Ride, Sally Ride

Today I'm celebrating the first American woman in space

On this date in 1983 astronaut Sally Ride became the first American woman in space. At that time she was also the youngest American to enter outer space. She was 1 of 8,900 people to answer a newspaper ad seeking applicants for the space program. She joined NASA in 1978 and spent 343 hours in space. After retiring from NASA she became the president and CEO of Sally Ride Space, a company founded in 2001 to create entertaining science programs and publications for upper elementary and middle school students, with an particular focus on girls. You can hear Sally Ride talk about her selection for the NASA crew on YouTube.

Sorry, you may think this is corny, but I can't help but think of the song "Mustang Sally" when I hear Sally Ride's name. You can watch Running with Scissors perform the song on this blogpost:

As posted on YouTube by MisterGrizz

Today I wonder if Dr. Sally Ride ever thought about buying a Mustang. Of course, she had a bigger dream -- all she wanted to do was ride but around the world, that is! As nice as a Mustang is, it will not get you where Sally Ride wanted to ride. Dream big!

Image credit: britannica.com