Guion Bluford

The crew taped the intercom conversation. There's somebody giggling and laughing all the way up. And we listened to it for quite a while to try and figure out who that was, only to come to the conclusion that it was me. I mean, I laughed and giggled all the way up. It was such a fun ride.

The job is so fantastic, you don't need a hobby. The hobby is going to work.

It might be a bad thing to be first , if you stop and think about it. It might be better to be second or third because then you can enjoy it and disappear - return to the society you came out of without someone always poking you in the side and saying you were first.

I chased my dreams. In the end, find what gets you excited and chase it.

I wanted to set the standard, do the best job possible so that other people would be comfortable with African-Americans flying in space and African-Americans would be proud of being participants in the space program.

To climb into an airplane and motor up by yourself, it is just amazing.