{"id":46054,"date":"2016-02-22T00:10:34","date_gmt":"2016-02-22T08:10:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.todayifoundout.com\/?p=46054"},"modified":"2016-02-21T22:28:57","modified_gmt":"2016-02-22T06:28:57","slug":"dustbin-of-history-aero-nuts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.todayifoundout.com\/index.php\/2016\/02\/dustbin-of-history-aero-nuts\/","title":{"rendered":"Dustbin of History: Aero-Nuts"},"content":{"rendered":"
The following is an article from Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

\"crossing-the-channel\"<\/a>From our \u201cDustbin of History\u201d files, here\u2019s the harrowing tale of a little-known milestone in aviation history.<\/em><\/p>\n

LOADED <\/strong><\/p>\n

It was January 7, 1785, and two men were preparing for the first ever balloon crossing of the English Channel. The one who financed the adventure was John Jeffries, a well-to-do American doctor. The one with the aviation skills was Frenchman Jean-Pierre Blanchard, one of the innovators of ballooning\u2014which at that point had only been around for two years. A crowd gathered near the Dover cliffs to watch them lift off for France. At 1:00 p.m., Blanchard and Jeffries embarked on their 21-mile journey. But there was one problem: They were too heavy.<\/p>\n

They were carrying 30 pounds of ballast weights (used to keep the balloon steady), plus steering gear, personal items, a bag of mail to be delivered in France, and scientific equipment. And then there were the four \u201cwings.\u201d Made out of silk and extending from the carriage, they served no real purpose except to make the balloon look like a bird.<\/p>\n

CHANNEL SURFING <\/strong><\/p>\n

Only a few miles into the crossing, it was apparent that the balloon was flying too low. The Channel loomed close, and neither man could swim. Their only option: lose some weight.<\/p>\n

First went the ballast bags, but the balloon didn\u2019t rise. As the carriage skimmed 20 or so feet above the surface, Blanchard unhooked the wings and let them drop into the water. The men argued over what to throw off next, finally deciding on the bag of mail. But the balloon was still flying too low. Then went the bottle of brandy they were saving for the landing. Still too low. Then, much to Jeffries\u2019 dismay, went his thermometer, his barometer, and his telescope. Still too low.<\/p>\n

So Blanchard stripped off his clothes\u2014his heavy overcoat, his pants and shirt, then everything else, and he urged Jeffries to do the same. But the doctor was too dignified to land in France completely naked, and only stripped down to his undergarments. And they were still dangerously close to the water.<\/p>\n

I\u2019M AMERICAN, AND EUROPEAN <\/strong><\/p>\n

Jeffries had an idea: They\u2019d had a lot to drink with breakfast, and neither had gone to the bathroom before they left. \u201cWe were able to obtain, I verily believe, between five and six pounds of urine,\u201d Jeffries later wrote, \u201cwhich circumstance, however trivial or ludicrous it may seem, I have reason to believe, was of real utility to us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Perhaps he was right\u2014peeing into the Channel may have saved them from crashing into the Channel, but the fact remained that they were still flying too low. When the bottom of the carriage actually touched the water, Jeffries panicked and started climbing up the ropes. Blanchard yelled for him to come down; he was making it even more unstable. Jeffries climbed down; the two men put on their cork life jackets. They braced for impact.<\/p>\n

Then, just as they saw the French coast ahead in the distance, a sudden updraft pushed the balloon up into the January sky. \u201cFrom the height which we were now at,\u201d recalled Jeffries, \u201cand from the loss of our clothes, we were almost benumbed with cold.\u201d<\/p>\n

But the cold was the least of their troubles\u2014all of Blanchard\u2019s steering equipment and anchors had been thrown overboard, leaving him no way to control the craft. They could only watch in horror as the balloon got caught in a downdraft and headed straight for Fel-mores Forest. Luckily, just above the canopy, they leveled out and Jeffries was able to grab hold of the top of a tall tree and slow them down. The carriage unceremoniously flopped into a clearing, with the silk balloon still caught in the branches. Some farmers gave them clothes and a ride to the town of Calais, where another crowd had gathered to witness the historic landing.<\/p>\n

EPILOGUE <\/strong><\/p>\n