Underground Flying

If you look closely at the first photo, you will spot the microlight. The question is this, are we flying underground? I have a few flying ambitions left and one of them is to fly underground, today we found a series of quarry's in Somerset and flew inside them, below ground level, so were we flying underground? I think so, one more off the list.

Dirk is Dead

Followers of this blog will know Dirk from the Fly UK posts in June. This morning I awoke first light and though I must call Sandra and Gustav to ask about Dirk. When I got around to calling Sandra said Dirk had died at 0600hrs.

Did Dirk visit to say good bye?

I am really very, very sad we cant fly again, just one more time, one more take off, one more landing, one more swoop, one more roll, one more thermal, one more splash. Today was Dirks last take off his landing will be somewhere else.

Dirk, if they have blogs where you are, I hope the wind under your wings is warm and dry, keep your splasher ready... I hope you will be there to welcome me.........

Fellow Flyer

Just as I am leaving a tired fellow flyer drops in at Thorny, clearly tired and ringed I offer biscuits and water. I take my leave...

Big Helmets?

Flying at the weekend with Richard and his Dad I am reminded that I was not adventurous at all..when I first was awarded my license.

I recall a long trip was to the next airfield that was Dunkerswell to Westonzoyland, map reading all the way, getting lost over the Somerset levels while skipping field to field climbing over the hedges.

The talk was of GPS a new device that might cause more accidents as if two pilots took off one from Dunkerswell, the other from Westonzoyland they might meet half way at the same height and crash! No! We really did have that conversation in the club house fearful of these new devices!

Is that how I treat new technology in my life now, with fear? Is that how I approach new flying challenges now?

Fear Of Flying or Fear of Falling?

Since my first flight to Canada in 1978, I have been a little bit afraid of flying. Over the next 15 years I flew more and more as my job as the "Export Manager" for a Southampton based Engineering company meant spending months away from home flying from country to country. I recall on one tour completing 18 flights across India, Asia and Australia. I became more nervous each flight until I recall having to be off my "Gin and Tonic face" to get onto the Jumbo returning from Melbourne. Illogical fear, but then what part does logic play in fear?

I knew I had to do something about it and so to my first flight in a microlight in Somerset 3 years later at the tender age of 29, being scared stiff was part of the plan! I recall looking up at the wing and the wires and thinking it wont hold! What makes those bumps! Do we have to fly the whole hour?

Its odd if I was so frightened why did I book in and have lessons? What is it about fear that make us want more? That is a question I cant answer just now, but gaining my license at a time when fast was 50-mph and most machines went 45 mph. A 45 minute cross country was a huge distance I was still a little nervy... and so I flew until I had 75 hours or so on my log when a flight on the 09.08.1995 went so wrong I stopped flying the minute the wheels touched the ground. My next flight was logged on 17.02.2001 - "P-U-T"

Now when I recall those feeling as I write it makes me think about my fellow flyers now who are so very nervous every time they fly, the ones who don't like the bumps or who are unsure of there flying. The guys who fly the latest hardware but fret about 15-mph winds. Has my attitude to them become a little hard nose? Should I still worry too?

No I don't worry now, and no I don't need too. I have developed a mechanism though flying on Fly UK when hugh distance and fatigue plays a part, that enables me to relax more and more as it become bumpy or hectic, and the worse it gets the less I hold the bar and worry, I relax more!

I think this comes from a solid understanding of the subject, a very though ground inspection and good planning. Add to this a whole bunch of experience over and the knowledge that if I die flying, I will die doing the one thing on this earth that I love more than I love myself. I am not sure I could live without flying now,life would simply be an existence if I didn't have to face my fears, wouldn't it?

;-0

I am excited! this coming weekend, I am off to compete! My first competition, the first round of the nationals at Over Farm Gloucester.

I have my tent packed, and the trike almost ready, P & M are helping with

dam trimmer issues again! I had Billy Brooks the man himself stumped today...I think its one of those design issues so hopefully the replacement

Parts can be collected from Manton tomorrow!

I posted the news on the HMFC site and have 5 folks coming with me or planing to come I should say...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hmd05dB70rU

here is hoping the weather plays ball and its not too dam cold! Must pack the whiskey!

May at Colemore

Today’s great news means that planning how we will celebrate our 21^st birthday of Microlight flying at Colemore can now start in earnest. Hunting though my photos this shot taken on finals inspires me to think about the summers flying, it was taken May 2008, roll on summer 2009 clocks forward tomorrow!

Geraldine First Flight...

Sunday Afternoon - Southern Hampshire - Geraldine's first ever flight, "I would go again.." did the bug bite? I do hope so, there are simply too few female flyers..

Somerset Bound

The flying season starts! You can tell when the flying season starts, I can fly without Gloves in my open cot-pit are craft. Its a Pegasus Quik 912s named because for its type, its is..

Dave Baker a mate of mine had full filled a flying ambition to fly from Hampshire our home to Cornwall to see an old work friend who retired from the job. We were to meet him on the way back half way at Westonzoyland Airfield. We stared as 3 Lorrie - Colin - Daryl but lost Lorries passenger to the cold as the returned from about 10% along the way. Colin and I flew on through the bumps and the haze met Dave and had the flight home to die for.... well not quite. Its is however the first time I have flown under an airfield!

No gloves either way, and so that is officially spring!

Colemore on the way home, the counters and counting and there is a surprise or disappointment in store, why do people invest so much of there lives in objecting? Is there really a point when our airfield is in the middle of nowhere, and has been in place for 20 years? I feel sorry for them, investing time and effort in the negative.

I have reached a decision about what to do with the Chairmanship of the Hampshire Microlight Flying Club....I blogg later.