Flymall / Kraemer Aviation February 2024 Wheels & Wings Newsletter

Welcome to the Kraemer Aviation/Flymall.org Wheels & Wings Newsletter

You can view past newsletters here. This month we’re featuring Glenn Curtiss, the Glenn Curtiss Museum, and the town of Hammondsport in the Finger Lakes area. Harry was at the Glenn Curtiss Museum earlier this month for their annual event Winter Cycle Therapy event.

Due to multiple snow storms in the Finger Lakes and Harrisburg PA areas, they have to drive up for the Winter Cycle Therapy event. Once north of Harrisburg, it is a very scenic drive.

Interested in living at an airport?  Visit our Aviation Real Estate page here. You can view price data for airport property in our Market Watch section of the Flymall. Here is the data for all airport property. You can refine the search by “state” simply by searching for the desired state under “Model”.

Want to have your business highlighted on the Flymall???  We offer inexpensive rates to have your business featured on our Wheels & Wings page.  Contact us for more info.

History Trivia: On Friday, February 16, Chrissie, Jon, & Harry visited the historic Depot Park in Hammondsport. The population is only 753. The land that makes up Hammondsport was purchased by Captain John Shethar in 1796. Years later the land was owned by Lazarus Hammond and it became known as Hammond’s Port and that name would eventually be changed to Hammondsport.

They also visited an area called Kingsley Flats where in 1908, John Newton Williams demonstrated rotary wing test rigs. Click on the image below for a larger view. The engine in Williams’ machine was built by Glenn Hammond Curtiss.

A favorite place to eat in the historic village of Hammondsport, is Burgers & Beer of Hammondsport.

The town of Hammondsport is what you would expect for a small town with rich history, lots of historic buildings.

The Finger Lakes region has a deep history in wine making. And to try some of the locally made wine, they visited Bully Hill Vineyards that sits on a hill on the west side of Keuka Lake with fantastic views of the lake. The history of wine making in the Finger Lakes dates back to the 1800s. Click here for an article on how wine making began in the Finger Lakes.

If you enjoy history we have a new aviation history fact each day at the bottom of our webpages.  Some days there may be more than one, just refresh the page.  And if you like Beatles history, checkout our Events Calendar and select the Beatles category.  This is a work in progress, we’re building the most comprehensive calendar of important dates in Beatle history.  For those that like to stick with current news, we have an aviation news ticker on our home page.  This is updated daily to show the current aviation news.

Achievements & Special Recognition: Earlier this month, Kelly passed her Instrument Flight Instructor checkride with Harry. This was their third checkride together. Kelly is an excellent instructor and we wish her a lot of success in her aviation career.

Instructors, what to highlight your students first solo or other achievement here?  Just send us a short write-up and a picture or two and we’ll post it here for you.  Click here for our contact info.

Aviation/Aviators in the news: After Glenn Curtiss made a name for himself building motorcycles and setting land speed records, he became famous for his aircraft designs and his aircraft engines. Among the many other aircraft on display in the Glenn Curtiss Museum, is a beautiful Seagull Curtiss Model 18 (pictured right). The Seagull Curtiss Model 18 was part of the Curtiss Models F series of pre WWI and post WWI flying boats. Widely produced, Model Fs saw service with the United States Navy under the designations C-2 through C-5, later reclassified to AB-2 through AB-5. Model Fs built from 1918 featured a revised, unequal-span wing that incorporated the ailerons into the upper wing and sponsons on the sides of the hull to improve the aircraft’s handling in water. These were known as the Model MF (for Modernised-F), and years later as the Seagull in the postwar civil market.

The aviation section of the Flymall is full of aviation news, training info, and much more for the aviator.

Air show season is always just around the corner.  Want to travel to air shows in your own aircraft?  Visit our used aircraft page on the Flymall to view our inventory.

Car/Motorcycle Show News:   The Laytonsville Cruise In is the place to be on a Friday night in Montgomery County.  The Laytonsville Cruise In was started by Harry in 2010. It has become one of the most popular cruise ins in the area. You can follow Harry on Facebook for daily updates during the many shows and events he attends. Click here for the latest news and information for the Laytonsville Cruise In.

Below are some pictures from the Winter Cycle Therapy 2024 at the Glenn Curtiss Museum.

Saturday, February 17 was the opening day for the 2024 Winter Cycle Therapy at the Glenn Curtiss Museum.

As always, the motorcycles are the stars of the show. This museum probably has one of the largest collections of Glenn Curtiss motorcycles. Glenn Curtiss started developing motorcycle engines in 1902. The first one was a single-cylinder model generating 3 horsepower. And by 1903, he developed a 8-horsepower V-Twin engine.

And by 1907, Glenn Curtiss was setting land speed records on his legendary V-8 motorcycle. Glenn Curtiss soon became known as the fastest man in the world.

There were a lot of nice cars/trucks on display at the Winter Cycle Therapy event. One of Harry’s favorites was this 1919 Model 913 Franklin 4 Door Sedan. The Franklin Automobile Company was a marketer of automobiles in the United States between 1902 and 1934 in Syracuse, New York. Of the 150,000 Franklins manufactured, approximately 3,700 remain. Herbert H. Franklin, the founder, began his career in the metal die casting business before establishing his automobile enterprise. The two major characteristics of their automobiles were their air-cooled engines and in the early years their lightness and responsiveness when compared with other luxury cars.

The Glenn Curtiss Museum has an awesome collection of engines on display.

If you appreciate the craftsmanship that goes in to making wood propellers, the Glenn Curtiss Museum has many propellers to enjoy.

Speaking of propellers, here is a 1929 Curtiss-Wright propeller used on the Lockheed Constellation that was on display at the Glenn Curtiss Museum last year.

Before Glenn Curtiss was making a name for himself building and racing motorcycles, he was racing bicycles. And the Glenn Curtiss Museum has a very nice collection of early bicycles. Bicycles are what started his career, Curtiss began his career as a Western Union bicycle messenger, a bicycle racer, and bicycle-shop owner.

The Glenn Curtiss Museum also has an awesome collection of early industrial equipment on display seen here in these photos along with some miscellaneous pictures from the 024 Winter Cycle Therapy event.

Our Events Calendar has the most current info regarding local and national car shows, air shows, and more.  With nearly 30 categories, there is something for everyone.  The Day Tripper section of the Flymall has dozens of day trip ideas and interesting places to visit.  Check it out here.

Click here for the Glenn Curtiss Museum page in the Day Tripper section of the Flymall. There you can see pictures from past events including their Hammondsport Wings & Wheels event held each September.

Earlier this month, Pat, Jett, Ace, & Harry attended the monthly Cars, Bikes, & Coffee at District Harley Davidson. Jett has made a lot of friends there over the years. She knows her way around the showroom and knows where the food is kept.

Barn Finds/Hangar Finds:  Need an appraisal on your barn find?  Visit our Appraisal Page for information on our appraisals. We have made some additions to our appraisal page, you can now view sample appraisals.

Visit our online store to search for hard to find car parts, aircraft parts, and much more.  You can pay online in our secure store, just click on the Store button on our home page.

Visit the Test Drive section of the Flymall for reviews on automobiles, aircraft, motorcycles, and more. Read about it before you buy it.  You can also research price info on a wide variety of vehicles, collectibles, and more in the Market Watch section of the Flymall. 

If you’re restoring a fabric aircraft, Ira Walker of Walker Aviation is your resource.  Visit his page on the Flymall by clicking here. 

CFI / DPE Notes:  Visit Harry’s Practical Test page for information on his checkrides.  You will also find useful information there to help you prepare for your checkride.  You can also visit Harry’s Lesson Plan section of the Flymall for other flight training information.  Visit our Flight Training page for information on our aviation training classes.

Earlier this month, Niel passed his private pilot practical test with Harry. He did an outstanding job. When Niel is not flying, he is riding motorcycles and participating in triathlons.

Here’s Niel performing slow flight hand free.

Weather in the news: On February 22, the Mid-Atlantic region had several lines of heavy thunderstorms move through the area. This is very unusual for this time of the year in the area of the country.

And on February 28, we saw another line a storms move through the area. Both events were very unusual for February. The February 28 system produced 11 tornadoes in Chicago. This was the most ever in a single day for the month of February.

Three Wheel Association (TWA) & 3-Wheelers.com:  Harry started the Three Wheel Association in 2013 to promote/support the industry of three wheel vehicles of all types. Visit the Three Wheel Association page on the Flymall for more info on the association. Our sister site, 3-Wheelers.com has over 1,000 vehicles listed in the A to Z list. 3-Wheelers.com is the foremost reference for all types of 3 wheel vehicles, from motorcycles, bicycles, military vehicles, tractors, amphibious vehicles, and more.

The Glenn Curtiss Museum always has a few 3 wheelers on display. Here’s a favorite, a Glenn Curtiss Motorcycle with a wicker sidecar. Click here to see some of the 3 wheelers on display from past events at the museum.

Want a reproduction vintage 3 wheeler.  Walker Aviation can scratch built from pictures or drawings.  Visit his page on the Flymall.  

Prototypes: In 1904, Curtiss became a supplier of engines for the California “aeronaut” Tom Baldwin, which is who inspired Curtiss to pursue aviation. In that same year, Baldwin’s California Arrow, powered by a Curtiss 9 HP V-twin motorcycle engine, became the first successful dirigible in America. In 1907, Alexander Graham Bell invited Curtiss to develop a suitable engine for heavier-than-air flight experimentation. Bell regarded Curtiss as “the greatest motor expert in the country” and invited Curtiss to join his Aerial Experiment Association (AEA).

Pictured below is Harry at the controls of the Goodyear Blimp. This picture was taken in the late 1980s or early 1990s at the Martin State Airport in Middle River Maryland. Harry is on the right side of the picture or the left side of the blimp. And “Yes” he did fly it and it is logged in his logbook.

Nautical Notes: Chrissie, Jon, & Harry also visited the Finger Lakes Boating Museum housed in the  former Taylor Wine Company building. Click here to tour the museum via Harry’s pictures on Flickr.

The Finger Lakes Boating Museum has multiple buildings full of boats on display. Here’s a tour of them from our February 2024 visit.

We mentioned earlier that the Finger Lakes Boating Museum is housed in an old winery. And no winery is complete without a wine cellar. Click here for pictures of the wine cellar in the museum’s main building.

There is a rich history in wooden boats and wood boat making in the Finger Lakes. The Glenn Curtiss Museum had a few nice wooden boats on display. Many of the wooden boats from the Curtiss Museum have been moved to the Finger Lakes Boating Museum.

Here’s a 1905 Fay and Bowen 2.5 horsepower engine on display at the Finger Lakes Boating Museum. It’s a work of art. Click here to view the many engines on display at the museum.

Riding The Rails: Did you know that the Finger Lakes region has it’s own railroad? It’s called the Finger Lakes Railway. The Finger Lakes Railway started business in 1995 and has over 150 miles of track in Finger Lakes region including Ontario, Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Yates, and Schuyler.

Native American Indian Transportation: Since we’re featuring the Finger Lakes region, here’s some interesting facts about the area courtesy of the Best Western of Hammondsport. The Iroquois Indians were some of the last native American Indians to live in the Finger lakes region. The Iroquois Indians used canoes for transportation on the Finger Lakes. Pictured here is an Iroquois Indian and his canoe.

Click here for a Flymall Newsletter that includes the Pesse canoe, which may be the oldest known canoe. The Pesse canoe doesn’t look as sleek as our modern canoe.

Animals in the headlines: We’re happy to report, that Jett & Ace are getting along good together.

We close this newsletter with these words: Look for opportunities to make people feel important.