Episode 515: Sodas In Spaaaaace!

Show Notes Episode 515: Sodas In Spaaaaace! This week Host Dave Bledsoe got liquored up on orange flavored Metamucil and vodka and got kicked out of a retirement village bingo game. (Again) On the show this week we head back to 1985 when the Cola Wars took off for low orbit because Coke and Pepsi had money to burn. Along the way we learn that Dave never stood a chance at NASA. (They didn’t make space suits in 5XL) Then we dive right into what the first astronauts ate in space. (Goo, they ate goo.) Then we head back down to the Earth where a Coca Cola executive had an idea that was out of this world, and how it turned into yet another vicious skirmish in the long running and increasingly bitter “cola wars”. We learn how Coke spent a quarter of a million dollars and Pepsi opened their medicine cabinet.  Finally we discover why sodas crashed and burned like a solid rocket booster in chilly weather.  (Too soon?). Our Sponsor this week is Tap Water, if you’re thirsty get some.  We open the show with Coke in space and close with astronaut Chris Hadfield singing out sitting in a tin can. Show Theme: Hypnostate Prelude to Common Sense The Show on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/whatthehellpodcast.bsky.social The Show on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthehellpodcast/ The Show on Youtube:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjxP5ywpZ-O7qu_MFkLXQUQ The Show on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatthehellwereyouthinkingpod/ Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/kHmmrjptrq Our Website: https://www.whatthehellpodcast.com Patreon:  https://www.patreon.com/Whatthehellpodcast The Show Line: 347 687 9601 Closing Music: https://youtu.be/AfEng898uRA?si=JGyjlv-GQ_D-4Q4Z Buy Our Stuff: https://www.seltzerkings.com/shop Citations Needed: Fallout from the Unauthorized Gemini III Space Sandwich https://www.nasa.gov/history/fallout-from-the-unauthorized-gemini-iii-space-sandwich/ How would fizzy drinks behave in space? https://www.sciencefocus.com/science/how-would-fizzy-drinks-behave-in-space The First Soda in Space: When NASA Got Caught Up in the Cola Wars https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/29/science/coke-pepsi-nasa-space-shuttle.html?unlocked_article_code=1.6E8.TPFd.7B7gLuAuHrDA&smid=url-share 'Space cola wars' at 35: When Coca-Cola, Pepsi tested soda in space https://www.collectspace.com/news/news-081120a-space-cola-wars-35-years.html Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices