lawrocket 3 #1 May 3, 2007 "You bet your sweet ass I am." - Wally Schirra on board Sigma 7 to the in-flight recorder when asked, "Are you a turtle?" Schirra was one of the great breed. An intelligent, thoughtful and mechanical type, he named his Mercury 8 spcaecraft "Sigma 7" - the summation. The previous mission had Scott Carpenter splashing down 250 miles from the intended site. Schirra did so within four miles. He basically executed the perfect mission. But he was a jokester and certainly had his own personality. His membership in the International Order of the Turtles was but one of them. He was the kind of guy to present a urine sample in a gallon jar. He openly stated his abhorrence of all forms of exercise. He'd play jokes on anyone. But he was a good astronaut - the first to go into space three times. He was just one of those guys that could do a job perfectly and seem like he was having a grand old time with it! Oh here us when we lift a prayer For those in peril in the air.. My wife is hotter than your wife. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
turtlespeed 226 #2 May 3, 2007 Quote "You bet your sweet ass I am." - Wally Schirra on board Sigma 7 to the in-flight recorder when asked, "Are you a turtle?" Oh here us when we lift a prayer For those in peril in the air.. He will be missed.I'm not usually into the whole 3-way thing, but you got me a little excited with that. - Skymama BTR #1 / OTB^5 Official #2 / Hellfish #408 / VSCR #108/Tortuga/Orfun Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lawrocket 3 #3 May 3, 2007 I almost posted the subject as, "Are you a turtle today?" But I knew it'd be misconstrued at first thanks to you. My wife is hotter than your wife. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest #4 May 3, 2007 Black skies, Wally. mh . "The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
turtlespeed 226 #5 May 3, 2007 QuoteI almost posted the subject as, "Are you a turtle today?" But I knew it'd be misconstrued at first thanks to you. I would have replied, "You bet your ass I am!"I'm not usually into the whole 3-way thing, but you got me a little excited with that. - Skymama BTR #1 / OTB^5 Official #2 / Hellfish #408 / VSCR #108/Tortuga/Orfun Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warpedskydiver 0 #6 May 3, 2007 He led an exemplary life and probably died without any regrets. That is saying a whole lot. RIP Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest #7 May 14, 2007 A friend and I were talking about Schirra today in light of having seen "The Astronaut Farmer". Silly picture, but it reminded me of an anecdote about Schirra. After his Mercury flight, Schirra submitted a gag travel voucher for his flight, and charged by the mile, so the total for his travel claim amounted to several hundred thousand dollars. NASA turned around and charged him with US $5 Million, the then-going price for an Atlas booster. This anecdote is a NASA legend, but was also in Michael Collins' autobiography, "Carrying the Fire". mh . "The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
