Week 12...and just call me Hans...I was solo

To my family, ask someone about Star Wars for the title to make sense.

I finally did it...I soloed. The flying week ended with me soloing on Wednesday night, then we had seminars all day Thursday and had Friday off for Veteran's Day. What a way to go to a break...riding on a high.

The day of your solo, you fly with an instructor in the morning and if you do well, they brief you up and give you their wings and send you up by yourself. I wore Lt. DeWolfe's wings, which I was glad because he has been one of the cool IPs that has put up with my poor flying and donkey calls. His call sign is Pyro and you can kind of see that on my left chest in the picture below. They turn their wings upside down so when you look down, you know who's wings are on the line...and because you aren't them.

The day was perfect for flying, not a cloud in the sky and about 80 some degrees. I was so nervous until the first landing. I nailed the first one almost perfectly and as I took off I just started yelling (not over frequency) and laughing...I had done it all by my lonesome. I then flew for a little over an hour, just staying in the local pattern. I ended up landing 8 times and flying the pattern 14 times. It was pretty crazy going 200+, pulling 90 degrees of bank and 3Gs and realizing there was no one else around.

Of course tradition was not lost on me. I was met upon touchdown by several classmates to do the dunking in the tank. I acted like I was going to cooperate and then I broke out of their grasp and ran to the flightroom. I juked and jived a bit and made it...they owe me, but some how I doubt I will get rewarded for my efforts. Nothing like a 29 year old breaking free and out running a bunch of 22-25 year olds...they now say I am the most athletic and fastest runner in the class. FINALLY, I AM GOOD AT SOMETHING! Too bad it wasn't flying, since the evaluations don't have lines for foot speed and athleticism.

Well, now it is on to my first checkride. I have four acrobatic flights and then a checkride. I am going to have that done before Thanksgiving and it isn't a good thing to hook a checkride. If you aren't familiar with "hooked" that is the term they use if you fail something, whether it be a ride, sim, or test. But then again, I will be home for Thanksgiving and I will care less at that point. I WILL BE HOME IN LESS THAN TWO WEEKS...YEAH!

P.S. To all that care about wakeboarding (especially to Coleena), I landed three flips and rode them out yesterday. Nothing like wakeboarding in 90 degree weather in November...so there is one good thing about Del Rio.