National Ride The Wind Day

National Ride The Wind Day is a holiday that falls on August 23rd and is a day that commemorates the anniversary of the first human-powered flight to win the Kremer prize. It's a day on which people are encouraged to literally and figuratively ride the wind. So even if you're not all that keen on celebrating this day with a flight, you can still celebrate by taking on a carefree attitude and allowing the wind to blow you whichever way it might.

Ride The Wind Day was created in order to commemorate the anniversary of the first flight that was powered by humans to be awarded with the Kremer prize. It was on the 23rd of August in 1977 that the first ever course in a figure-eight was flown by the Gossamer Condor 2. This had been set out by the Royal Aeronautical Society. This incident took place in California at the Minter Field in Shafter. The aircraft traveled a distance of 2,162 meters, slowly cruising at a speed of 11 mph.

Dr Paul B MacCready built the Gossamer Condor 2. The pilot was hang-glider pilot and amateur cyclist, Bryan Allen. Today, you can find this aircraft at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, if you are interested in seeing what it looks like.