Two days after they drew the thirteenth position, on August 10 United States Navy Lieutenants George W. D. Covell and R. S. Waggener took off from San Diego, California in their Tremaine Humming Bird named "Spirit of John Rodgers" to fly to Oakland; after flying into a fog bank, the aircraft crashed into an ocean cliff at Point Loma, killing both men. Lt. Leo Pawlikowski was the navigator originally announced; Pawlikowski had developed an abscess on his back which required surgery, and the doctors would not allow him to participate, so he was replaced with Waggener. William Davis, a Navy Lieutenant who would serve as the navigator for Art Goebel on "Woolaroc", was granted leave to participate in the race; he had planned to catch a ride with Covell and Waggener to San Francisco, but the leave was not granted in time, and he took a train from San Diego instead.