Guion Stewart Bluford Jr. was born in Philadelphia in 1942. He graduated Penn State in Aerospace Engineering in 1964 and received his Air Force wings in 1966. He flew 144 combat missions in Viet Nam, 65 over North Viet Nam. In 1967, he was assigned as an instructor pilot at Sheppard Air Force Base in Texas. He earned an MS in 1974 and a PhD in 1978 from Air Force Institute of Technology. He became Chief of the Auerodynamics and Airframe Branch of the Flight Dynamics Lab at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. In 1978, Bluford was selected to become a NASA astronaut. He was one of those recruited by Actress Nichelle Nichols in an effort to increase racial and gender diversity among NASA astronauts. On this date in 1983, Bluford became the first African-American in space, joining the crew of Space Shuttle Challenger on the STS-8 mission. That mission was the first to launch and land at night. He also served on STS-61-A in 1985, STS-91 in 1991, and STS-53 in 1992. Retiring from NASA and the Air Force in 1993, he continued his career in engineering in the private sector. He has many honors, including being inductured into the International Space Hall of Fame and the National Aviation Hall of Fame. He is married and has two sons. Credits: https://w.wiki/TyQA Photo: https://www.nasa.gov/image-detail/amf-s83-36612/ Public Domain Today was my first ride since minor surgery six days ago. The surgeon said to wait five days, and I'll say that was good advice. Today, I took it easy, with little climbing, and I had only occasional twinges that went away quickly. It's nice to be back on the Domane! I enjoy riding the Straggler, simpler and lower gearing. But the Domane is lighter and rolls more easily. I'll keep riding both. I look forward to doing more over the next few days, hoping to be ready for the Tour de Fuzz next Saturday. I'm signed up for the TDF Century, but I'm sure I'll ride a shorter route.