Well, we made it to Dayton Wright Brothers Airport and received a terrific reception from the Wright B Flyer Museum and the folks at Commander Aero. We were met with warm handshakes by all and a genuine interest in the flight that continues to be humbling.
Weather prolonged our stay in Clinton County the day before, while we waited for a band of thunderstorms that bloomed like some kind of viral rash fueled by the heat of the day. The winds picked up, and we tied the Cubs down fully expecting to get doused by rain. The storms circled around Wilmington and as the afternoon wore on, we watched the blotch of weather on radar that lay across our route to MorningStar North Airport in Preble County slowly shrink in size. We saw an opportunity to make a dash to Preble County and waved goodbye to our new friend Bob and his giant German Shepherd Buddy at Clinton County. As the Cubs launched northwest, I could feel the air cooling enroute and it was getting dark when we arrived at Morningstar North. Mike was there to meet us along with Peggy and Jerry Chabrian, caretakers of one of the nicest grass airfields I’ve ever seen and headquarters to Women in Aviation International.
There were a few surprises in store for us at Dayton–a local aviation photographer, Michael Williams presented us with a custom painting he created of the Cubs flying along our route in Ohio, and the museum fired up their custom Wright B Flyer and took us for a short flight over Runway 02. Ron and I each flew in the right seat and I intend to tell everyone I know that I now have 12 seconds of stick time in a Wright B. They presented a certificate of flight to each of us– complete with a toothpick to remove any bugs. You can’t fly in the Wright B without smiling. Thanks to all! Ron and are grateful beyond words.
