Flying for "real"

A truly magical flight.

My first solo flight away from the airport. There was something very special about this flight for me. I didn't feel rushed at all, was extremely calm but never "relaxed". Always double and triple checking everything. There wasn't an instructor to my right who could take over in case something went wrong, and there wasn't a tower controller watching out for anyone else.

It was all up to me.

Knowing that there was potential for many things to go wrong, I invested a few hours reviewing how the GPS in the aircraft worked in case I needed it to raise my situational awareness. As it turns out I spent a fair amount of time on the ground playing with it (confirming what I had read) and while in the air it was nice to have the confidence that I understood how to interact with it.

It was especially useful for cross referencing where I was in the practice area. Between the lines I had drawn on the map, what I saw out the window, and what was drawn on the GPS moving map I was confident (somewhat) that I was where I thought I was.

Aside from the experience of navigating between the airport and practice area, confirming where I was in the practice area, and communicating with others out there - I focused on steep turns for this flight. It seemed as if I was doing them for nearly an hour. It is truly amazing how many factors are involved in completing a perfect 360 degree steep turn. My big lesson of the day was that I'm better at turning right then I am left.

I can still remember how I pumped my fist in the air as I headed home in the car afterwards. This was flying for "real".