Mt Rushmore and Jewel Cave

Continued from the post Mt Rushmore: "Lofty Idea, Colossal Endeavor", this is the story of my flight from KLMO to KCUT and back.

When I last wrote, I was turning in for the night. Fabulous Custer County Airport allowed camping.  The air was calm and the moon full.  It was a beautiful night, despite the 30 degree temperature.

Fast forward (although, let me tell you it didn't feel fast) 3 hours.  I had tossed and turned on a blow-up mattress trying to find a warm spot and was growing fairly tired of it.   The air mattress was cold... It was giving up all my precious body heat to the wintry ground.

Fifty feet away, the cozy FBO beckoned and shortly after 3am, I relented.  With my sleeping bag in hand, I unzipped the tent and clumsily stepped outside. Mark probably heard the sound of hiking boots running across the ramp and the closing of the door behind me!

That dark brown leather sofa had my name all over it and there I spent the next 4 hours, dead to the world.  :-)

Sunday was a much warmer day than Saturday.  Like Colorado, it appeared that South Dakota's weather could jump or plummet 30 degrees in a single day.  Gone was the icy cold wind and instead a calm, sunny day welcomed us.  Easter Bunny had visited me (I knew I had been good!) and first things first...we had a little pre-breakfast (chocolate) snack.

We found on of the only restaurants open in Custer and sat down to eat.  The food was good and hot and fast.  The cinnamon roll was to die for and big enough to share!

Jewel Cave, our next stop, was not too far away.  By 10am we had ourselves booked on a tour of the cave and were wandering around, exploring the hills and taking in the geology info that covered the walls of the visitors center.

I wished I had tucked another cinnamon roll into my backpack!

Jewel Cave:
This cave is the second longest in the world and to date, over 150 miles of cave have been explored and surveyed.  It is estimated that about 95% of the cave is yet to be found!
Luckily there are some thin, smart people willingly crawling around on their bellies, dragging their own water in (and out) of Jewel Cave, mapping more of it.

Our cave tour lasted about 90 mins.  Ranger Lydia did a wonderful job of teaching us the history of the cave as well as pointing out its unique features.  Mark and I took more pictures than the rest of the tour group put together.

Fun times!  But alas, they couldn't last all day... we had to go home.

But return from Custer without doing a fly-by of Mt Rushmore?  Not likely!
I flew and Mark communicated with Ellsworth Airforce Base.  Wonderful Shannon at the FBO had given us these no-brainer directions:

Once within the limits of Mt Rushmore, Mark flew and I pointed my camera right out the little left seat window.

Awesome.  Now, I was ready to go home.

As we left the Black Hills and flew over the roads leading southwest toward Cheyenne, we couldn't help but feel a little bit sorry for the two Coloradoan girls we had met earlier in the day.

They were down there somewhere... driving home to Loveland.

Mt Rushmore: Lofty Idea and Colossal Endeavour!

Sometimes people ask me why I learned to fly.

... Because it's wonderful, is the short answer.
But I know they want a different answer.  One that explains how exactly how I plan on using my new skills and freedom.

I want to go places and see things.  I want to go quicker and further and see things from the air as well as the ground!

Mt Rushmore has been on my bucket list for a LONG time.
It's iconic.   History and art, blended.

Last weekend, I crossed Mt Rushmore off my bucket list.  I also completed my longest flight as Pilot in Command and added almost 4 hours to my time logged in N303B.

We left Longmont (KLMO) around 9am and arrived at Custer, South Dakota just about 1.8 hours later.  The air was definitely not smooth.  I was pleased to have a co-pilot with infinitely better skills than I, when the time came for an approach over trees and a gusty touch-down!

Landing at Custer County Airport, we were welcomed by Shannon Stites, FBO manager.  She and her husband Mark, had been instrumental in the organization of this trip.  The FBO was now base-camp.  We had a rental car, campsite, showers, TV (and movies!), microwave, computer and printer.

The temperature was dropping and expected to be at 30 degrees overnight.  The FBO was a tropical 65... My kind of warm.

We set off sightseeing.  First stop, the Crazy Horse Memorial.
"A work in progress" is the understatement of the year!  One day, this will be the world largest sculpture, until then, it will employ generations of people who are enthusiastic about blowing stuff up.
See the hole in middle?  It is 10 stories tall.

Crazy Horse today

Historical photo of Crazy Horse sculpture

There is a lot of history here, for sure. The original sculptor was the apprentice to the artist that created Mt Rushmore.  He toiled at the face of Crazy Horse for years, while raising 10 children with his wife.  Today, long after his death, 7 of those kids and his (much younger) wife, continue work on the monument.

Mt Rushmore was everything it promised to be and once again Mark and I enjoyed a short presentation about its "construction" and artist.  We then walked the Presidential Trail and sampled the delights of the cafe.  Not a bad way to spend an afternoon.

Mt Rushmore

Mark under Mt Rushmore, on the Presidential Trail

Wild turkey

Finally on the list of Saturday activities... A scenic drive along The Needles Highway.  This curly 1-2 lane road ran through Custer State Park.

With abundant wildlife and countless view points, the land seemed to really come alive as the sun got lower.

The Mitsubishi Endeavor... nice vehicle!

Believe it or not, this tunnel wasn't one of the smaller ones.  I saw one sign that said the tunnel was just over 10 feet wide and only 8 feet tall!

The Needles Eye

Later that evening we took advantage of the really nice FBO, getting hot showers, heating up quiche and watching a movie, while awaiting the full moon to rise.
Yes, full moons are among my favorite things too, so a walk to the end of the runway and back just before turning in, was in order.

It had been a really great day but I was exhausted.
Easter Sunday was just around the corner and we had a plan to explore a cave tomorrow, before flying home.

New Year's Resolutions

What a year 2011 was!

We saw a British Royal wedding, a massive earthquake in Japan, the birth of the "occupy" movement, the death of Bin Laden, Kim Jong-il and Moammar Gadafi. We remembered 9/11 on it's 10th anniversary and celebrated the miraculous recovery of Gabrielle Giffords.

On a personal note my year was an interesting one.

There were mountain camping adventures, the exploration of a few new states, pushing my own limits of learning and comfort with aviation and re-connecting with my passion for photography.
I found myself a little more reclusive, enjoying my quiet time and less motivated to host events than I have been in previous years.

Looking back on resolutions I made for 2011, I can honestly say I kept them.  All three of them!
It seems that in making my 2011 resolutions simple, achievable and a very short list, I had few problems remembering them or maintaining the momentum needed to carry them out.
Ok, admittedly that resolution to do ab-exercises was left until November... but never-the-less, I did them!

So... what does 2012 have in store for me? Lots.
All the good things I tried and liked last year, are on the cards for this year again.

I have a resolution to spend more time with my girlfriends in 2012.
Apparently it's all too easy to let work, babies, hobbies and the quiet enjoyment of being at home, come between myself and my friends... and before I know it, months have flown by and I feel a bit out of touch.

There will be flying, of course.
In 2012 I resolve to begin the process of becoming instrument rated and to fly more with friends.
It's also time to add back a bit of "structure" to my flying.
My goal is to maintain the skills I learned last year while developing new skills. As such, I have come up with a plan/checklist to track progress and hold myself accountable. In short... the goal is to do each thing on the list at least 2x/month.

I wasn't kidding when I said the list of resolutions is short.
There is something to be said for under-promising and over-delivering... Even when it's to yourself!


PS:  For a pdf copy of the above checklist, feel free to contact me.

Tequila Christmas Cake

It's the week before Xmas and like me, you are probably madly baking, purchasing last minute gifts, braving the crowds, tolerating the repetitive music and wishing that you had just a little time for yourself... to go FLY!

In the "spirit" of the holidays, I am going to share with you a secret family recipe.   
Well, maybe family tradition is more accurate?  Either way, it will get you to your "happy place" when flying is not an option.

Infamous Tequila Christmas Cake

1 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 cup water
1 tsp. salt
1 cup brown sugar
Lemon juice
4 large eggs
Nuts
1 bottle tequila
2 cups dried fruit

Sample the tequila to check quality.
Take a large bowl; check the tequila again to be sure it is of the highest quality. Repeat.
Turn on the electric mixer. Beat one cup of butter in a large fluffy bowl. 
Add 1 teaspoon of sugar. Beat again.
At this point, it is best to make sure the tequila is still OK. Try another cup just in case.
Turn off the mixerer thingy. Break 2 eegs and add to the bowl and chuck iin the cup of dried fruit. Pick the fruit up off the floor. Mix on the turner. If the fried druit getas stuck in the beaterers, just pry it loose with a drewscriver.
Sample the tequila to test for tonsisticity.
Next, sift 2 cups of salt, or something.
Check the tequila.
Now shift the lemon ice and strain your nuts. Add one table. Add a spoon of sugar, or somefink. Whatever you can find.
Greash the oven. Turn the cake tin 360 s and try not to fall over.
Don't forget to beat off the turner.
Finally, throw the bowl through the window. Finish the tequila and wipe the counter with the cat.

It almost goes without saying, Tequila Cake is best enjoyed on firm ground.  


Merry Christmas everyone!
Wishing you a safe, happy and warm holiday season. 

Happy, Healthy and Oh So Thankful!

Thanksgiving is my favorite American holiday.

Maybe that's because Thanksgiving doesn't involve gift giving and despite the early and earlier Black Friday sales, it is still the least commercial of all the holidays.
Or maybe it's because a holiday that sets us free to enjoy food and libations (including leftovers) without guilt and in good company, is totally worth celebrating!

I have a pretty nice life and am blessed to share it with folks who only seek to enrich it.

This last year has been one of intense learning, new friends (who I would proudly call family) and experiences and opportunities that I know I am very fortunate to have had.

A picture tells a thousand words... And these words, if spoken, would tell a story of beautiful landscapes and breathtaking sunsets, flying adventures, camping trips, sunny vacations, mountain escapes, scrumptious desserts, learning, laughter and love.

Yes, I am very thankful for all that I have, those whom I love and endless possibilities.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope this turns out well

The day Dick Bevington, pilot extraordinaire, gave me my mock check-ride, he made me promise to do an acrobatic flight with him after I was licensed.  I promised.

Two months later, he had "almost" cornered me at least three times at Air West.  Each time, I genuinely had other commitments and excuses.  Yesterday however, he managed to physically put a parachute on me as I was heading out on another flight!  I finally committed and agreed to a flight at 9am this morning.

First stop... A ground lesson, complete with VHS tape of maneuvers.
Am I too young to remember VHS?  No.  But I can't remember the last time I actually watched one either.
Dick gave me the run down on pre-flighting the Super Decathlon, what made it different and what we were going to do this morning.  He was sure to remind me that I was going to be doing most of the flying and he had "very little control from the back seat".  I told myself he was kidding.

Next, we did a pre-flight inspection and pushed the aircraft from the hangar.  Then it was time to get fitted snuggly with a parachute - and learn to walk semi-normally in it.
Dick tells me that fitting parachutes is one of his favorite parts... then later confesses, with a smirk, that he thought that might have sent me running to my car.

There is a proper way to get into the plane and I learned it.  Dick went about making sure I had my seat belt correct fastened and tightened.  It was at this time he said, without a smirk, "I hope this turns out well."

I know what you were thinking.  You read the title of this post and automatically assumed that I was the one having this thought....  Well, maybe given a few more minutes, I would have gotten there.
But yikes!  The instructor hoped, out loud, for a good outcome!

We had been previously discussing doctors and Dick had said "It's never a good sign when you hear the doctor say Whoops!"  I told Dick that a flight instructor saying "I hope this turns out well" is akin to a doctor saying "Whoops!".  Was that surprise I saw on his face?  Really?

I was front seat, Dick sat behind me.  He familiarized me with the instruments and controls and told me to "Memorize this attitude, Dallice... this is how we will land.", "Keep your feet over the rudder pedals so I know where those clodhoppers are at all times" and my favorite... "Don't touch the brakes.  If you do, there is nothing I can do to save us."

Along the same lines (as sure death) we covered the procedure for an emergency evacuation from the aircraft.  How to get rid of the door and dive out toward the tail, before pulling the D-ring on my chute.   Apparently if one is "fluttering toward the ground, in a spin", there may only be one hand to release the seatbelt, so that's how we practiced it.  Nervous much?  Me?

We were ready to go.

Upon take-off we headed north and sought to gain altitude over a low population area.
It wasn't long before Dick took the controls and demonstrated my first loop.  It was my turn next!

I watched the horizon disappear under the nose, then turned my head left (with difficulty under that amount of force) to see land under the wing through the mounted reference site.  Then there came the point in the loop when I heard Dick's voice over the intercom calling "look up" and I watched the horizon come into view through the top window... from the back, slowly working its way to the front windscreen again.

He repeated the process with an aileron roll.  Demonstrating, then talking me through it.

Like me, you may be wondering if I really got to fly the acrobatics, or was Dick subtly controlling the stick and rudder from behind me.  Dick was not a backseat driver.  He asked me afterwards, if I had felt his hands on my shoulders.  This was Dick's way of proving to a student that the instructors hands were no where near the controls and the student had completed the maneuver alone. Yikes, I did it!

Before calling it a day, Dick demonstrated other maneuvers for me.... A hammerhead and an inverted spin to name a couple.

I watched the airspeed indicator plummet from over 80 to 0 mph.  Interestingly the stall warning only came on briefly, despite the crazy pitches and low airspeed.  Also fascinating to me was that didn't feel very queasy... although a little more so after we landed.   The only "side effect" I felt, seemed to be a brief hot flush during one of the spins and a few seconds of mild dizziness.

Dick told me afterwards he wasn't surprised that I didn't pass out.  The thought had never occurred to me, but I looked at him, wondering why he wasn't surprised, anyway.  He read on my face, the need for him to elaborate and asked, "Were you afraid at any time or did you trust me?"  I responded that I did fully trust him.

According to Dick, apparently the highest risk of passing out (known as G-LOC/G-force loss of consciousness) comes when an increased G-force is coupled with fear.  Positive G-force increases blood pressure in the brain, but decreases the intraocular pressure within the eyes.  The first symptom is darkness moving slowly inward from the person's peripheral vision, until the tunnel of vision becomes smaller and smaller.  At the point at which there is only darkness, the person is still conscious... for a bit longer.  Then with a lack of consciousness, the once balanced headset, slips off.  A return to consciousness, which happens fairly quickly once the G-force is relieved, will invariably result in a sudden awareness of cabin noise!

I learned a lot from Dick today.  Plenty about flying in general, plenty about wings designed for flying inverted. But one of my favorite things, without question, was the insight into a man, who's blunt honesty and sense of humor had me smiling for a whole lot longer than the two hours we spent together.

I'm very grateful to Dick, for his generous introduction to acrobatic flying and my first Super Decathlon experience.

Mark's New Flight Student

I'm not one of those parents who thinks their "little one" is the most gifted of all his friends.  Mine is definitely the cutest though.  (He really, really is!)

Marley is seven years old.  I believe his exceptionally good behavior is mostly explained by the "slow learning" tendency he exhibits.  This year marked a milestone on his learning curve.  He opened a door and walked through it.  I know, I know... sounds fairly  advanced, right?  Umm, no.  We are talking about a door that was already ajar by about 6 inches.  For six and a half years, Marley has stood at said door, whined a bit and waited for someone to get up and open it.  It had to be wide enough that he didn't touch it while passing through the opening.  You get the picture?

Did I mention that my "little one" is a Golden Retriever, not an actual kid?

In all fairness, it's not that he was un-trainable.  By four months of age, he sat, stayed, came, laid down and could "drop it" on command.  Totally treat driven, his little brain was a sponge and his larger belly was always on the look out for the opportunity to earn a snack.

Marley never taught himself anything though... Unless you count the time that he learned to wash his face by licking his paws and wiping his face, all cat-like.  Apparently he is happy to take instruction from a 4 month old kitten as well as me.  Interestingly, the kitten offered no treat for skill well learned!

I digress.

While out at the airport recently, Marley tried to follow, as Mark climbed onto the wing of his Bonanza and stepped inside.  There was some whining as he had trouble figuring out how to best get up on the wing and he ended up waiting impatiently for Mark to rejoin him on the ground.

Mark and I apparently had the same question.  How would Marley do as a passenger, in the back seat of the Bonanza? Perhaps it was time to find out.

A short flight from Longmont (KLMO) to Greeley (KGXY) seemed like the right time to test the new flight student.

Boy, was Marley excited!  I gave him a little help climbing onto the wing, then he walked up to the door, passed behind the co-pilot seat and settled quickly on the back seat.  Like any good student, he sat upright, positioned beautifully,dead center to get the best view out of the windscreen and, at a glance, out of either of the side windows.

Im not sure that Marley realized when we took off.  At about 500' AGL he seemed surprised at the new view out the window, for sure.  He spent the next 15 minutes drooling excitedly, with his head between the two front seats... And like a good student, he stared outside about 80% of the time and monitored the instruments (I.E. pilot) the other 20%.



As a mother, I worried a little that he would get suddenly nauseated and not enjoy himself.  As a hungry woman, I simply worried that if he threw up on me, I would not have something else to change into and would have to forfeit breakfast at the Greeley Airport!

My fears were unfounded.  At Greeley he (kind of) gracefully exited the airplane and proceeded to do what any decent dog does.  He marked his territory and laid down for a nap in the shade while we ate inside.

The flight back to Longmont was just as exciting and just as uneventful.

With an introductory flight under his belt/collar, Marley received Mark's endorsement to fly from the back seat again in the near future.

Spiders in the House!

Is it just me, or is anyone else noticing an increase in the spider population

...in their house?!

It seems that not a day is going by before I find another common brown house spider doing laps of my rooms.  At first I wasn't too bothered by it, but they are big (>1"), they move fast and there have been several times where they have crossed the line, pushing me out of my comfort zone.

Episode #1:
I throw back the covers to get out of bed one morning, only to find I am sharing the bed with a light brown/whitish spider of decent size.  Only later did I identify him as a Brown Recluse!

Episode #2:
I was about to jump into the shower when I noticed a large spider run into the bathroom and hide behind the toilet.  It was late and I was tired, I let him be and continued on into the shower.  Grabbing my towel afterwards, I thought I felt a little tickle as I dried my back but nothing fell to the ground when I swatted.  Fast forward half and hour and as I'm drifting off in bed, I feel that tickle again, on my head this time.  I wiped at my hair only only to have a spider run down my forehead, over my eyes and across my mouth.  Yes, I yelled!  As the lamp came on I saw him, sitting happily on my comforter just 4" in front of my head.

These two episodes marked the end of my "live and let live" policy.  I was borderline zero tolerance after this and as such, the cobwebs that had been building for years in my garage began to bother me.  How many spider dreams have I had in the last month?  Too many!

Episode #3:
My foray into the crawlspace after the recent flooding in Boulder to pull out wet carpet and cardboard, also turned up old wood, a bed frame and other trash that came with the house.  It was icky, but had to be done.  If you read my post about drying out the crawlspace you will also know that I had a spider interaction under the house too.  A black widow appeared in front of me after I turned over wet wood and it disappeared back into the darkness about the time I began screaming.

Episode #4:
As I took a call on my cell in the front garden yesterday I watched 3 big brown house spiders dart out from under the ivy near the garage.  Like a gang they ran onto my driveway.  Then 2 zipped into my open garage!  Just seconds later I was unable to locate them and my tolerance ran out.  (It has been a trying week.)

I'm now the proud owner of a Shop Vac.  Many of the cobwebs are gone from the garage and the rest are living on borrowed time.  I don't do things by halves either.  The plan, when the crawlspace chaos is no longer a factor, is to clean out the garage, replace the window, insulate between the studs and drywall it.

I'm just one woman with a lot of other big plans too, but mark my words, that garage will not be a safe environment for spiders looking for cozy, dark corners by spring!


And just in case you are wondering;   The Common Brown House Spider is not dangerous, but the bites from the Black Widow and the Brown Recluse can be.

Black Widow:   Affects from a bite take about 20-60 minutes.  The bite itself is small... maybe double fanged, but the pain at the site is severe.  People can experience mild to severe symptoms including severe muscle cramps, abdominal pain, weakness, tremor.  In more severe cases you might also get nausea, vomiting, dizziness, chest pain and respiratory difficulties.  Life threatening reactions have only been seen in children or the elderly.

Brown Recluse:  The bite may not hurt initially.  Redness, pain and a blister at the site will follow.  Itching and mild to intense pain may occur for 2-8 hours after the bite. Necrosis follows a week or more after the bite and the ulcer may take months to heal.  Some people will have a systemic reaction which includes the breakdown of red blood cells.  Other symptoms include fever, chills, skin rash over the body, joint pain, nausea and vomiting.

What to do after a spider bite?

• Remain calm  (I know!  Easier said than done!)
• Apply cool cloth and/or ice.  (Do not apply a tourniquet.)
• Try to identify the spider or catch it.
• Seek medical attention if you have symptoms that are non-localized.

 Black Widow                                                         Brown Recluse

A Journey of a Thousand Steps...

When people come to me, ready and able to buy real estate... but unsure of the process and nervous of the commitment, I tell them this:

Buying or Selling real estate can be an intimidating process.  My job is to break the process down into a series of small steps. Each step is manageable and none of them is a surprise. We turn a seemingly overwhelming event into a guided, low-stress journey down a well worn path.  Of course it's hard work... but it's also fun and worth it.

Manitou Incline.  Less than a mile, but a 2000' elevation gain.  A series of small steps!
Photo courtesy of Bill Dayton

Learning to fly has been like this, for me.  As the saying goes..."How do you eat an elephant?  One bite at a time."

Remembering back to Day 1, I thought pre-flighting the plane was overwhelming.  Its called a what?  What is that for again?  What should I checking for?

Then I got INTO the airplane.... Oh dear!  So many instruments, knobs, and levers.  Forget knowing what they do and when to use them, just show me which ones not to touch so the plane doesn't crash!

My instructor, Mark Mantei, applies the same "principle of small bites", to learning to fly, that I do to real estate.  Did he let me take off at my first lesson?  Nooo.  We began with straight and level flight, then shallow turns and other basic maneuvers.   Once I was almost comfortable with something, we added another skill.  Soon, I was learning take-offs and talking on the radio.

Then came landings... they took a bit longer.  There was one day when I watched Mark's face, perplexed, after my less-than-elegant landing and actually asked him what he was thinking.  He replied honestly. "Why doesn't she get it?"

But I did eventually "get it", and like a fledgling, the day came to leave the nest. With a little push, I was on my own.

Solo.  Another step along the road.  An accomplishment for me and an accomplishment for my instructor too.

For the next 8 months, I flew mostly solo.  Sometimes just to play in the sky, other times, to complete student pilot flying requirements.





The small steps were adding up and Mark was under the impression I was almost ready for my check-ride.  Another little push... a little further from the nest.

Ok... it was a big step and required a big push!

Not only was Mark asking me every day, if I had booked my check-ride, but he made sure to ask in front of other people at Air West.  Crap!  Peer pressure!  An old, but effective tool.  Very soon Mark had Larry, Lori, Cody and many more, also asking me when I was going to sit my check-ride.

In all honesty, I recognize that without the support and encouragement of my friends at Air West, I might still be flying solo... a "forever student".  I could not ask for a better team and learning environment.

But mostly, there were two men who were instrumental from start to finish...

Osman, who took one look at my bucket list and arranged my first flying lesson.  He found me an instructor that would understand me and he turned a blind eye to the hole I was putting in our joint bank account.  Osman covered me at work and listened to my aviation ramblings for over a year before I was officially a pilot... then he dared to be my first passenger!
(I only hope I can be as useful when it's his turn to learn to fly.)

And Mark.  The CFI that was able to take me, a girl challenged by math and physics, and turn her into someone who could convince a FAA examiner that she was good enough to have earned a private pilot license.  I swear, no bribery involved!  All it took was 45+ hours of Mark flying with me, hundreds of hours explaining stuff online with me, the patience of a saint and the ears of a seasoned therapist!
(My conclusion... CFI's don't get paid enough and must be in it for the love of teaching and flying.)

Check-ride Part 3

It was "practical examination day".  Sunny, warm, calm.

FAA examiner, Bev Cameron, watched me do a thorough pre-flight inspection.  Nothing escaped her and at various points she asked me what I was looking for and why.  What would I do if I found this or that?  What would it mean for flying that day?

We jumped in and got situated.  Well, I jumped in and Bev, a tad older and shorter than me and with her boat cushion/booster seat in hand, kind of climbed in.  End result... the two of us, snuggly fitted into Cessna 65440 and ready for action!

All pilots know that checklists are important.  Pre-flight inspection lists, pre-start up list, pre-take off lists.  They were never more important than that day.  Failure to reference a checklist was just that... failure!  And Bev was watching everything I did.

I started the engine, checked weather once again, radio'd my intentions and set off to the end of runway 29, in calm winds.  Of course just about the time run-up was complete, 3 or more other aircraft announced their intentions too.  A take-off at runway 11 and two landings... at 11.  Drat!  Best to taxi back to 11 and go with the flow.

First things first... a short field take-off with a 50' obstacle.  Not a problem.  Could have put flaps up a bit earlier, but definitely cleared the imaginary obstacle, tracked the runway, and was safe.  Bev reminded me that a good way to double check the obstacle was cleared, was to quickly look at the altimeter.  Good to remember.... and served as another reminder why I liked Bev.  She added value.

I turned to my first heading, did a clearing turn and began flying the first leg of the cross country I had planned.  It was a bit of a challenge, having another person in the cockpit.  After all, she took up the seat that had traditionally been "my desk".

I was on track, the times were working out nicely and ground speed too. I passed over each visual checkpoint as planned and was able to point out the landmarks and identify them on the chart.  Just one thing not going quite right... I was having trouble getting my VOR right.  Was it me or the VOR having problems?  The more I thought about it the more it bothered me.  Later Bev and I talked about this distraction and how she had wished I had just turned it off instead of going back to it again and again.  The truth was that I didn't need it to navigate right then and should have turned it off.  My other navigation was serving us just fine and we were on track. By the way, Bev asked me what the "other navigation" was called.  Yes, pilotage.

Shortly after this cross country bit, Bev asked me to turn us to the west and prepare myself for the foggles (view limiting device) portion.  "You've got the plane", "I've got the plane", "You've got the plane" was exchanged as she took control while I stowed and un-stowed equipment, then put on the foggles. We did climbs, descents, standard rate turns and recovery from unusual attitudes - which has always been a favorite.  My belly was twisted in knots of anxiety and I know I didn't do as well as the other times I have practiced this.  When the foggles came off, I was able to identify where we were pretty quickly, as asked.  Several small bodies of water and a main road tipped me off that I was between Longmont and Boulder.  We had flown quite a bit further than I thought we had, but I'm guessing it was no accident we were still within the bounds of the chart I had open!

Over a low population density area, Bev asked me to get the airplane ready for slow flight.   This portion went fairly quickly... slow with turns, climbs etc.  Then I got to chose which stalls we did first.  Power-off please!  (I like to work up to the power-on stalls.)  After a couple of nice full power-off stalls it was time for the power-on ones.  For me the hardest part is keeping the airplane straight when pointed at a clear blue sky, with no cloud references.  I think I could have slowed 65440 down a tad more before going to full power and pitching up, but it seemed I kept on heading ok and my recovery wasn't too bad either.  Bev then asked for a power on stall in a turn.  I was honest and told her I had never done these.  I was able to answer questions about stall-spins and recite the checklist for a spin recovery - as memorized from the POH.  Bev asked if she could demonstrate the power-on stall in a  turn, and I gave her control of the aircraft.

I was actually having fun now!  Bev showed me the stall, then I followed her instruction and repeated the maneuver.  I remember at one point, the stall warning going off loudly, the nose pitched up and to the right and Bev asking me "What causes a stall spin?".  I immediately looked at the turn coordinator... "Being uncoordinated" I said, as I jammed a foot harder onto the rudder peddle to correct myself!  She smiled.   I recovered from the imminent stall and cleared my mind, ready for the next instruction.

Just as I prepared for more flying maneuvers, I "lost the engine".  Simulated engine roughness or failure was only a matter of time in a check-ride.  I had practiced this more than once with Mark and Dick and luckily, Colorado is full of fields, just waiting for an emergency landing.   I knew to verbally run through the list of possible causes and how to attempt to restart the plane, but before I could get most of it out, Bev looked at me and said, "Its not any of the common things you are going to check for, and you can't restart the plane".  Ok... so we are going in for an emergency landing then!

I pitched for optimum glide speed and picked the field.  After a quick descent, carb heat on and flaps down, I was on final approach.  About 500' above the field, I was told that I could go around.  (Phew!  I wouldn't be spending my Sunday picking corn husks off this Cessna 152 after all!)  I had full power back and slowly retracted flaps, as I climbed.  We talked about what made a good emergency landing field, why I chose the direction of landing and what to be careful for.  Obstacles, irrigation ditches and deep plowing ruts were obviously not ideal, landing into the wind was.

Steep turns ensued.  No drama, no problem.  I can say from experience that some days steep turns are a cinch and other days I'm struggling to understand why I cant maintain altitude and angle of bank very well at all.  This day was a good one.  We then began S-turns.  I think I got about a half turn completed when Bev said we were done with those too.  And there was no "turns around a point" during my check-ride.

Now half way between Longmont Airport (Vance Brand) and Fort Collin-Loveland Airport, I was asked if I would prefer to do some landings at either one.  Since I was tuned to Fort Collins and could hear plenty of traffic, I took a chance and opted for Longmont... my home turf.  It paid off.  There were maybe two other aircraft in the landing pattern.

I almost forgot to mention;  On the way back to Longmont, I encountered simulated engine roughness!  This time I knew what Bev had spotted. The woman thinks on her feet!  There is a private airstrip near Berthoud and she had seen it out her window.  She had me quickly determine whether or not I should land, where I might land and why.  We talked about the legality of landing on private strips and whether or not my engine roughness was a real emergency.  I concluded, after running through the possible causes, it was not (yet) and would make haste to Longmont airport and land as soon as practicable.   Also on the way back we did some VOR work. I was able to find which radials I was one, for 2 different VOR's and estimate where I was on the chart.  She asked me questions about my bearing and which radial I was on.  She had me demonstrate finding my radial, then turning to the heading that would take me to that VOR.

Once on downwind at Longmont, Bev asked me to pick the place on the runway I would touch down on, then asked for a short field landing, no obstacle.   In talking later, she informed me I was a bit short of my chosen touchdown point...Oops!  We taxi'd back and did a soft field take off, then a soft field landing, before taxiing back to the ramp to park and tie down.

It's a little weird to ask your examiner to help you park, but Im a light-weight and pushing down on the tail to turn the plane, in order to get it into its tie-down spot, is pretty much impossible for me!  Like the rest of my experience with Bev, I found she was very willing to help and again, I was better off for it.

Im sure Im missing stuff, but this how it went for the most part. It took about 1.25 hours in all.
We discussed most of her notes before exiting the airplane. Then it was just a matter of getting back into IACRA and her printing me off a temporary private pilot license to finish up.  (Easier said than done... that site is not exactly intuitive!)

I would like to say I was overcome with emotion... that a great sense of relief flooded over me and I couldn't stop smiling.  But the truth was, that came hours later!  It takes a while to discharge deep seeded anxiety, to fully comprehend that there is now time and brain space for something other than check-ride preparations.

For me, it just felt good to be leaving the airport a bit lighter.  To be able to enjoy food again, to sleep long and deep and enjoy quality time with the people that have long supported me.

A sense of tremendous accomplishment didn't really hit me until the morning I opened my little white envelope from the FAA and found this: