About the Book
Narrow escapes from bouts with The Potato were just the beginning
Having had a number of odd brushes with death, Author Chester (Chet) L. Richards has always boldly gone where few have dared. His mantra: view all that comes your way - the good, the terrifying, and the ugly - as a series of adventures. Here are a few snippets his book, From The Potato to Star Trek and Beyond: Memoirs of a Rocket Scientist:
"It took much practice, and many accidents, before I got the hang of it. Even then, The Potato, in its death throes, did not always behave as a Proper Sacrifice should and blazing hot molten lead would explode out from the bubbling caldron." From The Potato
"He swung his rifle around and pointed it towards my belly, his finger nervous on the trigger. I froze." From Land of Troubles
"One day, Judy and I were taken for a walk. We wandered around for a bit, climbed a narrow flight of stairs and were ushered into the Sanctum Sanctorum. There, waiting for us, was Gene Roddenberry." From Star Trek
"My last vision of the raft, before I was driven to the black bottom of the silty river, was of Terry, half overboard, his outside leg caught between a maverick oar and the side of the boat." From Lava Falls
"'Three...two...one...fire!"...Hisssss...Pop! 'Uh, oh!' said the technician as the meters all swung to zero and red lights lit up down the length of the long control panel. My signals also had disappeared...'We just blew up the [rocket engine] test stand.'" From Rocket Science
The loss of the love of his life, Sarah, knocked the stuffing out of Chet initially. But writing these, the stories she loved, brought him back. May reading them bring you the zest for life the author regained from recalling them.
About the Author :
Chester (Chet) L. Richards retired aerospace engineer, and inventor (19 patents), views life as a series of adventures. After narrowly escaping serious injury from The Great Potato, on a lark, he co-authored a spec script for "Star Trek" with friend Judy Burns when they were college students. The story, "The Tholian Web", became one of the series' most popular episodes. Veteran writer Bob Duncan advised the young man, "You should write....Write your passions." But I have nothing to say, Chet thought. He decided the real message was to fill his life with adventures. And he did - adventures in surfing, learning and performing music, travel to exotic places for river rafting, the work as a rocket scientist. Along the way, he's always met fascinating characters. He did write - essays (over 50 have been published so far). But it was the loss of Sarah, the love of his life, that caused Chet to write his first book of stories. At the house in Thousand Oaks they once shared, the hair-raising adventures Sarah loved continue to occur, though as the author says, he no longer has much hair.
Review :
"What can I tell you about my friend of decades, Chet Richards? He's a fine musician, a rocket scientist, a wonderful writer and an adventurer, but most of all, he married well." - Marilyn Scott-Waters, writer and illustrator. Her works include, The Toymaker: Paper Toys That You Can Make Yourself, Haunted Histories, The Search For Vile Things.
"I would highly recommend From the Potato to Star Trek and Beyond. The book is informative, even educational, but author Chet Richards maintains a friendly, conversational tone throughout. The stories were a definite surprise. Who knew that this mild-mannered, soft-spoken gentleman I've known for years had so many harrowing adventures, and was so accomplished in the scientific community?" - Steve Pastis, Author, Fables for the Clarinet, Elk and Penguin Stories, Ten Good Reasons to Fix that Airplane. Writer/Editor The Good Life publication for seniors. Chet's Friend
"I was so moved from the first words, how the author wrote these stories as a tribute to his wife, and as a way to heal after she died. What a wonderful way to deal with the pain so many of us experience. And the Star Trek story - really interesting to see how the process in Hollywood works. And the story of The Potato, and all the other adventures that kept almost killing him, and the rocket science stories. I loved those...as a former technologist, I'm always interested in knowing how science works." - Mary Kenner, Associate Editor, RKEdit, retired Clinical Laboratory Scientist II
