Hearst Transcontinental Prize
From Infogalactic: the planetary knowledge core
The Hearst prize was a US$50,000 aviation prize offered by publisher William Randolph Hearst in 1910 to the first aviator to fly coast to coast across the United States, in either direction, in fewer than 30 days from start to finish.
History
James J. Ward attempted to win the prize but failed.[1] The prize expired in November 1911 with no winner. Calbraith Perry Rodgers tried to win it, having started too late, but did complete the flight in 49 days, including several crash landings and maintenance delays.[2] Another notable contender was Robert George Fowler.