"Bob Whelan" wrote in message
...
Jack wrote:
I read Mr. Greenwell's comments with the same respect I usually have
for his comments. I have to disagree with him on this one. Instructors
and some seasoned pilots told me what a man-killer a 1-35 was. With 27
total flight hours, I flew it, and I still wonder just what they were
referring to. I have 128 hours in a 1-35 and now own a PIK-20B...
ooooohhh... those nasty flaps! If I listened to every warning from
every misinformed person that doesn't like the subject glider, for
whatever reason, I would have never taken that first ride in a
Pratt-Reid so many years ago. Just because a guy or lady can be an
instructor doesn't mean he or she is an expert or even a good pilot.
Conversly, just because someone is a good pilot, doesn't mean that he
or she can be a good instructor. Stories about not having the elevator
hooked up and the like are very helpful, and they make us all more
careful pilots. Stories about the supposed bad behavior of a particular
sailplane model only damage our sport. I saw some recent, veiled
references to the 1-35 and it's supposed bad habits in Soaring Magazine
and they didn't print my reply. I think that's sad, especially for
someone that might really enjoy flying one, and for someone that has
one for sale. I have 1 flight of 2 hours in a Standard Cirrus. What a
nice ship it was... but then... I'm not in the habit of flying
hands-off...

Just my $.02 worth.

Jack Womack
Clovis, NM

Forgive me, but it's a long, dank, snowy, week at the end of winter...

IMHO Jack touches upon a fact of soaring life inescapable for all who fly
single seat sailplanes, namely: at some point everyone who does, must rely
upon their individual judgment that it is safe for them to fly a given
single-seat ship.

As obvious and fatuous a statement that may seem to many, it's true
whether or not an instructor agrees with him or her, and it has
implications for every single-seat gliderpilot. We live in a world in
which the routine application of individual judgment helps us survive (and
sometimes not). Attempting to abdicate such reality may (arguably) lead
to a safer life, but in the case of soaring a genuinely poorer one for
most. How many flights would not be made, how many ships not flown, how
many growth experiences delayed or never experienced, all because an
instructor's judgment conflicted with a seeker of knowledge?

Instructors are human, and - in my judgement! - come with human foibles,
biases, skills and judgment. For better or worse - and mostly the
better! - we're stuck with relying upon their judgments for much of our
early training. But there comes a day when if we are to continue to grow
as pilots, we inevitably begin to rely more on our own judgment. That's
just a fact...whether it's good or bad depends on how sound our own
judgment is.

As a pilot who transitioned to flaps-only single-seaters from a 1-26 and
who has never flown any other types since, I read & heard then when I
sought ship-specific knowledge (and continue to read & hear) all sorts of
misinformation in the glider world - not merely about flaps - too often
presented as fact rather than opinion or judgment. We live in an
imperfect world, and I expect that sort of misinformation will be around
lots longer than I, so the circle is complete: it's necessary to apply
one's own judgment to information presented. The better instructors will
help their students understand the need to apply judgment and develop the
skills and confidence to do so, while not blindly or uncritically passing
along misinformation.

Tangentially (but not unrelated, in my view), safety in soaring is
'merely' another side of having fun. Whatever you choose to do, whether
legal or of sound judgment or not, if you have an accident while doing it,
it will be less fun than if you didn't!

Ideas have consequences.

May all your ideas prove personally rewarding, your skills up to the
tasks' demands, and your judgment sound.

Most of all, have fun!!!

Regards,
Bob W.

Who says there isn't wisdom on RAS. Two great opinions in a row.
Congratulations Bob and Jack.

There are few bad gliders but there are many bad pilots, unfortunately.

Bill Daniels