Pilot's logbook

Prep: Gleim:
Finish & take Chapter 5 Airplane Performance,Weight & Balance 82%
Work thru and take Chapter 6 Aeromedical Factors & Aeronautical Decision Making 93%
Work thru Chapter 7 Aviation Weather.
Six nifty flash cards: Runway too high, too low, just right, 1600ft out& 100 ft hi, 800ft out &50 ft hi, 400 ft out and 25 ft off ground.

We went to Clark County for touch-and-go's. I did the first, then asked Mike to do six. (the "magic" six). Then I went again. Hand position.

At some point I started coming out on final in the same place every time. Mike said do it again a couple more times and we'd go full stop.

First solo:
We stopped, and Mike reminded me of what I was going to do. Two touch-and go's, if I didn't feel like the second, make it one. "Use the checklist."

Runup: the oil pressure didn't go into the green in 30 seconds, or even longer. I turned it off and restarted. It felt like me and the lawn mower. Second time, same thing--sitting just barely above the red. (Well, I did just burn up the engine on my car last week. I'm a born-again believer in oil warnings.) So I shut down, got out of the plane, said something to some guys right near us, and started to walk toward Hap's. Mike was coming, walking pretty fast, but I have to say it again, he sure has the handle on body language. I can't imagine what he was thinking, but you'd never know it from his manner.

Well, Mike got it to run in the green, and we said ok. There wasn't any problem.

The hardest part was figuring out the taxiway, not that there's ANYTHING tricky about it, but I'd never been on the ground at Clark County before. Right before I was going to take the taxiway, a small jet took off on the runway in the opposite direction than I was planning to take. I was trying to figure out the ramifications of that, when I hear a quiet voice I don't recognize on the radio, "Maggie, take runway 18." Kindof like "Feel the force, Luke." I was grateful for that one.

Once I got on the runway, it was home free. The plane felt different, lighter. I'd wondered whether I'd be scared or nervous, but actually it just seemed right. Pretty darn good. So I did one touch & go, and once around again for full stop.

Back to Bowman Field, it started to rain (thunderstorms coming in). I waylaid Zach to take our pictures, which I'll post here as soon as I get them developed.

Thunderstorms meant even Mike wasn't going to be able to fly, so he and Neal and I went over to Mazzoni's to celebrate. Oysters.

Tomorrow it will most likely be raining. I set up a session with Zach for Saturday, and am looking forward to cross country to Columbus, In.

Big rainbow on the way home.

Pretty cool.