【Writer's Bullpen (2009)】

So,Writer's Bullpen (2009) you're a normal person who wants to go to space, but how will you choose to get there?

At the moment, your options are pretty limited: You could pay tens of millions of dollars to fly to the International Space Station aboard a Russian spaceship.

However, if you wait a few years, you might just be able to fly to space without totally breaking the bank thanks to spaceflight start-ups like Virgin Galactic and the Jeff Bezos-founded Blue Origin, which could both start flying customers in just a couple of years.

But what will those flights be like?

According to newly updated information published on Blue Origin's website, a flight aboard the company's New Shepard space system will be quite the rocket ride.

At launch from the company's site in Texas, people aboard the capsule will experience three times the force of gravity (3Gs) for about 2.5 minutes as the booster accelerates up to space.

There aren't actually pilots onboard the New Shepard, so, as a Blue Origin space tourist, you'll radio down to the company's mission control center, relaying "altitude, speed, time, and G force as the Earth retreats through your window," according to the website.

After those extreme minutes of G-force, the flight takes on a decidedly more calm tenor, allowing passengers to float through the cabin and take a look out of the New Shepard's large windows about 100 kilometers, about 62 miles, above the planet's surface.

"As the sky fades to black and you coast into space, a perfect silence will surround you," the website states.

"Your capsule will separate from the booster, and you’ll receive clearance to release your harness. You’ll marvel in weightless freedom and lose yourself in breathtaking views through the largest windows in spaceflight history."

But after those minutes of weightlessness end and passengers return to their seats, things get bumpy again.

During the New Shepard's descent, tourists will pull more than 5Gs of force, which puts a stress on the body but is relatively manageable, before coming in for a landing under parachutes back in Texas. For comparison, fighter pilots tend to withstand up to 8Gs of force.

Blue Origin isn't selling tickets to ride the New Shepard quite yet, and the company hasn't released details about the price of its seats.

Officials working with the organization have said they hope to start flying people on commercial flights by 2018, with crewed tests starting next year. If Virgin Galactic's ticket prices are any indication of Blue Origins, a suborbital rocket ride will run you about $250,000.

A serious spaceflight experience, with safety concerns to match

Blue Origin is also selling more than the spaceflight itself.

The experience of becoming a Blue Origin astronaut actually begins two days before the flight in the high desert of West Texas.

"Two days before your flight, you’ll travel with your guests to the New Shepard launch site in the beautiful high desert plains," Blue Origin states. "The area’s isolation lends clarity and focus as you prepare for the experience of a lifetime."

Once your head is clear, Blue Origin's experts will fill it with information about training and the specifics of the flight one day before you actually head to space with the company.

"Training includes mission and vehicle overviews, in-depth safety briefings, mission simulation, and instruction on your in-flight activities such as operational procedures, communications, and maneuvering in a weightless environment," the website reads.

And of course, after the flight, don't forget your photos and a few added perks.

"Your journey is hardly over at landing. We’ll help you capture and remember your experience with high definition videos, pictures, and mementos from your flight. You can share these with friends and family for a lifetime," the website states.

"You’ll also belong to an exclusive Blue Origin alumni network — a community of modern space pioneers. Make history with a suborbital flight, and you will receive early access to purchase tickets for our future orbital missions."

Spaceflight is inherently dangerous, and strapping regular people to the top of a rocket will likely never be considered a totally safe endeavor, but in spite of that fact, companies like Blue Origin are still plowing ahead with their commercial plans.

It's not yet clear exactly how much of a market there will be for these kinds of suborbital flights.

Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic has sold approximately 700 tickets to date, but they have yet to fly paying customers. Plus, the company also had a fatal accident in 2014, which killed one test pilot and seriously injured another during a test flight.