Fred Choate wrote:
I would LOVE to do this, and plan on it, but probably not until I get a bit
more experience. Currently, I have only flown a 172. I did fly a 182 once,
but that was an intro flight, and so I didn't really know what was going on.

Thanks for the heads up though. I didn't realize that Kenmore did that sort
of thing....


I did my floatplane rating in Alaska literally right after taking my
private checkride near Boston, which was a pretty stark but enjoyable
change. I didn't plan it that way, but that's how it happened. Now is a
great time to learn things because you have fewer ingrained habits and
are more inclined to learn without ego. I believe the military has guys
landing jets on carriers within a few hundred hours, just to give you
some idea of what's possible given the right kind of attitude and
training.

At 65 hours you will be getting surprised frequently, just the nature
of the beast. If you're not being surprised it's because you're not
spreading your wings and that means you're not learning. I think this
is the biggest challenge new pilots face because it's the first time
you're on your own completely and if you're a responsible adult it's
sometimes more than a little scary.

I think a lot more people quit aviation at this point out of simple
fear than is openly discussed, not least because it's the last thing a
lot of us would want to admit to, least of all to other pilots who were
"man enough" to make it through. Of course this is a caricature, but I
think it's more common than is given credit because it's invisible.

Anyway, my only advice, having the sum of 250TT under my belt, is to
keep on chugging. Don't go more than a few weeks without flying, even
just around the pattern, and find ways to challenge yourself.
Crosswinds were my first big bugbear, so I found a CFI who would take
me out in the gnarliest stuff we could find and really wring me dry.
I'd be glad 18 months later when I was sneaking back home ahead of the
thunderstorms just as the tower began calling winds 360@20 with the
active 29 and some T-storms starting to roll 25 miles north.

Best,
-cwk.