New Pilot Advice

wrote in message
...
I thought I had taken up this hobby with a lot of enthusiasm until
last weekend. Prior to last weekend I thought I was making steady
progress, taking off landing, developing some touch on the stick. When
I go the field I approach the flight with butterflies and some fear. I
was told by an instuctor this is good when you lose those butterflies
don't fly. Last weekend conditions were deceptive. Relatively windy on
the ground 10-15 knots but apparently much tougher high up (according
to the crusty old tow pilot). We took off with me at the contols and
everything was fine until about 300 feet and something hit that 2
seater from the side and we flew into the air above and to right of
the tow plane, the instructor took over and we proceeded up to about
1000 feet and I took over again until about 2000 feet where the tow
plane hit a sink and dropped like a stone (I've dealt with this before
but not to this extreme) I was not fast enough and the instuctor took
over again. By this time I was really frightened and my confidence was
destroyed. I did manage to take the plane over and get a clean release
at 3000.

We then proceeded to hit some incredible thermals and my instuctor
intorduced me to the fine art of climbing a thermal with other gliders
in it. The thermals were pretty rough and the vario was pegged at
times. He had me doing tight turns until I started getting air sick
(this had only happened on one previous flight). We continued to ride
the thermals until I told the instuctor we better go down. I tried to
hold on I know he wanted to stay up.

When we got down on the ground I did not want the instuctor to notice
but my knees were shaking. I do not scare easily, I have had a lot of
other hobbies where danger is involved. My question to you experienced
pilots is this fear normal? I was really frightened. If you knew me
I'd never admit it to you. Is this something you can get over? This
experience left me wondering is this hobby for me?

BTW when we got down they were cleaning out another 2 seater where a
student threw up (he was up for about 20mins), at least I stayed up
for 45 mins and did not throw up. At least I got some satisfaction.
Thanks

Good advice all, but-----
They have tiptoed around the real answer.
You are, by your own claim, a person who enjoys motion sports and adrenalin
infusion. Were you comfortable immediately the first time you rode a
mountain bike? Did you "rip down the mountain" on that ride? I'd guess not.

The real questions are--Was the instructor frightened, did s/he consider it
fairly routine? Were other experienced pilots that day having fun? If so,
then you will too, eventually. As you become accustomed to the sensations,
and your reactions become faster and more subtle through experience, you
will bcome less and less anxious. Eventually you will enjoy the sensations.

I, too, experienced the same, but after the first couple of hundred flights,
it became routine. Now 1300 launches later, each flight is still special.

Hang in there---it won't be long before you find mountain biking boring and
soaring will occupy all your free thoughts.

Hartley Falbaum, CFIG, USA

Welcome to soaring! Sounds like you went up on a day high time pilots
would call fun. Don't worry, most students or passengers, would be sick
by the time you got off tow. What you probably experienced was a feeling
of loss of control. The fact that you recognized that you were getting
airsick and ask to come down before you threw up, is a good sign.
Lots of (daredevil types) pilots get airsick when learning to fly. When
the instructor has to take control in these conditions, you lose
confidence in your ability to control the glider. All you learned in
rough air, is that you are not ready to handle the conditions. No
different than a beginning mountain biker on a trail way over his head.
Lucky for you, the instructor can take over when you loose control in a
glider. The instructor has a tendency to expose you to rougher conditions
than he would a meeker student. The fear you experience is no different
than when you started down a narley MTB trail the first time.
Primary instruction (at least in the beginning phase) should occur in
mild conditions. Arrive at the airport early in the day or later when
conditions are calmer. As, your lessons progress, you will learn that you
can handle the conditions and remain in control of the glider. Don,t worry
about thermaling or or staying up in rough conditions yet. Lots of high
time pilot got sick early on. Myself, I was airsick in 15 minutes, for
about the first 10 lessons. As I progressed, the airsickness slowly went
away. By the way, I have been flying and mountain biking for 30 years, and
neither is boring.

Ed Gaddy, Cycle Logic Bicycle Shop

On Nov 11, 11:15*am, Ed Gaddy wrote:
*Welcome to soaring! Sounds like you went up on a day high time pilots
would call fun. Don't worry, most students or passengers, would be sick
by the time you got off tow. What you probably experienced was a feeling
of loss of control. The fact that you recognized that you were getting
airsick and ask to come down before you threw up, is a good sign.
*Lots of (daredevil types) pilots get airsick when learning to fly. When
the instructor has to take control in these conditions, you lose
confidence in your ability to control the glider. All you learned in
rough air, is that you are not ready to handle the conditions. No
different than a beginning mountain biker on a trail way over his head.
Lucky for you, the instructor can take over when you loose control in a
glider. The instructor has a tendency to expose you to rougher conditions
than he would a meeker student. The fear you experience is no different
than when you started down a narley MTB trail the first time.
*Primary instruction (at least in the beginning phase) should occur in
mild conditions. Arrive at the airport early in the day or later when
conditions are calmer. As, your lessons progress, you will learn that you
can handle the conditions and remain in control of the glider. Don,t worry
about thermaling or or staying up in rough conditions yet. Lots of high
time pilot got sick early on. Myself, I was airsick in 15 minutes, for
about the first 10 lessons. As I progressed, the airsickness slowly went
away. By the way, I have been flying and mountain biking for 30 years, and
neither is boring.

Ed Gaddy, * *Cycle Logic Bicycle Shop

Great post Ed. And by the way, I'm looking for a 32 hole Mavic GP4.
Any leads?

Matt Michael CFIG

On 11 Nov, 00:18, wrote:

When we got down on the ground I did not want the instuctor to notice
but my knees were shaking. I do not scare easily, I have had a lot of
other hobbies where danger is involved. My question to you experienced
pilots is this fear normal? I was really frightened. If you knew me
I'd never admit it to you. Is this something you can get over? This
experience left me wondering is this hobby for me?

It sounds to me as if you were taken up on a rough and unpleasant day
and asked to do things way byond your current skill level - wild
aerotow, sharing a thermal, tight enough turns to make you sick and so
on.

Of coure you were scared. Anybody sensible would be scared in the
circumstances, so it is NOT a fault on your part.

It does, however, sound like a sequence of faults on your instructor's
part. It sound as if you had the misfortune to have a macho fool
behind you who wanted to show off
and either couldn't care less or, more likely, revelled in the effect
he was producing.

If you have an irrational fear of flight but want to glide you will be
able to do it, but it will take time. If you have an entirely rational
fear of situations beyond your ability, treasure it. The accident
statistics are full of people who should have felt fear but didn't.

What to do now? Well, first of all, get another instructor. Don't
waste any time with the last one - his aviation judgement is proven
bad. Explain that you were taken up on a really wild day and got
frightened. Any decent instructor will sympathise and work with you on
a plan to rebuild your confidence.

Goodluck,

Ian

On Nov 10, 7:18*pm, wrote:
....When we got down on the ground I did not want the instructor to
notice
but my knees were shaking. I do not scare easily, I have had a lot of
other hobbies where danger is involved. My question to you experienced
pilots is this fear normal? I was really frightened. If you knew me
I'd never admit it to you. Is this something you can get over? This
experience left me wondering is this hobby for me?

Good evening , You ask some penetrating questions.
Here is my response to help you sort out the risks, as well as the
rewards, of soaring.
It's your call!
Safe soaring,
Bob Wander

PS: During turbulence of any kind, whether on aerotow or in free
flight, it's amazing how a really snug & secure lap belt shoulder
harness combination can make you feel that you can handle just about
anything that comes along. And on the other hand, if lap belt /
shoulder harness are loose, it makes one feel ... vulnerable. So
tighten up!

++++++++++
The following is excerpted from my book "Everybody's First Gliding
Book".

"Risk Management & Soaring.
If you are fairly new to soaring, chances are that you've spent some
time evaluating the risks that accompany the rewards of our sport.
Chances are also good that you have reached several conclusions, as
follow.
1) There are risks inherent in any air sport (including soaring) and
2) You don't yet know enough about the sport of soaring to recognize,
understand, and evaluate all of those risks.
This article will help you discover what the principal risks are, and
how you can manage them.

Risk is inherent in every human enterprise. Activity sports such as
skiing, tennis, and rock climbing entail risk. Humdrum daily chores
like driving an automobile or slicing an onion entail risk. Traveling
on a commercial airliner entails risk. Entering into marriage entails
risk. Having children entails risk. Career choices entail risk.

Even just sitting around, avoiding every possible identifiable risk
factor, doing absolutely nothing with your life, entails risk: The
risk that, if ever you come to your senses, you will be running out of
time to do worthwhile and satisfying things in the remaining lifetime
allotted to you.

In short, risk is everywhere. That's life! The trick is to strike an
acceptable balance between the risks and the rewards.

So... what are the major risks in soaring? Major risks are the risks
that pose a threat to life and limb. Here they are, and here is what
you can do to manage each risk.

An improperly prepared glider or towplane can hurt you in a hurry.
When you take to the air, your aircraft is nothing less than your life
support system. A glider that is improperly assembled (rigged), or
that is incompletely assembled, is a potential deathtrap. There is no
room for carelessness or oversight when it comes to preparing and
inspecting your life support system before flight. Ask your CFIG for
ground instruction on how to perform a pre-flight inspection and a
positive control check. Towpilots should apply the same level of care
to pre-flighting each towplane system (fuel, engine, prop, flight
controls, tow hook and tow release mechanism, tires and wheelbrakes,
etc.) not only for your protection but to protect their own skins too.
Naturally, the towline and rings should get careful scrutiny as well.
In some aerotow glider operations, glider pilots expect the towpilot
to keep an eye on the condition of the towline. I don't think that you
would be wise to buy that line of thinking, if only for the reason
that it isn't the towpilot who gets tossed into the stewpot when the
towline breaks - it's the glider pilot. Your job as a glider pilot is
to stay out of stewpots whenever possible, so make it a habit to get a
good close look at the towlines and rings.

Any launch, at any time, has the possibility of failing. Work with
your CFIG to develop skill and confidence in dealing with launch
failures, whether simulated or real.

After takeoff, climbout, and release, you and your glider are in free
flight. Mid-air collision avoidance requires you to remain alert and
to focus your eyes and attention outside the cockpit. Areas and
airspaces of concentrated air traffic include thermals with a gaggle
of gliders, Victor airways, the perimeter of Class B and Class C
airspace, airspace that is near airports and gliderports, Military
Operations Areas (MOAs), and other traffic concentrators. Acquire a
current sectional chart and ask your glider flight instructor and
cross country glider pilots to help you identify the high density
traffic areas near the gliderport where you fly. Hunt the skies for
other aircraft. See them and avoid them.

Another risk factor in free flight is internal - it is you, and the
judgments that you make (or sometimes fail to make). As a rule, air
sports are not particularly forgiving of general carelessness. If you
fail to maintain situational awareness, or if you fail to exercise
reasonable in-flight judgment, you can find yourself in a jam so
sticky that your budding stick-and-rudder skills are insufficient to
get you unstuck.

The approach to landing is one of the most critical flight phases, and
it is in this phase of flight that the majority of serious accidents
occur. The principal risks in the landing phase of flight include
collision with other air traffic, landing short of the intended
runway, and stalling and/or spinning.

Airports tend to concentrate air traffic in the same way that beehives
tend to concentrate bee traffic. Airports are where aircraft live when
they are not flying, and airports are where aircraft are usually
headed when they are flying. Arrive at your destination airport with
plenty of time and altitude to scope out the situation, detect other
traffic, and make an orderly approach and landing. Maintain the target
airspeed and coordinate your turns in the approach. Remember that the
traffic pattern is not an end itself, but is only a means to an end -
the desired end result is a safe landing. At the appropriate stage in
your flight training program, ask your CFIG for ground and flight
instruction in how to make a safe landing from an abnormal position in
the approach.

Management of your personal risk is your personal business. No one
else can manage this risk for you. That is one of the great
attractions of soaring: The decisions that you make are important
decisions. It is entirely up to you."