Limits

Over the weekend, I did my first complete solo flight, by which I mean I went to the airport, checked out the plane, flew, and parked, all without seeing Joel at all.

It was a beautiful day ceiling- and visibility-wise, and quite warm...but it was also windy. Joel has set a 10-knot limit on winds for me, and I stayed within that, but just barely. The wind was also gusting quite a bit, which made things rather uncomfortable. So much so that I completed two pattern circuits and stopped.

I definitely bumped up against my limits of comfort, if not ability. I subsequently spoke to Joel about it, and he said I was still well within my abilities to land safely, but that the feelings of discomfort and uncertainty are normal. That made me feel better. I think it will be better to push more gradually on my experience envelope, rather than all in one day!

As a bonus, my mom is in town and was able to observe the flight (from the ground of course). She went through the pre-flight with me; my intent was to increase her comfort with the safety of the aircraft and the pre-flight inspection, but I'm not sure that succeeded. She didn't seem too nervous for me. I was proud to be able to show her what I've learned. Even at 38, it's still fun to be able to say, "Look, Mom, at what I can do!"