Florida restaurant owner to fly into space on Blue Origin rocket
MELBOURNE, Fla. - A seat on Blue Origin's space tourism flight is one of the most exclusive tickets in the world. A Central Florida restaurant owner just became one of the lucky few to book a trip onboard.
Steve Young is getting ready for the ride of a lifetime, following in the footsteps of billionaires like Jeff Bezos. Young, 59, designed the three-story nightlife and restaurant venue Pineapples about a year ago. His Eau Gallie space-themed business turned into a self-fulfilling prophecy.
"I guess you could go back to when I was young, I had a fascination for the stars," he told FOX 35 News.
The longtime Indialantic resident, who recently sold the telecommunications installation giant Y-Com, said he filled out an application in September of last year for a seat on a future Blue Origin New Shepard flight. He heard back a few months later saying he was accepted.
New Shepard is a reusable suborbital rocket that launches from a spaceport pad outside rural Van Horn, Texas, and climbs 62 miles above the Earth’s surface beyond the Kármán line — delivering its passengers several minutes of weightlessness. Then the parachute-equipped, fully autonomous capsule descends to the West Texas desert.
Previous New Shepard space tourism passengers include Amazon-Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos, "Star Trek" icon William Shatner and "Good Morning America" co-anchor Michael Strahan.
A seat on Blue Origin's space tourism flight is one of the most exclusive tickets in the world. A Central Florida restaurant owner just became one of the lucky few to book a trip onboard.
Blue Origin successfully completed its fifth human spaceflight on June 4. The six-person crew included former NASA test lead Katya Echazarreta, who became the first Mexican-born woman to fly into space. In March, Winter Park, Florida residents Sharon and Marc Hagle became the first married couple to take a commercial spaceflight aboard Blue Origin’s fourth crewed mission.
Young’s wife, Melodie, will accompany him to West Texas, but she will not fly aboard the rocket. Young says the future crew members will train for two days inside of a capsule to acclimate to tight spaces. He and his future crew members will ride on the New Shepard rocket for about 11 minutes to the edge of space and back.
"That morning, they get up and get to watch me and see me, and then I go up come back down safely, and we have a party!"
For young, it’s the perfect opportunity. He calls himself a thrill seeker. "I am very excited!" he says, adding that he's not nervous. "My wife is. I'm not."
Young’s flight date has not been announced. Neither have the identities of Young’s five fellow crew members.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.