New student pilot apprehensions

I’m a new student glider pilot. *I have a grand total of 77 minutes
flying time in six flights. *The challenge of all of this has been
immensely satisfying.

I’m hoping yall can help me out with some “okay, that was a little
different than I expected” items.

First, when I am flying straight and level, the glider does not follow
a direct path, but rather is buffeted about a little bit. *The nose
will go a little left and right and also up and down and I have to
make small adjustments with the stick. *My instructor noticed I tend
to way over correct. *In my youth, I played those very primitive
flight simulators (Apple II SimLogic anyone?) in which the flight was
ice-smooth, just like an arrow, I suppose. *“Real life” isn’t like
that in gliders, apparently?

The tow rope keeps me up at night. *Aerotow freaks me out. *With my
inexperience in coordinated flight, I am terrified that these
oscillations I get into will upset the tow plane (and pilot). *I feel
I’m doing this left bank, right bank, over correct, left, right, left
right…. I know my instructor is back there. *This stuff does get
easier doesn’t it? *I mean 14 year-olds do this…. (I’m 33.) *My last
instructor (I’m in a gliding club in which we have a different
instructor each week), demonstrated boxing the wake and I was sure the
rope was going to break….but it didn’t, even going through the prop
wash of the tow plane.


Perhaps limiting your early instructional flights to early(ish)
morning and late(ish) evening would be beneficial, when the air is
really calm. That way your only learning to fly and learning to fly in
formation simultaneously, removing the added third element of learning
to fly turbulence which can and does really make even experienced/good
pilots feel/look sloppy on tow. It makes HUGE difference to fly tow
in dead air, and will allow you to focus on stick and rudder much more
effectively. Then begin to feed in the turbulence once you reach your
coordination plateau in calm air and you have a clear feel for what
the controls really do.

Flying tow was quite difficult early on for me as well, but I was
blessed with a very kind instructor who would after letting me drift
out of position, calmly say I gotcha and nudge the plane back where it
was supposed to be when I failed to do so and had a new joke for every
occasion, keeping the process humorous and letting me know that I was
not the first one to have difficulties. He would also jokingly say
things like "do not get frustrated, I command you" and the cockpit
levity really helped me. Find an instructor with a sense of humor...

You will feel like such a champ when you start nailing it and the
towplane appears as if your pushing it along with the unbending rope,
as if it were a solid metal rod. It took guts to identify and post
your fears like you did, which to me spells the marks of good sense
and a balanced ego, both crucial ingredients for good airmanship even
if the stick and rudder part takes longer then you expected. Sounds to
me like a fine pilot in the making...

Best of luck!
-Paul

PS. there are probably a lot of things that 14yr olds can do that you
can't, so that is no gauge of your personal worth or skillset.