Flying First Class

"MODERN TIMES"

FLYING FIRST CLASS

Lloyd Garver

For the second time in history, a private citizen has signed up for a trip to the International Space Station. His name is Mark Shuttleworth. I'm not kidding. That's his real name, and there is no truth to the rumor that Herbert Missile, Marianne Rocket, and Lawrence Launch were turned down by the program. As you probably recall, the first "space tourist," Dennis Tito, paid Russia $20 million to make the flight last April. Mr. Tito got a lot of flack at the time for spending so much money on himself, and I assume that Mr. Shuttleworth will receive the same criticism. I disagree with the critics. I think the $20 million price tag is a bargain.

At first glance, $20 million for eight days in space might seem like a lot of money. However, let's take a closer look. Don't think of it as just eight days. Think of it as eight days and nine nights. Also, the space station is pretty far away. So, if I divide the amount of money Shuttleworth will spend by the number of miles he'll travel, maybe you'll see how cheap it really is. I just did the calculations, and I came up with... $40,000 per mile. Okay, that didn't help my argument.

But the $20 million includes all meals. There is no tipping, there's no need to bring fancy new clothes, and there's no opportunity to throw money away shopping for souvenirs. Sound a little better now?

Some people think spending this kind of money on oneself is "obscene extravagance." My feeling has always been if somebody has the money, let them spend it any way they want. After all, nobody criticized me for buying that extra pair of socks last week. Sure, maybe I didn't really need them, but I could afford them so I went for it. It's the same with Tito and Shuttleworth.

Why would anyone begrudge Mr. Shuttleworth his dream? He got his money honestly. He built a $500 million business by starting out working from his parents' garage. (I'll wait while you get your kids out to the garage to start working. ... Okay, now I'll go on). He doesn't want to go into space just because Florida is too crowded this time of year. The South African Internet millionaire says he is going there "to inspire people across Africa to embrace technology, to embrace science." I admit I might have gone for passing out chemistry sets instead, but it is Mr. Shuttleworth's money.

Some people don't get the whole space travel thing. They wouldn't go to the space station if it were free. They don't see the romance of it, the adventure of traveling to the last frontier. They just see it as wearing a bulky suit in cramped quarters without a proper bathroom.

But many people would love to go into space if it just weren't for that price tag. That's the only reason people aren't lining up for space travel. I'd be happy to go anytime -- except during the NCAA Playoffs. I'm fascinated by the unknown, by getting that far away from traffic jams and people calling during dinnertime. And I know that more people would feel like Tito, Shuttleworth and I do if space travel were just marketed properly. If they listen to me, NASA and the United States will be pocketing the big bucks from now on instead of Russia. This is all they have to say: "Come on this trip, and you'll be able to a drive a golf ball a mile, and no matter what you eat, your weight will be zero." I guarantee price will no longer be an object.