POSITIVE ALTITUDES: Business Outfitters customer XCOR Aerospace is optimistic about space travel 2.0

There's some amazing work going on inside a 1940s hangar at the Mojave Air and Space Port in California. A team of roughly twenty are developing and producing "safe, reliable, reusable launch vehicles, rocket engines and rocket propulsion systems," offered Mike Massee. (Mike's one of the most technically savvy communications coordinators we've ever met.)

Their workspace is a study in contrast: Khaki's gorgeous Golden Retriever, Scout, lumbers around the business office while Mouser-the-cat rests on her "Mouse Pad" next to a work in progress. The cat's laid-back charm belies the intensity of the work happening all around.

XCOR Aerospace's employee roster reads like a who's who of rocket engineering. We were treated to an engine igniter demonstration built to a quarter of its original size. The team was testing different fuel combinations. (They flattered us by turning design sheets over to hide their secrets.) Doug Jones, chief test engineer and co-founder explained what we were seeing: "This is an itty, bitty rocket engine with a lot of ambition."  

The company's ultimate goal is to make  suborbital and orbital space travel a safe, relatively affordable reality for all of us. And this is the team to do it. The alarmingly brilliant-yet-humble group wowed us with their progress. "Look, if we stopped doing things because they seem impossible, we'd never get anything done," says Jeff Greason, president. "We were tired of people saying, 'I'm going to do this.' Instead, we're showing people how to do it," says Aleta Jackson, co-founder and manager.

The crew entertains investors and customers from across the globe. And they're encouraging future scientists, engineers and technologically savvy experts through their support of the non-profit group,  Teachers In Space.  

We were happy they chose us for their public appearance apparel. "Your shirts make quite an impression," Aleta reports. We'll do whatever we can to help this group, ahem, take off.