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Shuttle Launch - 5/31

Brent372

Official SE Event Coordinator
Joined
Dec 27, 2006
Messages
2,485
Location
Coconut Creek, FL
Kim and I are plannning on heading up to Titusville on Saturday, May 31st to catch the shuttle launch.

Anybody wanna meet up over there?
 
yeah, got it today, have introduced it in the 'roll call' section.

do you know any spot where the best audio-visual effect of the launch can be experienced?
i wanna see a shuttle start before the cease the program
 
Yeah, there is a little pier right off of US-1, across the river from the space center... great spot.

Not sure if we will be spending Sat night up there.

So... anybody else up for a mini-meet?
 
This is GREAT!! Thanks for posting this, Brent, or I would never have planned for it - only been sorry when I missed it. We will be there (maybe the only thing I'm willing to miss racing for) if we possibly can. I'm also going to post this over on NECO.

Got questions about details (of course I do):
Where will we meet up? (Thinking about going to the pier together)
How early should we plan to get there?
Is there access to public restrooms from the pier?

Do we want to go to dinner afterwards? Or, maybe, WHERE do we want to go to dinner afterwards?

I'd think of staying over if I could find a cheap hotel not too far away. Titusville for that night seems to start at $99 :nonono:. Maybe we'd stay further away from the coast - along I-95, or even Orlando's east side...
 
i wanna bring two droogs of mine, awesome chaps from N Carolina. Yet, how about Motel6 or kinda to stay, if one gets wasted? 99bucks is damn lot, is there something in the 30-40 $ range if three lads share?
And the pier, what's the address? Google map maybe?
 
I have posted any more about this because I am waiting to see if I will have to work in Estero next weekend.
Have a store opening there and it looks like it might require me to be there over the weekend.
 
And the pier, what's the address? Google map maybe?

I don't know if this is the pier Brent was talking about, but looking for info I found Space View Park, with directions here. I like the looks of this:
  • Live NASA Select Countdown
  • Television Coverage of launch
  • Restrooms
  • Souvenirs available
  • No admission or parking fees
The second link tells how to extra free parking nearby.

I'm definitely planning on this, even if Peggy (my daughter) & I end up going alone. I plan to get there by 3pm, with chairs, sunscreen, snacks & drinks.
 
This is the pier I am talking about.
http://maps.yahoo.com/#mvt=s&lat=28.565839&lon=-80.794953&zoom=18

Zoom out to get an idea of where it is in relation to everything.
It is almost due east of both launch pads and always provides an excellent view.
There is a McDonald's (restrooms) right nearby (just north of the pier on US1)

Weather forecasts are not looking very good for the launch this weekend though.
 
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Looks like weather should be partly cloudy but hot: mid-80's that will feel like the 90's.

We'll be leaving in an hour or so....
 
It was wonderful!

It was wonderful!

Clear sky, except for 1 cloud that hid the shuttle for a moment, and the shuttle looked beautiful going up. Also, the sound, even as far away as Rt 1, is thrilling. There was a big, appreciative crowd. (And I think I held my breath waiting for Discovery to come out from behind that cloud... I clearly remember seeing Challenger's lift off & explosion (on TV - I was in MA), and I can't watch a shuttle without a little fear.)

We left home more like 2 hours than 1 hour after I posted, and we were stuck at a crawl the whole time we were on 528 (took us an hour & a half to go about 20 miles), and then there was NO parking along Rt 1. About 4:55 I pulled into a gas station just south of the pier Brent mapped to, pumped gas, then just left the car while I went across the street to watch. Really worth all the hassle, and I think I'm going to take time off to go to another launch - I figure a week day will have a much smaller crowd.
 
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