Checkride scheduled.....

GMascelli

GMascelli

En-Route
Joined
Jul 27, 2005
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3,448
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Ocean City, MD
Display Name
Display name:
GaryM
Yes, it is time to cross that bridge on my own.....Monday, July 17th

A year of lessons, crazy weather, switching schools and instructors once, tests of my patience, frustrating plateaus, many crosswind landings, thoughts about self confidence and the belief in myself and the ability to complete the mission. It's been a long road. With that said, I'm ready to join the ranks, shead that "student" tag and do what I have dreamed about doing since a young boy. I only wish my Pop was here to see it but I know he will be riding along in spirit.......man he would have loved it !!!!

I hope to have a "passing" report next Tuesday!
 
GOOD LUCK GARY!!!!! Hopefully I will not be too far behind you now, ya know since I re/resoloed yesterday.
 
Best of luck Gary.

Remember the following during your check ride.

1. Relax

2. Have the FARs tabbed to find info

3. Relax

4. Take your time in answering question or setting up for a manuver

5. Relax

6. Don't let yourself get distracted

7. Relax

8. Don't forget items 1, 3, 5, or 7

Lastly have fun while doing the checkride, don't think of it as a test, just have the atitude of it is just another learning experience
 
As Ron Says breath in breath out. I have no doubt that on July 18, 2006 you will have a white slip in hand that says PPL. Go get em!!!
 
ALRIGHT!!!!! Take a deep breath and go for it. Your instructor wouldn't sign you off if you weren't ready. Just fly the plane and you'll do fine.

Good luck Gary!
 
You'll do fine, Gary! Just remember, all the DE wants to see is that you can fly safely. He wants you to pass.
 
smigaldi said:
Best of luck Gary.

Remember the following during your check ride.

1. Relax

2. Have the FARs tabbed to find info

3. Relax

Lastly have fun while doing the checkride, don't think of it as a test, just have the atitude of it is just another learning experience
Click to expand...

When you tab your FAR/AIM make sure you have written on the side the FAR number (61.113) and what the FAR is (PP Privlidges) I mean if all the information will fit on the tab.
 
Captain Levy’s Checkride Advice​

1. Relax and enjoy it. Nationwide, about 90% of applicants pass on the first try, so look around and see if you think you’re as good as 9 out of 10 other students. Also, your instructor must maintain a pass rate of at least 80% to get his ticket renewed, so he’s not going to send you up unless he’s pretty darn sure you’ll pass – otherwise, he has to find four other people to pass to make up for you, and that’s not always easy.

2. Go over with your instructor the logbooks of the aircraft you're going to use the day BEFORE the checkride to make sure it's all in order (annual, transponder checks, ELT ops and battery, 100-hour if rented, etc.). If the airplane's paper busts, so do you. Run a sample W&B, too – get the examiner’s weight when you make the appointment. If you weight 200, and so does the examiner, don’t show up with a C-152 with full tanks and a 350 lb available cabin load – examiners can’t waive max gross weight limits.

3. Relax.

4. Rest up and get a good night's sleep the night before. Don't stay up "cramming."

5. Relax.

6. Read carefully the ENTIRE PTS including all the introductory material. Use the checklist in the front to make sure you take all the stuff you need -- papers and equipment. And the examiner’s fee UP FRONT (too much chance a disgruntled applicant will refuse to pay afterward) in the form demanded by the examiner is a “required document” from a practical, if not FAA, standpoint.

7. Relax.

8. You're going to make some minor mistakes. Correct them yourself in a timely manner "so the outcome of the maneuver is never seriously in doubt" and you'll be OK. If you start to go high on your first steep turn and start a correction as you approach 100 feet high but top out at 110 high while making a smooth correction back to the requested altitude, don't sweat -- nail the next one and you'll pass with "flying colors" (a naval term, actually). If you see the maneuver will exceed parameters and not be smoothly recoverable, tell the examiner and knock it off before you go outside those parameters, and then re-initiate. That shows great sense, if not great skill, and judgement is the most critical item on the checkride.

9. Relax.

10. During the oral, you don’t have to answer from memory anything you’d have time to look up in reality. You never need to memorize and know everything. Categorize material as:

a. Things you must memorize (i.e. emergency procedures, radio calls, airspace, etc).
b. Things you must know or have reasonable understanding of (i.e. interpreting weather codes, non-critical regs).
c. Things you know about but can look up and will have time to look up on the ground.

(Thanks to Mark Bourdeaux for this categorization.) So if the examiner asks you about currency, it’s OK to open the FAR book to 61.56 and 61.57 and explain them to him. But make sure you know where the answer is without reading the whole FAR/AIM cover-to-cover. On the other hand, for stuff you’d have to know RIGHT NOW (e.g., best glide speed for engine failure, etc.), you’d best not stumble or stutter – know that stuff cold. Also, remember that the examiner will use the areas your knowledge test report says you missed as focus points in the oral, so study them extra thoroughly.

11. Relax.

12. Avoid this conversation:
Examiner - Q: Do you have a pencil?
Applicant - A: I have a #2, a mechanical, a red one...
Examiner - Q: Do you have a pencil?
Applicant - A: I also have an assortment of pens, and some highlighters...
Examiner - Q: Do you have a pencil?
Applicant - A: Yes.
Examiner - Thank you.
One of the hardest things to do when you’re nervous and pumped up is to shut up and answer the question. I've watched people talk themselves into a corner by incorrectly answering a question that was never asked, or by adding an incorrect appendix to the correct answer to the question that was. If the examiner wants more, he'll tell you.

13. Relax

14. Some questions are meant simply to test your knowledge, not your skill, even if they sound otherwise. If the examiner asks how far below the cloud deck you are, he is checking to see if you know the answer is “at least 500 feet,” not how good your depth perception is. He can’t tell any better than you can, and the only way to be sure is to climb up and see when you hit the bases, which for sure he won’t let you do.

15. Relax

16. Remember the first rule of Italian driving: "What's behind me is not important." Don't worry about how you did the last maneuver or question. If you didn't do it well enough, the examiner must notify you and terminate the checkride. If you are on the next one, forget the last one because it was good enough to pass. Focus on doing that next maneuver or answering the next question the best you can, because while it can still determine whether you pass or fail, the last one can’t anymore. If you get back to the office and he hasn't said you failed, smile to your friends as you walk in because you just passed.

17. Relax and enjoy your new license.


Ron Levy, ATP, CFI, Veteran of 11 license/rating checkrides, including 4 with FAA inspectors
 
Thanks for the advice all! FAR/AIM is ready, log book ready and all the forms are completed.

I need to remember Ron's advice on #12 for the oral. I found myself in the test prep sounding like a dope ramblibng on "around" the point. I need to just answer it and nail it down direct to the point. More practice and study over the weekend.

I completed the mock checkride this morning with a 7 a.m. start. It went very well! I had fun, a lot of fun and learned a few things too. I was above all there to fly the plane despite many distractions'/questions. I feel ready to fly now I just need to nail down the oral.....Thanks to all on this board that provided many topics for this student pilot and I can't wait to type the post and change the bio to read "Private Pilot:"
 
That is awesome Gary. Did you do your mock chkride with your CFI or a CFI that you didn't know? I told my CFI I wanted at least 2 mock orals and practicals.

GOOD LUCK!!!!!
 
Ah yes... Rule number 12. I like that one too.

Your CFI probably knows the questions you'll be asked as well. If he's asking you specifics, keep that in mind for the checkride.

Also, you're PIC for the flight. Things will probably happen that weren't briefed or discussed. The examiner will see how you react to the situation. If you deviated from a heading/altitude/etc, you did it for a reason, right? :)
 
The mock rides & oral exams are the ticket. Flying with a new instructor who's flying with you in an evaluator role is about as close to a checkride as it comes.
 
Gary, you'll do very well, I'm sure. Be prepared for a total brain lock-up at some point -- 90 minutes into my oral, I thought I was on cruise, the DE said "OK, let's switch gears, what do flaps do?" and you could hear the clutch burning, I went, "unh, unh, unh, unh" and then I went totally blank, and she laughed and said something I don't even remember, but I got through it.
Also, my CFI and I tabbed with post-its every required inspection within the aircraft logs so they could be found very fast. The tabs let you get through this part really quickly and helped me be better prepared to answer the "when is the next inspection due?" questions too.
Also, it helps to remember everyone on this board, all your friends and all your family are rooting for you to pass, and so is the examiner (most of them, I've found when talking to them).
Go get 'em!
E Hitchcock
 
You need to get a goodnights rest/sleep. If you are not in bed now you should be. 10:10pm the night before your checkride hah hah hah. Oh yeah and goodluck tomorrow.
 
Took the night off after feeling like the head was going to explode early this evening. The Bride and I went to see a little league distrcit playoff where a few kids from the team I coached were playing.

Just got home, mind feels clear....well...um better anyway. :rolleyes: I will finish up the flight plan in the am after my last call to FSS. Then maybe get a few things done around the house prior to heading out.

Thanks all for the support and for all the great topics I have read about and learned on this board. I hope to be joining the ranks tomorrow!

10:50 time for the news and wx then some serious shut eye!
 
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