New The Grandnephew Of Naval Hero Commodore Oliver Opportunity Perry Was The 1St To Wing Across Country, Using Ifr (I Follow Rails) To Wing His Wright Brothers Model Ex Pusher Biplane. October - November 1911 (Thanks Steve!)

The publisher William Randolph Hearst had offered a US$50,000 prize to the showtime aviator to wing coast to coast, inwards either direction, inwards less than thirty days from laid out to finish.

In June 1911, Calbraith Perry Rodgers, 32 yr old old football game star, yachtsman, auto racer, in addition to grandson of Oliver Perry (hero of the Battle of Lake Erie) a risk-taking form of sportsman, was visiting his cousin John, a naval aviator, who since March was studying at the Wright Company manufacturing flora in addition to tending flying schoolhouse inwards Dayton, Ohio.

Baca Juga

Rodgers became interested inwards aviation, took nearly ninety minutes of educational activity from Orville Wright, became the showtime someone citizen to purchase a Wright airplane, a Wright Model B modified in addition to called the Model EX in addition to inwards June 1911 earlier soloing, in addition to had won an $11,000 air endurance prize inwards a challenger inwards August.

Since the bird would require a considerable back upward crew, Rodgers persuaded J. Ogden Armour, of meatpacking fame, to sponsor the attempt, in addition to inwards supply named the story afterwards Armour's novel grape soft quaff Vin Fiz.

The back upward squad rode on a three-car develop called the Vin Fiz Special, in addition to included Charlie Taylor, the Wright brothers' wheel store in addition to aircraft mechanic.

The flying began at 4:30 pm, September 17, 1911, when Rodgers took off from the Sheepshead Bay Racetrack inwards Brooklyn, New York flying without instruments or navigational aids or maps, sure enough no heater or other beast comforts, at a breathtaking (and time-consuming) 45 to 55 miles per hour.

To avoid the Rocky Mountains, he took a southerly route, flying through the Midwest until reaching Texas.

Although the excogitation called for a large issue of stops along the way, inwards the halt in that place were 75, including xvi crashes, in addition to Rodgers was injured several times. Taylor in addition to the squad of mechanics rebuilt the Vin Fiz Flyer when necessary, in addition to alone a few pieces of the master copy story genuinely made the entire trip.

On Nov 5, having missed the prize deadline yesteryear xix days, Rodgers landed inwards Pasadena, California, inwards front end of a crowd of 20,000. On the twelfth he took off for Long Beach, California, simply crashed at Compton, alongside a encephalon concussion in addition to a spinal twist. He was hospitalized for 3 weeks. Finally, on Dec 10 he landed on the beach, in addition to taxied the Flyer into the Pacific Ocean, completing the unprecedented journeying of over 4,000 statute miles (6,400 km). Actual flying fourth dimension totalled nether 84 hours.

In 1986 the Vin Fiz flying was re-enacted inwards a replica to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the master copy journey.