As spring weather improved in 1905, the Wright brothers returned to the flying field every day, put up a hangar, and prepared a new machine. Steering was the last great riddle, and by testing ways to balance the control surfaces—the elevators, twin rudders, and wing warping—they found how to place full command of the flyer in the hands and hips of a pilot. By mid-October, they had perfected the machine and were ready to end test flying, secure a patent, and market their invention. In 1904, their total time in the air was 49 minutes over 106 flights; in 1905, it was 262 minutes over 50 flights. Nine years of trial and error, discouragement and hope, risk to life and limb, and brilliant engineering effort culminated in the air over this Ohio cow pasture. On October 5, 1905, Wilbur amazed a small crowd of guests and passersby with a 40-minute, 24-mile flight, circling the field 29 times before landing only when he ran out of gas.