 years, I was able to discover the freedom of weightlessness, an experience worth every second. And every penny.
But now that the dream has become a memory, I’m thinking: why stop at one?
My next goal? A seat on Blue Origin’s New Shepard.
If Virgin Galactic was the “luxury liner” of suborbital space—three days of training, a horizontal takeoff, a cabin full of camaraderie—then Blue Origin is the bullet train.
As a boy I had an obsession with Estes Rockets, especially Apollo spacecrafts. The Blue Origin voyage delivers a spectacular vertical launch, pure rocket power, fulfilling that childhood fantasy. New Shepard floats to earth in the west Texas desert, deploying large parachutes for a soft landing…just like the Estes rockets of my youth.
I’m on their radar now, and waiting for their call.
It’s got me thinking. Why not go for the Guinness record? The first everyday American to travel on all three of the available voyages? Somehow, I thing SpaceX might be a little pricey. I’m saving that for my next post.
I’m Ken Baxter, Rocketman, signing off and thank you again for stopping by. Don’t forget to visit KenBaxter.com, WeThePeople.com, or GreenGlobal.org for additional updates and interesting content. I hope to see you again real soon!
