First, I want to thank David Lewis, my friend and editor who has guided me through all of my books and got me through this one—which brought with it a complex cast of characters spread across the globe, a lengthy passage of time, and sophisticated science, technology, and aerospace history, all written under a tight deadline. Next, I want to thank my technical adviser, Paul Pedersen, who is as smart as he is inquisitive, and helped me understand a range of intellectual challenges, was never daunted by my odd or arcane questions, and happily forged ahead with formulating many of the book’s footnotes.
I’m grateful and humbled to have the foreword of my book written by the irrepressible Virgin founder Richard Branson and the afterword by Professor Stephen Hawking. I am awed by the life stories of these two men. Fitting with the theme of this book, they believe that rules are meant to be broken and limits transcended.
Special thanks go to my longtime agent, Joe Veltre of the Gersh Agency, who believed in me before my first book was sold. Thank you; what a fun ride we’re on! A special note of gratitude goes to Scott Moyers at Penguin Press, for embracing this story from the moment he read my proposal. It was Scott who came up with the book title, How to Make a Spaceship. We had gone back and forth with dozens of titles over many weeks, and even crowdsourced a half dozen different titles. Nothing felt just right. How to Make a Spaceship fit for a number of reasons: As I see it, people make things while governments build things. There is a great renaissance under way with the maker movement and do-it-yourself culture. This book is about rolling up your sleeves and making things yourself. It is about making your own spaceship-like dreams come true. I’m grateful for the opportunity to work with such a savvy and inspired editor as well as with the talented team at Penguin, notably: Christopher Richards, Yamil Anglada, Chris Holmes, Matt Boyd, and Sabila Kahn.
I have been lucky to have worked with the XPRIZE team and owe a thank-you to Marcus Shingles, Esther Count, Eric Desatnik, Greg O’Brien, Cody Rapp, Maxx Bricklin, Joe Polish, and Diane Murphy. Thank you to others who spent a great deal of time talking with me, including Gary Hudson, Gregg Maryniak, Dezso Molnar, and Byron Lichtenberg.
Last but not least, thank you to my family—my amazing mom, Connie Guthrie; my smart and creative brother, David Guthrie, and his kids, Wayne, Lauren, and Garrett; and my special and forever friend Martin Muller. I now have a tradition of ending my books with a note to my son, Roman, who watched this process of reporting and writing up close and personal, who put up with my late nights, long days, and vacations spent working. Roman, this is a story you and your peers should love: full of rockets and rebels, mind-blowing innovations, a major dare followed by a huge prize, and high-adrenaline moments that came together in California’s high desert. Roman, take inspiration from these pages: follow your dreams, ignore the naysayers, and make really cool stuff. And listen to Stephen Hawking, who says that the best way to transcend limits is “with our minds and our machines.”