Where were you when the Challenger blew up?

[Thor]

Was in a music shop looking for Black Sabbath probably and talking to a hot brunette I knew, we watched it live on the TV in the shop. She hasn't aged a day in my mind...nor has the failed launch.

 

[bkflyer]

Bowling after work in Manheim. They put it up on all the scoreboards.

 

[Cozy439]

Senior yr, IU Bloomington. Watched it during lunch back at the house.

 

[Hohn]

Watched it live on TV.

So did we, in the school library. I was in 5th grade.

 

[1911ly]

I was at the bank.. A lady came in and and asked if any of us had heard about the Challenger Exploding. I went home and watched the rest unfold on TV. Sad day.

 

[Michigan Slim]

^ this.

Senior year.

 

[Knight Rider]

Watching live in dorm at IU, freshman year.

 

[HKUSP]

Sitting in Sixth grade class watching it. I remember where I was when Columbia disintegrated on reentry too.

Pieces of both of them are on display at Kennedy Space Center. It's chilling to stand there and look at them.

 

[Hoosier Carry]

Watch it, whipper snapper! My children are younger than you

I’m not old but I’m getting closer to those uncomfortable stories you old guys tell about the doctor visits.

 

[Kutnupe14]

3rd grade, in the library, watching it blow up.

 

[gregkl]

Wow, most of you make me feel really old. I was a professional salesman en route to a customer in Maryland. When I arrived at the store, they told me what happened and I saw the replay on their TV.

 

[igotdiesel2]

I was a Freshman in HS. My Mom was taking me back to school from the dentist. We heard what happened on the radio and I begged my Mom to take me home so I could watch the news. A day in history I will always remember.

Columbia: A buddy of mine called me to see if I was watching it on TV. It was a Saturday afternoon if I recall, I had been sleeping after plowing snow for almost 24 hours. -Jason

 

[actaeon277]

Great Lakes Naval Training Command.
Electronics Tech "A" school Barracks.
3rd Platoon.
Myself and another E-3 (Seaman) were having a competition trying to see who could ride a floor buffer the longest.
Another E-3 (a joker) came in and said "The Space Shuttle just blew up."
I turned to him and said, "That's the worst F'n joke I've ever heard. Get the F out of here."
"No really. It really blew up.", he replied.
(yes, I remember that exchange pretty well).
So we followed him to his room where the closest TV was. And there it was on replay. The explosion. The bios of the crew. The families.

 

[igotdiesel2]

Great Lakes Naval Training Command.
Electronics Tech "A" school Barracks.
3rd Platoon.
Myself and another E-3 (Seaman) were having a competition trying to see who could ride a floor buffer the longest.
Another E-3 (a joker) and said "The Space Shuttle just blew up."
I turned to him and said, "That's the worst F'n joke I've ever heard. Get the F out of here."
"No really. It really blew up.", he replied.
(yes, I remember that exchange pretty well).
So we followed him to his room where the closest TV was. And there it was on replay. The explosion. The bios of the crew. The families.

I would like to point out 7 days earlier, an airplane out of Lockerbie Scotland blew up and didn't get as good coverage.
I figure, probably because the Challenger blew up in front of a national audience. Those that didn't see it happen, saw it happen on replay very soon thereafter.
Airplane explosions are rarely on camera.

If you are referring to Pan Am Flight 103 that was in Dec. of 1988. That is the only Lockerbie plane crash I know of. -Jason

 

[BigBoxaJunk]

I was in my last year of college, and I was either studying, in class, or at my job, and I didn't even know that it had happened until near the end of the day. The part I remember is getting home, and the neighbors were getting into their car as I was getting out of mine and I said "Hi" and they asked me if I'd heard about it.

Hard to imagine today, something like that happening and not knowing about it until hours later.

Three years later I was working at Cape Canaveral and saw two shuttles go up. One of the launches I was able to watch with a group of space center engineers about a mile away from the pad and it was one of the most incredible things I've ever seen. I still have my paper NASA Security "badge" in the clear plastic holder.

 

[ChristianPatriot]

3rd grade, in the library, watching it blow up.

Not sure why I pictured you as older....

 

[actaeon277]

If you are referring to Pan Am Flight 103 that was in Dec. of 1988. That is the only Lockerbie plane crash I know of. -Jason

Dang.
I stand corrected.
I'm old.
I remember where I was.
I messed up on the Scotland bombing.

 

[igotdiesel2]

Dang.
I stand corrected.
I'm old.
I remember where I was.
I messed up on the Scotland bombing.

I wasn't trying to be jerk, I just wondered if their was another one over Scotland. I just remember the month and year of PA103 I was a senior in HS. ANYTHING that happened in the first quarter of '86 was shadowed by the Challenger. -Jaason

 

[igotdiesel2]

Not sure why I pictured you as older....

I thought the same thing. I do like reading these, it shows everyone's age. And the lives they were living at that time in history. -Jason

 

[actaeon277]

I wasn't trying to be jerk, I just wondered if their was another one over Scotland. I just remember the month and year of PA103 I was a senior in HS. ANYTHING that happened in the first quarter of '86 was shadowed by the Challenger. -Jaason

No problem.
I think I just misremembered the Scotland event.
It wasn't on TV, so it wasn't burned in.
I think I mainly remember it because of the link to Libya. In my days, Libya was a big part of terrorism.