As an AGI I am now certified by the FAA to teach new pilots as well as perform the ground portion of Biennial Flight Reviews to licensed pilots of all ratings. I enjoy using my cartooning skills to bring humor and clarity to teaching aviation.
The first time you take off all alone is a day etched into every pilot's mind because it will soon be the first day you land a plane without anyone to cover for you. My instructor had a coffee cup that read "Flying is the second most exciting thing in the world....landing is first!" As you can see I made it.
When I had all of seven hours in my logbook I was learning to handle aerodynamic stalls (basically beginning to fall out of the sky while still inside an airplane). It made me a little nervous. I read an article about someone in a similar position who went up and did aerobatics to put it all in perspective. In no time at all I was pulling back on the stick of one of these Stearman biplanes and flying my very own loop. The instructor followed that up by taking me through just about everything the Blue Angels do, except we're hanging out of this plane wearing leather helmets. I was told to give a thumb up or down after each maneuver to indicate my stomach's willingness to proceed. I gave two thumbs up each time and we tore up the sky. So much for worrying about stalls.
My limited soaring experience began in this world-class monster with an 80 wing span. I flew it to 17,000 feet over Mono Lake near the Nevada border (with an oxygen mask on!). After three or four hours jammed into its slender cockpit I emerged to walk like a drunken chicken. I felt like a fool until later that day when I saw a video of John Denver completing a long glider flight and emerging to walk just like a drunken chicken. I only wish John were still around to share that with.
As an Angel Flight pilot I hope to be flying missions soon. Angel Flight is an organization of volunteer pilots who provide transportation for patients in need who lack the funds to travel for medical purposes. I hope to be able to fly kids to special camps as well, especially deaf kids, since I studied American Sign Language for two years. In 2001 alone Angel Flight West flew around 2,300 missions. It makes you feel better about the human race to learn that sort of thing. It rarely makes it onto the evening news. If you know of anyone in need who could use our services have them get in touch with Angel Flight.
If you would just like to share the expense of flying over the beautiful Northern California landscape sometime I fly out of Petaluma Municipal Airport in a variety of planes, including 172s, Warriors and Archers. You can view these aircraft at Aeroventure's website under the heading "powerplants".