17 Comments

Both exciting and terrifying, these were the advance of "those magnificent men in their flying machines". They truly did boldly go where no man had gone before.

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Unfortunately Bruce is no longer with us. Those daring great bunch are getting old and leaving us. In the past few weeks Frank Borman left us as well. He was my hero. Apollo 8 was one of the greatest and daring missions of NASA

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Thank you Tara. It would be amazing to float in space. Am awe inspiring feeling must have been felt by Mr. McCandless as he floated in space. Rest in peace sir.

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The space exploration program and the astronauts that bravely went into the unknown was so exciting. I became aware of it when we landed on the moon. Each time I watched the rockets launch with bated breath. Every adventure was a step further into learning about our universe. Unfortunately there were some tragic failures that cost lives. It’s nice to learn more about the personal experiences of those who took some of those steps. The untethered spacewalk stands out among others. Bruce McCandless was unknown to me until you named him in this post. This experience may have been a highlight in his life. I’m sure he was glad he was a part of the program.

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“….a heckuva leap for me!”

Yes it was!

That you, Tara, for this story of bravery and determination!

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“Thank” you, Tara - not “that” you, Tara

Spelling error and failure to proof read!

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That's so funny. I saw it but didn't register the typo until you mentioned it. :)

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Autocorrect is full of shirt!

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❤️🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

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The men who do these things must be awful brilliant and brave! Thanks Tara Ross 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

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We've changed as a society.

Once, we were a rather daring bunch, taking calculated risks, plain old ordinary risks too, if need be.

Now, we are 'risk averse' as a society (see pandemic shutdown, rules of engagement, or the legal mumbo-jumbo on every pacage), unless we're playing video games or anonymously commenting on social media.

Wonder if the MMU would have ever got off the ground today?

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I hate how risk averse we've become. It's un-American!! Somehow, we have to reverse course, or we'll lose our country.

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Your writing is so wonderful! I was feeling anxious by the time I finished reading! But anxiety isn’t a good reason for not doing something! I couldn’t agree more!

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Tv, you are absolutely right. It was awesome boldness to climb onto a humongous Roman Candle and wait while someone else lit the fuse.

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Thank you, Tara.

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I got a similar feeling the first time I jumped from a plane. Falling but not really feeling it. What an experience. One I would love to do.

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"...and I thought, ‘Jeez, I can’t believe they let me do this!’”

1980s era astronauts were still a little wild and daring...

Another great presentation.

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