Richard Garriott joins Steven Hawkings in 0-gravity
Gruck
http://www.playtr.com/news/archives/2007/04/richard_garriot_6.html
"Richard Garriott Blogs About the Hawking Flight 04 / 27 / 2007 As
many of you are aware, Richard Garriott accompanied Professor Stephen
Hawking on his amazing zero-gravity flight, and he describes what it
was like with this new blog entry:
My girlfriend Kelly and I have just returned from an incredible couple
of days at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida with Professor Stephen
Hawking, which included participating in his historic zero-gravity
flight where we all experienced the freedom of weightlessness aboard a
specially equipped 727 flying parabolic trajectories. While I have
been a fan of Dr. Hawking for some time, I became more and more
impressed with him (and his staff) the more time we spent with them.
Professor Hawking has had a lifelong desire to travel into space, and
zero-g flights are now among the first steps in that journey. Also
organized as a benefit for several charitable organizations, the
Hawking flight raised over $144,000 for these charities.
For Wednesday, April 25, we prepared to do a full dress rehearsal of
how the flight operations would unfold. From the outset it was very
clear that the ZERO-G team and Hawking's personal team planned this
expedition well. As we rehearsed all of the activities that we would
repeat the next day, it was quickly evident that this would work well
and be very exciting and comfortable for Professor Hawking. Kelly and
I are both experienced parabolic flyers, but this was our first trip
aboard G-Force 1, one of the planes owned by ZERO-G-a company I was
one of the earliest investors in about a dozen years ago.
Professor Hawking had a very busy Wednesday himself, first helping
kick off the event by meeting with the group who would be flying with
him Thursday. While we were flying rehearsal flights he was answering
interview questions from the large group of media who had come to
witness the event, and after our test flights we had a reception in
his honor where he gave a great lecture on his journey through science
and his passion for space travel. Personally, I was excited to see him
discussing work that is now well beyond black holes, including very
recent thinking on theories about the origins of the universe.
Professor Hawking's assistants and medical team demonstrated their
amazing skill and respect for Professor Hawking, by being both
attentive when required (such as navigating his wheelchair around
inside a busy dining hall), yet they also knew how to let Professor
Hawking lead his own affairs whenever possible. Over the next two days
we would additionally learn what caring and engaging people they were,
not only with Professor Hawking, but with all those around them. Kelly
and I talked about what a great team they were on numerous occasions.
On Thursday, April 26, the weather was great and we were all excited
to go on the day's journey. The event ran even smoother than the
rehearsals, and the pilots flew the best parabolas I have experienced
in my few trips. The Professor was grinning widely throughout the
whole experience. He not only floated weightless but completed several
spins while floating free inside the cabin. Professor Hawking did all
this while free of his wheelchair for the first time in over forty
years!
Professor Hawking himself is also an incredibly engaging and
responsive individual. His enthusiasm and enjoyment of the event was
always evident. His ability to handle the crush of activity and
interest was impressive. He met innumerable people, prepared and gave
a variety of presentations, and answered numerous press questions.
Between each event, he would be extremely busy preparing his notes for
the next presentation in order to present his feelings before and
after each phase properly. Extraordinary!
It was also fun to see the interpersonal exchanges between him, his
team and the ZERO-G team. Professor Hawking had clear ideas as to what
he wanted to do and how he wanted to do it. While the goal of the
mission was to do just one weightless parabola (with three to six
being a great success), by the time we finished the sixth we planned
to stop, but he insisted we do another two. Finishing eight parabolas,
he had a cumulative amount of weightless time in excess of what one
would normally experience on a sub-orbital flight.
When we returned to the Space Shuttle Landing Strip, met by throngs of
press, Professor Hawking had this to say:
"It was amazing. The zero-g part was wonderful, I could have gone on
and on - space here I come!"
Hawking added, "I recommend the experience to everyone and I hope that
many will follow me and experience weightlessness."
I know that Professor Hawking really does intend to fly to space, and
plans are already in the works to get him there. Kelly and I were
extremely fortunate to be a part of it. You can read more about the
company and this flight here: www.gozerog.com. Or, better yet... go
yourself! :)"