<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0If the title above makes you think of the iconic line in <\/span>The Wizard of Oz <\/span><\/i>(<\/span>Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!<\/span><\/i>), then your mind must work a lot like mine. \u00a0When I hear certain strings of words together, my brain has a tendency to attach them to the rhythm of some song that is stuck in my subconscious. \u00a0I could write an entire article about the things that get hummed in my head to the tune of <\/span>The Beer Barrel Polka <\/span><\/i>(you know: \u00a0<\/span>Now it\u2019s time to roll out the barrel, cause the gang’s all here!<\/span><\/i>) A hundred words in and I have already lead readers astray because this FTV isn\u2019t going to be about <\/span>Oz <\/span><\/i>or <\/span>polkas<\/span><\/i>, but about the current state of non-governmental sponsored spaceflight. \u00a0Confused? \u00a0Sorry. \u00a0Now I guess you will have to read on to sort out this puzzle of an introduction.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The Peter referred to in the title is one Peter Diamandis. \u00a0The New York born son of a doctor, his lot in life was to become a doctor. \u00a0His passion, however, was space. \u00a0To mollify his parents in the doctor department, he eventually landed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he could work on his pre-med degree and still be involved with space related projects. \u00a0In 1980, while a student at MIT, the nineteen year old founded an organization called SEDS (Students for the Exploration and Development of Space) that grew from one meeting attended by 30 other interested parties to a worldwide network. \u00a0His fraternity brothers called him PIS (short for \u2018Pete In Space\u2019) and he added organizing SEDS to his busy schedule of classes and two undergraduate research projects. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He burned the candle at both ends and in the middle, yet managed to gain entry to the Harvard School of Medicine.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0As SEDS grew, Peter enlisted Bob Richards (the chair of SEDS-Canada) and Todd Hawley (who started a SEDS chapter at George Washington University) to help organize the first international SEDS conference. \u00a0The first SEDS conference was held at GWU in July of 1982 and from it, <\/span>peterbobtodd<\/span><\/i> (as they became known due to their shared vision and drive), \u00a0were invited to the United Nations conference on space to be held in Vienna. \u00a0Among the many contacts they made in their quest to focus on \u201cthe peaceful, non governmental use of space\u201d (which happened to be the theme of the Vienna conference), <\/span>peterbobtodd<\/span><\/i> introduced themselves to Arthur C. Clarke, author of <\/span>2001: \u00a0A Space Odyssey<\/span><\/i> and a god-like figure to any and all space geeks. \u00a0Clarke was not responsive to Peter\u2019s first introduction (\u201cWe are from SEDS and . . .\u201d) and walked away. \u00a0Naturally, Bob and Todd were mortified that Peter again approached Clarke after his Vienna talk, offering him a chance to dine with them! \u00a0Clarke replied,\u201dI will call you.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0Peter answered the phone later that evening and upon hanging up, turned to his two companions and said, \u201cThat was Arthur. \u00a0He said he can\u2019t allow us to take him to dinner. \u00a0He wants to take <\/span>us<\/span><\/i> to dinner.\u201d \u00a0In the end, they enlisted \u201cUncle Arthur\u201d (as <\/span>peterbobtodd<\/span><\/i> took to calling him with Clarke\u2019s blessings), one of the most influential space visionaries of the 20th century to become an adviser to SEDS. \u00a0If one is starting to see Peter Diamandis as an unstoppable force, then one won\u2019t be surprised to find out his next project was to start an International Space University, concurrent with that other little project he had on the front burner: \u00a0medical school.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Even a buzzsaw personality like Peter Diamandis can bite off more than they can chew and it was his medical school studies that began to suffer. \u00a0As he neared the end of his studies, he was summoned to the Dean\u2019s office to explain why he should remain in the program. \u00a0Peter laid out his grand plan: \u00a0\u00a0become a doctor so he would not offend his parents and use it as a springboard to get into space. \u00a0\u00a0The Dean was sympathetic, figuring anyone crazy enough to endure medical school without actually wanting to be a doctor must be driven by some inner force of will. \u00a0He agreed to let Peter conclude his program as long as he promised that he would never practice medicine.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0There are more details to the story but you will need to find Julian Guthrie\u2019s book <\/span>How to make a spaceship – A band of renegades, an epic race, and the birth of private spaceflight<\/span><\/i> to fill in the details. \u00a0The amount of time Guthrie spends on Diamandis is necessary because he sowed the seeds that would eventually jump start the nongovernmental spaceflight programs that are still evolving today.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jumping ahead to the early 1990s, we find Peter running two companies designed to open space travel to the masses: \u00a0International Microspace and Angel Technologies. \u00a0He had a third company in development called Zero Gravity Corporation (ZERO-G). \u00a0His International Space University made it possible for individuals interested in civilian space travel to exchange ideas and engineer what had previously been thought impossible: \u00a0make spaceflight available to the public without governmental control. \u00a0While reading about Charles Lindbergh\u2019s historic 1927 transAtlantic flight, Peter discovered that Lindberg had done so in pursuit of something called <\/span>The Orteig Prize<\/span><\/i>. \u00a0By offering $25,000 to the first person to fly the Atlantic Ocean solo, Raymond Orteig had generated innovations in aviation from nine groups who invested $400,000 in 1927 dollars to try and win the prize. \u00a0Diamandis discovered that prizes for \u2018firsts\u2019 were quite common and all generated similar technological leaps. \u00a0\u201cWhy wouldn\u2019t that work with spaceflight?\u201d Peter wondered. \u00a0By February of 1994, the first draft of the charter that would become to be known as <\/span>The XPRIZE<\/span><\/i> was written and included the following passage: \u00a0<\/span>\u201cThroughout all of history, the greatest accomplishments of the human race have been instigated and acted upon by the individual or the small group – never have the masses brought about innovation. \u00a0We have the accomplishments of Charles Lindbergh and the Rutan\/Yeager\/Apollo team as our guiding stars, and every NASA program since Apollo as our incentive to bring about change.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The <\/span>XPRIZE<\/span><\/i> was formally announced under the Gateway Arch in St. Louis on May 18, 1996. \u00a0St. Louis was chosen for the announcement because Lindbergh\u2019s plane was named <\/span>The Spirit of St. Louis <\/span><\/i>after the place that supported his flight. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>As Peter explained in his opening remarks, \u201c<\/span>The Spirit of St. Louis <\/span><\/i>carried Charles Lindbergh from New York to Paris and into the hearts and minds of the world. \u00a0Today, all eyes are on St. Louis again. \u00a0The <\/span>XPRIZE<\/span><\/i> has been created for one major purpose, to accelerate the development of low-cost, reusable launch vehicles and thereby jump-start the creation of a space tourism industry.\u201d \u00a0The prize offered $10 million dollars for the first craft built for three occupants to breach the internationally acknowledge lower limit of space (62 miles or 328,000 feet) twice within a two week window.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Among the speakers at the introduction of the <\/span>XPRIZE<\/span><\/i> was Erik Lindbergh, grandson of Charles Lindbergh who said, in closing, \u201cThe <\/span>XPRIZE <\/span><\/i>is an event that has the potential to capture the world\u2019s imagination, \u00a0It has the potential to shift people\u2019s interest from conflict and war to an adventurous goal.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0NASA Chief Dan Goldin endorsed the <\/span>XPRIZE <\/span><\/i>by adding,\u201dWe need to encourage the participation by as many people, by as many organizations, in this noble venture. \u00a0I hope that my grandson, Zachary, who is two years old, will be able to go with his children on a trip to a lunar hotel.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Uncle Arthur weighed in via a video message from Sri Lanka: \u00a0\u201cI\u2019d like to send my fondest greetings to Buzz (Aldrin) and Peter. \u00a0I recently had the pleasure of having Peter here. \u00a0He explained the commitment you have made to launching a new era in private space travel. \u00a0Thirty years ago, Stanley Kubrick and I made this little movie, <\/span>2001: \u00a0A Space Odyssey.<\/span><\/i> \u00a0We predicted by that time, space tourism would begin and if you had money, anyone who wanted to could go to orbit. \u00a0Sooner or later this will happen, and I hope the <\/span>XPRIZE<\/span><\/i> will contribute to that. \u00a0I think I may need to revise my predictions to the date 2004 instead of 2001. \u00a0I invite teams from every nation in the world to lay their plans and begin the competition for the prize. \u00a0May the best team win. \u00a0I am Arthur Clarke, signing off in Sri Lanka, to you in St. Louis – to be known one day as the gateway to the stars.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The word spread quickly and the <\/span>XPRIZE <\/span><\/i>Foundation did indeed kickstart projects in the United States, Argentina, England, and countless other locations around the world. \u00a0Peter had the ball rolling on an enterprise that could make space available to more and more people. \u00a0He had a vision. \u00a0He had a team of like minded people working on the project. \u00a0The only thing Diamandis didn\u2019t have was the $10 million dollars. \u00a0As the deadline to claim the <\/span>XPRIZE <\/span><\/i>sped toward him, Peter would spend the better part of the next six years trying to secure the money offered to the winning team. \u00a0To illustrate how difficult this would be, he pitched the idea to Richard Branson, he of the <\/span>Virgin-everything<\/span><\/i> industries (Virgin Records, Virgin Airlines, etc etc). \u00a0Branson is an innovative investor and known as \u201cDr. Yes\u201d for his penchant of funding wild and crazy ideas. \u00a0Peter tried to sell him on sponsoring the <\/span>Virgin XPRIZE<\/span><\/i> and failed. \u00a0Dr. Yes told Peter Diamandis \u2018No\u2019!<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0What of and Burt? \u00a0In part 2, we shall take a look at how Peter Diamandis was able to finally fully fund the <\/span>XPRIZE <\/span><\/i>and single out two individuals from the hundreds of interested participants in the <\/span>XPRIZE story: \u00a0<\/span><\/i>Erik Lindbergh and Burt Rutan.<\/span><\/p>\n Top Piece Video – the first flight of Spaceship One in the quest to win the X-Prize competition