Flat Earth Believer Builds His Own Rocket To Launch California Governor Bid

If you add the word “mad” before your name, maybe people should start taking you seriously, at least the part about you being at least slightly off the hook. But then again, maybe not. If you are “Mad” Mike Hughes, though, it gets really complicated.

A 61-year-old limo driver, Hughes is a self-avowed disbeliever in science and believes, like rapper BoB, that Earth is flat. But that hasn’t stopped the self-taught rocket engineer from building a rocket — his third, at the very least — a manned aircraft that he will launch himself in Saturday, Nov. 25.

Following his jump, Hughes said he's going to announce his plans to run for governor of California, NBC News reported.

Hughes’ website is not short on accolades to him: “Guiness world record daredevil,” “the world’s most famous limousine driver,” “the most innovative man in NASCAR history,” and of course, “the only man in history to design, build, and launch himself in a rocket.”

He told the Associated Press on Monday that other than a few years and salvage parts from his garage, building the steam-powered rocket cost him $20,000, which included the paint to it make it look shiny and a ramp he fashioned out of a motor home. The Saturday flight will be the homemade rocket’s first test, during which Hughes will attempt to fly over Amboy, a ghost town in California’s Mojave Desert, AP reported.

Some might feel at least a little scared of flying to a height of 1,800 feet at the speed of about 500 miles an hour in a rocket that is made in someone’s backyard. And Hughes is too, in his own way.

“If you’re not scared to death, you’re an idiot. It’s scary as hell, but none of us are getting out of this world alive. I like to do extraordinary things that no one else can do, and no one in the history of mankind has designed, built and launched himself in his own rocket,” he said.

But if he doesn’t believe in science or the incontrovertible fact that Earth is actually round (it is not a perfect sphere, it is more like an orange), then how does he still build his rockets?

Hughes explained: “I don’t believe in science. I know about aerodynamics and fluid dynamics and how things move through the air, about the certain size of rocket nozzles, and thrust. But that’s not science, that’s just a formula. There’s no difference between science and science fiction.”

However, maybe he should pay some attention to science, especially if he means to carry out his plan, further down the road, to build himself a rocket to go into space and see for himself the shape of our planet. Of course, there is also the fact that the last time Hughes strapped into a self-built rocket and flew 1,374 feet, the G-shock of the landing knocked him out for three days. And he really should use better parachutes.

Come Saturday morning, the daredevil will first boil 60-70 gallons of water to produce enough steam for his rocket flight, which will take place in the afternoon. He will deploy two parachutes once he reaches his chosen height and distance, and then come back down to Earth. The event is closed to the public due to safety concerns, but according to his website, “will be available on internet PPV.”