foka4
Pre-takeoff checklist
- Joined
- Oct 31, 2006
- Messages
- 236
- Location
- Ankeny (Des Moines), IA
- Display Name
Display name:
Matt Scudwalker
Okay, I'll make this brief, because I have to get back to my scotch:
After an exhausting week of work and checkride prep in my hotel room (I travel a lot), I did my IFR checkride at today. And I got my ticket wet on the way home with some IMC enroute and an easy GPS approach in IMC into IKV for gas.
It was a long day for a number of reasons, but here are some highlights:
1) WX on the trip from DSM to MCW for the checkride this morning delayed my arrival by 45 minutes or so as I had to flank, unflank, and reflank a storm cell near MCW to get in.
2) I'm prone to mathematical errors in my logbook, so I use a spreadsheet to reliably calculate my times. But I had a problem in the spreadsheet that resulted in an erroneous calculation of hood time (better widget = better idiot). I thought I had 41 hours, but I really had 39.9. (I can't make this stuff up.) A quick hop around the patch with a safety pilot resolved it nicely, and prepped me well for the DME arc approach in the checkride. How embarrassing.
3) My examiner is really good at finding those "corner cases" that you don't really think about when you're marching through the standard training curricula. Excellent education from an examiner who hasn't forgotten his real-world experience (as I expected).
4) I suck at knowing what's "real world" and what's "checkride world". When the examiner says you have an engine failure, don't ruminate about how you would handle it if it happened. Just push the darn Nearest button, fly at best glide, and get on with it. The flight and the oral are two different things.
5) If your examiner has a really cool airplane, plan your checkride on a day that'll create WX delays for your trip home. Pout a little, and you'll score a delicious ride as a reward for your efforts. Actually, I did two flights to kill time. Imagine a bigger contrast than a flight in an F1 Rocket followed by a hop in a Cub.
6) That's all I can think of, and my empty scotch glass needs attention.
7) Oh, and a new bottle of Balvenie 21 year port-aged scotch is a great motivator for completing a rating.
M
After an exhausting week of work and checkride prep in my hotel room (I travel a lot), I did my IFR checkride at today. And I got my ticket wet on the way home with some IMC enroute and an easy GPS approach in IMC into IKV for gas.
It was a long day for a number of reasons, but here are some highlights:
1) WX on the trip from DSM to MCW for the checkride this morning delayed my arrival by 45 minutes or so as I had to flank, unflank, and reflank a storm cell near MCW to get in.
2) I'm prone to mathematical errors in my logbook, so I use a spreadsheet to reliably calculate my times. But I had a problem in the spreadsheet that resulted in an erroneous calculation of hood time (better widget = better idiot). I thought I had 41 hours, but I really had 39.9. (I can't make this stuff up.) A quick hop around the patch with a safety pilot resolved it nicely, and prepped me well for the DME arc approach in the checkride. How embarrassing.
3) My examiner is really good at finding those "corner cases" that you don't really think about when you're marching through the standard training curricula. Excellent education from an examiner who hasn't forgotten his real-world experience (as I expected).
4) I suck at knowing what's "real world" and what's "checkride world". When the examiner says you have an engine failure, don't ruminate about how you would handle it if it happened. Just push the darn Nearest button, fly at best glide, and get on with it. The flight and the oral are two different things.
5) If your examiner has a really cool airplane, plan your checkride on a day that'll create WX delays for your trip home. Pout a little, and you'll score a delicious ride as a reward for your efforts. Actually, I did two flights to kill time. Imagine a bigger contrast than a flight in an F1 Rocket followed by a hop in a Cub.
6) That's all I can think of, and my empty scotch glass needs attention.
7) Oh, and a new bottle of Balvenie 21 year port-aged scotch is a great motivator for completing a rating.
M
