First period was three point touch and go and full stop on hard
surface with light winds down the R/W. Included systems
instruction.

2nd flight was three point landings on hard surface with 20 mph cross
wind and review of systems.

3rd flight was three point on gravel an dirt runway and review of
systems.

Signed off.

Big John,

Sounds like you forgot the wheel landings.

FAR 61.31(i)(1)(ii) requires it unless recommended against by the
manufacturer.

Or perhaps the last tailwheel checkout you gave fell under FAR 61.31(i)(2)

After several thousand hours of tailwheel time and several more under
'instruction given', I've seen some really sharp people show profiecncy in a
very short time. But even the best of them could not demonstrate normal and
crosswind takeoffs and landings, wheel landings and go-around procedures in
the times given by some of the posters on this board.

I'm always amazed at how many tailwheel pilots I've met who say they never
did wheel landings during their training. And of the vast majority who did
do them say, "but we only did one or two".

IMHO, beyond just what's required by the FAA, I feel we do a disservice to
ourselves and mostly to our tailwheel students if we don't do the best we
can at trying to 'mix things up' for them. They need to know, and feel what
it's like to land without enough right rudder, or what happens when it
starts to swerve on them, or applying to much brake to soon, or using
differential braking improperly, etc...

If the student never experiences these things with us on board, what are
their chances of a good out come when it happens in real life?

PJ

--
===============
Reply to:
pj at offairport dot com
===============
Here's to the duck that swam a lake and never lost a feather,
May sometime another year, we all be back together. J.J.W.
=========================================


"Big John" wrote in message
...
John

Last time I gave a TW check out.

Pilot had about 200 hours in 172 size A/C.

Boss had a 180 and said he coud fly if got check out.

First period was three point touch and go and full stop on hard
surface with light winds down the R/W. Included systems
instruction.

2nd flight was three point landings on hard surface with 20 mph cross
wind and review of systems.

3rd flight was three point on gravel an dirt runway and review of
systems.

Signed off.

Next week he borrow the bird from boss and took to Big Bend Park area
in south Texas, landing on a very primitative (out back) strip.

Only shot a couple of wheel landings so he could say he had shot
some.

Big John


On Sat, 6 Dec 2003 21:52:31 -0800, "John Harper"
wrote:

It took me far too long to do it, because I had an instructor who was
only
available for one week a month and whose technique, I realised late in
the game, was not really right for me. I'm writing the full story for my
web
page. So it took me over 20 hours. A more reasonable time would probably
be about 10 hours. IIRC I was paying about $70/hr wet for the Citabria,
plus the instructor who was about $35 until I started working with my
acro instructor who is rather more expensive (and a lot better).

John

"pix" wrote in message
. ..
How much an hour did you pay for the endorsement, John? And how many
hours
did it take you to do?

cheers...pix
who is thinking of getting a TW End.
"John Harper" wrote in message
news:1070762767.667218@sj-nntpcache-3...
Well, I finally got my tailwheel endorsement this week, and today was
my
first solo tailwheel flight. I took the Decathlon, since I need to
practice
my landings. With my previous instrcutor I was struggling, in the
Citabria,
but my acro instructor took care of me and within three lessons I did
ten
good wheel-landings straight off, so I guess he must be doing
something
right.

The Decathlon is a real fun plane to fly. It's great for acro, much
better
than the Grob I've been flying until recently. Landing is a bit of a
challenge, because the symmetrical wing means that lift drops off
very
quickly at lower speeds. It hardly floats at all, in fact if you
don't
keep
speed up on final it drops in like a brick.

Solo, it has pretty impressive performance. The take off run is over
before
you know it. On LVK's 5000' runway, I just about managed to get it to
pattern altitude before the opposite threshold, using a Vx (58 mph)
climb.

It's fun. It has been a struggle at times, especially when I was
trying
to
conquer wheel landings with my first instructor. But in the end it's
been
worth it.

John