JJ,
I know you’re just having fun, but I’m worried someone reading your comments might walk away with a misimpression of cross-country soaring.
I know where some alternate landing sites are and keep one within glide all the time. And I keep my airspeed in the green, stay away from thunderstorms and avoid hitting mountains. So, except for the tooth decay issue, my cross-country flights are no more dangerous than local soaring.
Now, flying around in the back of an F-4 or B-52 like you used to do, that’s a whole different story.
Mike Koerner