The experience of being at Cape Canaveral
This is my nineteenth mission that I've worked on, sixteenth out of Kennedy (Space Center), one out of French Guiana (the European Space Agency launch facility), two out of Vanderberg (Air Force base, CA.) Well, of course, everyone's always excited to get to the launch area to do this. A lot of the people have never been before so it's a great experience for them. And even though I've been here many, many times, still, coming down here is just a super experience, to see all of this, knowing that you're really being part of history.

But their attitudes, they're quite excited. I think by the time we're leaving Pasadena it's a good time to leave and come down here because everybody seems to gain a new attitude and alertness and they seem to be fresh again when they come down here and start over.

It's exciting to live here on the beach and to see all this stuff. I try to tour as many of the guys around as I can, to show them some of the sites here at Canaveral and Kennedy. Again, that creates more excitement, knowing the history that's happened around this place over the years and just being part of the course.