Giant leap: Ex-NFLer Strahan takes trip to space


Football star and TV celebrity Michael Strahan caught a ride to space with Jeff Bezos’ rocket-launching company Saturday, sharing the trip with the daughter of America’s first astronaut.

Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket blasted off from West Texas, sending the capsule on a 10-minute flight with the two VIP guests and four paying customers. Their capsule soared to an altitude of about 66 miles, providing a few minutes of weightlessness before parachuting into the desert. The booster also came back to land successfully.

It was five minutes and 50 miles shorter than Alan Shepard’s Mercury flight from Cape Canaveral on May 5, 1961. His eldest daughter, Laura Shepard Churchley, took along a tiny piece of his Freedom 7 capsule as well as mementos from his Apollo 14 moonshot and golf balls in honor of her dad who hit some on the lunar surface.

Bubbling over with excitement in his “Good Morning America” updates all week, Strahan packed his Super Bowl ring and retired New York Giants jersey No. 92. “Pretty SURREAL!” he tweeted on the eve of the launch, delayed two days by dangerously high wind. Bezos stashed a football in the capsule as well, to be awarded to the Pro Football Hall of Fame following the flight.

Bezos, who flew to space in July in the same capsule, accompanied the six passengers to the launch pad near Van Horn. He had “Light this candle” painted on the launch tower’s bridge, borrowing from Alan Shepard’s famous gripe from inside Freedom 7 as the delays mounted: “Why don’t you fix your little problem and light this candle?”

Shepard Churchley volunteered for Blue Origin’s third passenger flight. She heads the board of trustees for the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation.

“It’s kind of fun for me to say that an original Shepard will fly on the New Shepard,” she said in a preflight Blue Origin video.

Bezos, who founded Amazon six years before Blue Origin, was on the debut launch in July. The second, in October, included actor William Shatner — Captain James Kirk of TV’s original “Star Trek.” The late Leonard Nimoy’s daughter sent up a necklace with a “Vulcan Salute” charm on this flight, in honor of the show’s original Mr. Spock.

The reusable, automated capsule was especially crowded this time. Instead of four, there were six flying.

Among the the four space tourists paying unspecified millions each were the first father-son combo: Financier Lane Bess and his son Cameron. Also flying: Voyager Space chairman and CEO Dylan Taylor and investor Evan Dick.

Blue Origin dedicated Saturday’s launch to Glen de Vries, who launched into space with Shatner in October, but died one month later in a plane crash.

Got a story or tip for us? Email Sports Gossip editors at tips@sportsgossip.com 

Want More From Sports Gossip? 

For all the latest breaking Sports Gossip, be sure to follow SportsGossip.com on FacebookInstagram, and Twitter.

You can view the original article HERE.

Isabella Rossellini’s Best Performances, Ranked
Isabella Rossellini’s Best Performances, Ranked
“Anora,” “Shōgun” Win Big with Critics Choice Awards | Festivals & Awards
“Anora,” “Shōgun” Win Big with Critics Choice Awards | Festivals & Awards
Billy Magnussen, Sarah Goldberg to Lead AMC’s Silicon Valley Series
Billy Magnussen, Sarah Goldberg to Lead AMC’s Silicon Valley Series
Sigourney Weaver Reveals She Joined the ‘Mandalorian’ Movie for Grogu
Sigourney Weaver Reveals She Joined the ‘Mandalorian’ Movie for Grogu
Samantha Mumba hits out at “unnecessarily rude” judges after coming runner-up to represent Ireland at Eurovision 2025
Samantha Mumba hits out at “unnecessarily rude” judges after coming runner-up to represent Ireland at Eurovision 2025
Listen to Bdrmm’s “aggressive” new single ‘Lake Disappointment’
Listen to Bdrmm’s “aggressive” new single ‘Lake Disappointment’
Taylor Swift Fans Seethe at Kendrick Lamar Over Halftime Show
Taylor Swift Fans Seethe at Kendrick Lamar Over Halftime Show
Smashing Pumpkins announce massive 2025 London Gunnersbury Park show with Skunk Anansie and White Lies
Smashing Pumpkins announce massive 2025 London Gunnersbury Park show with Skunk Anansie and White Lies
Everything We Know About Jason Statham’s ‘A Working Man’
Everything We Know About Jason Statham’s ‘A Working Man’
The Hunting Party Season 1 Episode 2 Review: Learning to Trust Amidst a Violent Manhunt
The Hunting Party Season 1 Episode 2 Review: Learning to Trust Amidst a Violent Manhunt
15 Best TV Vampires in Ever Put to Screen
15 Best TV Vampires in Ever Put to Screen
‘The Ascent’ Will Throw a Wedding Party to the Sharks in New Horror Movie
‘The Ascent’ Will Throw a Wedding Party to the Sharks in New Horror Movie
The Origins of Cricket – Sports Gossip
The Origins of Cricket – Sports Gossip
Eagles dominate Super Bowl LIX to deny Chiefs 3-peat
Eagles dominate Super Bowl LIX to deny Chiefs 3-peat
Chiefs’ Hopkins: ‘Are y’all gonna talk about the refs now?’
Chiefs’ Hopkins: ‘Are y’all gonna talk about the refs now?’
Brady needs to be a star in TV gig, not a game manager
Brady needs to be a star in TV gig, not a game manager
D.L. Hughley Says Kendrick Halftime Show 1st Good Thing Since Trump’s Return
D.L. Hughley Says Kendrick Halftime Show 1st Good Thing Since Trump’s Return
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s Super Bowl looks turn heads as fans speculate about a possible proposal
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s Super Bowl looks turn heads as fans speculate about a possible proposal
Vince Neil Not on Board Plane Involved In Deadly Crash, Girlfriend Survives
Vince Neil Not on Board Plane Involved In Deadly Crash, Girlfriend Survives
Taylor Swift gets booed, Kendrick Lamar disses Drake — and what was up with that scoreboard? Here are the most viral moments of the night.
Taylor Swift gets booed, Kendrick Lamar disses Drake — and what was up with that scoreboard? Here are the most viral moments of the night.
I Wore Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty Loveline Lingerie Set
I Wore Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty Loveline Lingerie Set
Inside The Society of MSK and NET-A-PORTER’s Winter Lunch
Inside The Society of MSK and NET-A-PORTER’s Winter Lunch
LaQuan Smith’s NYFW Surprise, InStyle’s Wild New Interns!
LaQuan Smith’s NYFW Surprise, InStyle’s Wild New Interns!
Bloomingdale’s and Flamingo Estate’s NYFW Dinner at Casino
Bloomingdale’s and Flamingo Estate’s NYFW Dinner at Casino