have you lost it?

[danstrom]

I got to go out flying for the first time in two months on Saturday -- the Pacific Northwest got 24.5" of rain in October-November-December -- and Mount Rainier National Park got 18" in twenty-four hours! --
and took my wife's friend Kelli along. (My wife was running some errands and getting ready to go to the opera with my sister. <shudder>)

Kelli was SO! EXCITED! to go up in a small plane.
I was startled by the contrast. I have said before that while I was doing my training, I was so busy learning this or that or practicing this or that or running the nav/com or answering the incessant pilotage question "so, where are we?", that there were only a few times that I could look out the window and say, "SIGH! this is GREAT!"
but now I feel rather inured to the whole thing... I don't know, like, what? having someone give you heroin while you're in a coma, so that when you wake up you're addicted, but you missed out on all the fun of getting to that state?


so...
being old hands at this, do you all still feel the joy? that fundamental thrill when the wheels stop turning and the ground drops away and the hangars start getting smaller?

Saturday I came away with the feeling that I should try to get back to "first principles" and strive to be more exuberant, despite the workload that is the reality of being a pilot.

[John Slade]

do you all still feel the joy?

I've been doing it, one way or the other, for over 30 years. The joy just gets better every time.

[SteveWrightNZ]

Originally Posted by danstrom

Kelli was SO! EXCITED! to go up in a small plane.
I was startled by the contrast.

These chix are all different aren't they. Some are so-so about everything, where others are completely stoked. I kinda like the stoked type. I miss them. I want them back.

Originally Posted by danstrom

Saturday I came away with the feeling that I should try to get back to "first principles" and strive to be more exuberant, despite the workload that is the reality of being a pilot.

It is so good to hear you say that. I had a paradigm shift 13 years ago with the birth of my first child - someone said to me "ENJOY THIS - it will be gone soon, and it will never return, and you will miss it - get everything you can from it." It took me about a week to figure out what they meant, but after that I decided that I was going to extract maximum joy from everything.

Yes, I still enjoy flying. Sometimes there is lots to do - so much that you miss the moment, but I make it a priority to make sure I get my warm fuzzy from it - from anything really.

Make sure you have all the pleasure you can get from life - very quickly it changes from seeming very long and arduous, to "ewps, this thing actually DOES run out one day".

Every day a new thrill. (thats the plan anyway..)


S

[--D--]

Originally Posted by danstrom

... do you all still feel the joy?

Absolutely!

The next time you go up, pay close attention as you rotate... just as the wheels clear... when the wings dig in and you feel the aircraft "settle" into the air. It's magic, man... and if it doesn't leave a big ol' fat grin on your face then you're either not paying attention or you've just suffered a stroke!

Climb out, trim, take a few deep breaths, relax... and have yourself a good, long look around. There's some beautiful country beneath you up there in your neck of the woods. Enjoy the privilege of seeing it all from the left seat!

D

[SteveWrightNZ]

Originally Posted by --D--

..as you rotate... just as the wheels clear... when the wings dig in and you feel the aircraft "settle" into the air.

STOP IT! STOP IT! STOP IT!! SOMEONE MAKE HIM STOP!!!! /me weeps

S

[karoliina]

Well, I have now been flying for about three years. I started with LSA category planes and I am in the process of finishing my PPL now (to be eligible to fly the bigger planes). The thing is that I am getting more and more demanding all the time, somehow I naturally want challenges where I must improve myself and it seems to be a very expensive path. First I was fine with day-VFR-only. It didn't last too long like that. Then I wanted Night-VFR. Now Night-VFR is nothing, I have flown majority of my PPL school flights at night time in complete darkness. I am still not very good pilot in darkness, the landings are worse than on day, but still, my desires keep going. Now I also want IFR. And the list may not end there. Afther that comes ME and ATPL. Might have been cheaper to start directly with ATPL....

In fact, it seems that the the bank account will end way sooner than the list. Flying is a hobby where you can spend all your money, including those which were reserved for the airplane building project and for everything else. Propably most happy are those who can endlessly enjoy simple things like just getting into air to circle the runway of home airfield on a sunny day with a cheap slow machine and that are happy with that for the rest of their lives. I kind of envy those, would be easier financially and otherwise. But I can't help myself, somehow I just can't enjoy the same thing endlessly and I must move on forwards and it is very expensive and hard and very demanding. And well, my preferences don't remain stable even on planes it seems, unfortunately. Would be very easy if I could just go and buy all the Cozy materials, think nothing, be perfectly happy with that, and just do it and enjoy it for the rest of my life - and especially enjoy the endless sanding moments before it gets finished. It just appears that I can't do that (not think and enjoy the sanding and stop endlessly wanting more)... What if I would be one day SpaceShipTwo pilot, what then? I am pretty sure that I would be pretty soon start wanting to be SpaceShipThree pilot. The big question mark is that how can I cope with the thing that if a brick wall becomes before my endless hunger gets at least to some extent fulfilled. I may end being very disappointed in the end where the pilot of the bush plane on a sunny day is still happy and still flying the very same plane.

[Leon]

to make it short, i havent flown is almost 8 months now, today I just saw a quick report on a C210 dipping out from some ugly weather airport up above the clouds. the moment they showed the inside shot of the cockpit, as he climbs up above the 4000 ft cloud tops ..

PANG -- there it is again, that DESIRE

[Dennis Passey]

Karoliina, I think you should be happy... somewhere youve got to say you're satisfied..... with the airplane thing. The Cozy is the ultimate cure for the relative amount of cash. High performance airplane. Until then...We all love flying but....try to be happy with the MOMENT...even if its just an 'around the patch' moment.

[Erick]

karoliina, I understand what you mean about the seamingly endless funds needed to enjoy aviation from the left seat.. I had a dream and finally received my PPL about 6 years ago. Then after poking around the airfield in a rented $100 an hour spam can just didn't make sense to me. So I basically had to let my passion for flying flame out. I haven't even flown for 3 years but my love for airplanes never died and now I have started on this adventure of building my own.... Anyway just wanted to let you know that I understand your situation.

Erick
#1338

[Dennis Passey]

Erick- Thats my point of my last obtuse post- That is why we are building our 'non-spam can' cozies-are we not? Airline pilots, Jet fighter pilots, Crop dusting pilots are all building these Mark IV's and eze's because they got the Composite go-fast 'juice'.
If that isnt enough for you- you got to adjust your expectations.
WHEN ITS THIS GOOD AND IT ISNT ENOUGH...I dunno what to sayyyyyy....

[SteveWrightNZ]

Originally Posted by Dennis Passey

..be happy with the moment...even if its just 'around the patch'.....

hell yeah, Dennis is on the right track. Do it now, do it right, and breathe it all in. You're doing it right if you get three every time, but some days they go on and on.. who can complain ?

Bring it on.

S

[Dust]

I have no interest is boring holes in the sky, unless i can do it at the speeds i am aiming for, at the costs I am projecting

[John Slade]

I have no interest is boring holes in the sky

Don't knock it if you haven't tried it.

[jsturgis]

Dust: "I have no interest is boring holes in the sky.... "

Actually, a hole in the sky would be anything but boring!

[John Slade]

So true

It's these sideways comments that keep the forum interesting.