1st Passenger

Enjoy this video of my flight, carrying my first passenger, from last Sunday. We made it back in time for Football, in case you were worried. Our route was Truckee to Chester, CA back to Truckee, across the North Shore of Lake Tahoe and landing in Truckee.

This was the first time I ventured to fly over my house. I called my wife so she could step outside to see us, and she did. But, just as I was beginning to circle I heard a call from a Hawker jet announcing an arrival in exactly the place I was. The one and only time I decided to maneuver over my house and traffic has me make a quick exit

Enjoy the video...
Matt

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_H2y7Jyt4o

30+ Years and I Did It

Sorry, no pictures and no video. But a big announcement. I did it.

Passed the oral portion of the exam a week ago today, nailed it! However, the weather was poor last Sunday so we discontinued and re-scheduled for yesterday.

Yesterday turned out to be a great day for flying. Calm winds and sunny skies prevailed. I then proceeded to nail all the PTS maneuvers (including being spot on for the Short Field landing).

Once I parked and killed the engine my DPE turned to me, put out his hand and said congratulations. I got my Private Pilot ASEL temporary license. Hurray for me!

Now I will have more time for this neglected blog. I apologize to my 5 regular readers, you all rock.

Talk to you soon,
Matt

The last Thursday of June my primary CFI and I attended a "Fly In" FAA seminar at Reno/Stead airport, KRTS. This is where the famous Reno Air Races are held. See my older post for pictures of last years event to give you an idea of the venue, then watch the video below as we land at the same airport.

The seminar was quite interesting as the subject was Stall/Spin Awareness, considering that just the previous day there was (as best anyone could imagine what happened since there were no witnesses) a stall/spin accident at my home airport as they were turning base to final. It's one thing to stall 3000' above the ground. Quite another to stall at 300'-600'.

http://www.sierrasun.com/article/20100617/NEWS/100619910

I mentioned in my last post about the scheduling of my "phase check", which had been postponed 4 times due to weather this Spring-urary. And this last time it was a bad starter (I don't blame them) and the owner preferred us not to hand start it. Darn, there went my lesson in how to do that. So we spent 3 hours in the terminal and went over the pre-flight portion of the practical. She felt I was ready but still need to show her my skills in the air. So we are set for this Thursday. I'll let you know how it goes.

Matt

My Faux Cross-country

Hola, It's been awhile. And if there are folks out there who enjoy this blog I sincerely apologize for being remiss with posts (official sounding huh?). Many excuses are available to me, but the number one excuse has been the birth of our second child, Julia Rose. She is super cute, of course.

However, I'm back with only a phase check and a practical test to accomplish. I'm that close!

This last Sunday we had brilliant weather for flying. Clear, calm and cool. I got to the airport a 6am, pre-flighted, planned and pottied; and was in the air by 7am. It had been over a month since by last PIC flight, so I started with quick trip around the pattern on runway 19. Then taxied and took off straight out on runway 1.

My mission was to practice a VFR cross country (that's using NO GPS) and using my E6B in flight. I wasn't endorsed to land anywhere other than O02 (Beckwourth) and KRNO. So I devised a route around the Northern Sierra that kept O02 in sight but gave me good checkpoints and 116nm. Below is my flight plan and results. Let's call it the score card.

As you may be able to see I nailed my time enroute, but that was a bit'o luck. My fuel was off by 2 gallons, so not bad there. Follow along below as I snapped a photo of each of my check points. In addition, take a look at the San Francisco VFR sectional to see the route. You can find the VFR chart at skyvector.com (cool site if you haven't been there yet).

OK, here we go. Feet off the brakes, full throttle (smoothly), airspeed active, engine instruments in the green, V1, rotate...

Two hot air balloons enjoying the same weather as I. This is just after take off, straight out runway 1, looking west over Prosser Reservoir

Looking back on Stampede Reservoir, my first checkpoint.

Checkpoint #2, the small but lovely town of Loyalton, CA. The area beyond Loyalton, in the background is called the Sierra Valley. It is also our practice area. Good roads and circular fields to practice patterns and turns about a point.

Beckwourth pass, checkpoint #3. Looking East from my route.

Frenchmen's Lake was checkpoint #4.

The Herlong airport is in the frame, but hard to see as the airport is roughly the same color as the surrounding dirt. Can you find it? I did, but I was almost on top of it before I did.

Lake Davis off my left shoulder, but still a checkpoint.

Gansner airport, Quincy CA. This is a mildly challenging airport to get in and out of. The airport is surrounded by mountains in all directions. I look forward to landing here once I get my ticket.

Checkpoint Cromberg, I think. It was hard to find it so I guessed. The checkpoint was on the starboard side of the aircraft, which is difficult to see from the pilots seat. Choosing a checkpoint you can see from the pilots window is good, when you can manage it.

And the destination, Beckwourth/Nervino O02. Here I took a break, used the poddy and ate a banana. Then I took off to KRNO for practice in Charlie class airspace and a towered full stop landing, even though I don't need it for my license. I like flying into big airports, for me it is fun.

See you next time. I have a "phase check" for next week, it's like a PSAT for pilots. Then time to schedule the practical!!!!

Diamond DA-40 Ride.mpg

A View of My Airspace

"In the fabric of space and in the nature of matter, as in a great work of art, there is, written small, the artist's signature." Carl Sagan


After my lesson last week I soloed around the North Shore of Lake Tahoe to bag another hour. Enjoy the photos I was able to snap as I aviated, navigated, communicated, then took pictures.

Foreground: Squaw Valley. Background: Alpine Meadows, where I teach skiing.

Looking South towards South Lake Tahoe and Heavenly ski resort.

Looking East across the lake at the East Shore and the Carson Range. In the foreground is what's known as Thunder Ridge. Cool name, huh?

A lone cloud formation half way up the modest mountain that is my backyard, Mt. Baldy, with the 11,000' Mt. Rose in the left background.

Desolation Wilderness in the background, with Alpine's sister resort, Homewood in the foreground. Homewood has the best views of the lake. Sometimes at Homewood it seems that if you blow your turn you'll end up in the lake!

Downtown, or rather most all of, Tahoe City, CA. The large white spot is Tahoe City Golf Course.

Could you ask for a better avionics set up in a trainer?

Better view of Mt. Baldy and my personal playground.

KTRK, aka Truckee Tahoe Airport, looking West at 10,000'.

It's dumping here right now. We are expecting several feet of snow by Saturday. We've already had 16+" since Monday. I love ski season.

I'm Back

"Video killed the radio star" The Buggles

It's been awhile huh? Sorry. Life is a busy thing. Especially around the holidays when my ski season starts and all the wonderful time with family. These things take priority over flying, as they should. These are the things that keep me grounded, starting with my wife and kid(s). Sprout is expected April 13 and we are excited.

I have gotten out twice so far this month, working under the hood to fulfill that portion of my training. I'm really close as I only need: 1 more solo landing at a towered airport, 7 more night landings, another 1 hour or so under the hood, then it's on to my phase check and THE PRACTICAL EXAM.

My instructor agreed to shoot some video of me at the controls, once around the pattern. Enjoy!