@@wjmayers howdy! Maybe see you in Ellenville on a North West day? Best wishes with the flight training- don’t rush through, it’s not a to-do list it’s important to learn each piece along the way. The school tends to scurry people through the syllabus but often they get hung up at stage checks because of a deficiency or two that might not have existed if the progression wasn’t stacked so tightly. Keep the blue side up and the brown side down 😎
Happy to help best I can. There *are* practical ways to work up to loops, so don’t just go for it one day 👍 I very much believe it’s just like hang gliding and with practice, skills and knowledge they can be repeatable with acceptable risk margins if the desire is there (risk vs reward)
No one is more surprised by how many views this has than me! But I think hang gliding is an interesting subject to a lot of people, and the fundamentals of how to teach something are applicable to anything and everything…
I totally agree that piston aircraft engines are extremely antiquated! The systems that control ignition and fuel delivery were designed prior to WWII and have not changed. I would argue that a significant portion of their reliability is dependent on the pilot remembering to do the right thing at the right time. This increases pilot workload and distracts from actually flying the plane. Even then the mechanical systems in use today are crude, and don't optimally operate the engine. If the pilot isn't paying attention engine failure due to improper mixture control can happen in a matter of minutes. Mike Busch from Savvy Aviation argues that replacing the mechanical ignition and carburetor systems presently in use with their electronic equivalents as has been done with car engine for the last 40 years will make the engines 10x more reliable. Unfortunately, when the requirements for certified engines were written no one had ever conceived of the possibility of more automated engine controls so the requirements were prescriptive instead of performance based so we have been stuck with what we have. In experimental aircraft electronic fuel injection and electronic ignition are possible and in use.
I was fortunate to get some time flying some Diamonds that have the Austro engines (fully FADEC Mercedes engines modified for Jet A) and the simplicity and efficiency of use was great. There were definitely some annoyances, like ECU codes that would require maintenance clearing with a laptop, or replacing sensors that were faulty. The tolerances between the two ECU’s self checks are very narrow from my understanding. But if flight the mixture was always correct regardless of power settings and density altitudes, and that kept the engine and oil temps nicely consistent, which must be better for longevity. Like you said, “experimental” aviation is so far ahead in so many ways. If I were to ever buy a plane that’s where I’d probably have to be.
...That was me...I crept up to NW launch 3 times during most blown-out portion of last Friday...about 3:30 to 5:45pm...and strong winds were mostly crossing from WSW some SSW and occasional (but still crossing) west cycles. That morning, I noted the 'big picture' of that great big Low-pressure system centered hundreds of miles almost due north, driving the stronger winds, augmented by Highs to the south and west; also noted how much extra wind there was around Albany area, VT, NH, etc. I chatted with wire crew, well aware I could and did have a long but educational wait for mellow-enough air for my single-surface, large, lightly-loaded wings of my Falcon 195. I feel bit badly that I squandered some time among each of the crew, all (much more) experienced pilots than me. After 15 minutes, I withdrew from launch with their help, removed harness, waited in wind shadows a little while, hooked back in, ventured to launch 2nd time, watched very consistently strong and crossing wind some more minutes, again unhooked, and after 30 more minutes, saw another HG starting to penetrate well forward of launch after being 'parked' or even drifting tiny bit backward well above our heads. Seeing that, just the larger and more numerous cloud shadows as a collection of cumies formed for about 90 minutes before all dissipating, influenced my decision to suit up once more, move to NW launch, and await a decent cycle. Air was much straighter in, velocity diminished a bit, and I safely took off, steadily climbing and finding, as anticipated, smooth air once aloft and well clear of launch. I ventured back no more than about 250 feet above launch (and that was when I was 600-plus feet above it), adapting my flight plan to the sustained robust winds...no 'benching up' further back, and staying way in front of the long ridge's crest. I 'boxed' launch for a while, cruising in wide circle a bit beyond the periphery of pilots, winds, and vehicles, then headed north and landed after 45 minutes in the mellow LZ.
Oh Yes, Ryan is very highly talented and experienced with only with years of soaring but also with deep, keen, accurate insights into weather & winds ranging from comparatively "little" Ellenville area to the big planet-girdling picture!
I meant to mention it in the first take but left my notebook home and just winged it in one quick take… watched it later and was like aw crap that’s a big deal piece of the puzzle to leave off. Thanks for watching!
...I probably am at least partly responsible for (some of) those gray hairs...looking like I was going to launch into such strong winds...and is partly probably why I have not gray hair, but white hair. yipe.
In the 21st. c, we have a lot of resources to assess flying potential. We need to learn to read them www.weather.gov/source/zhu/ZHU_Training_Page/convective_parameters/skewt/skewtinfo.html
That was brilliant Ryan. This is exactly rhe kind of thing I'm incorporating in the simulation, to help pilots correlate soundings and barometric pressure with the character of the soaring experience. Clearly articulated, sussinct, and spot on.
It sounds like you embraced the self-teaching / pre-prepared for your in-air lesson method...I have taken that approach with teaching hang gliding as I have extensive to-do lists all along my process. Do you agree with applying that concept to how you teach hang gliding? I found it makes our valuable in-person time much more productive. Most students embrace it and I find those that do (ie do the homework) excel and do so quickly
It’s a great methodology when it works, but it often fails. People are busy, so unless they are taking time off work to train, some don’t have the time/priorities to do the home study. Especially in hang gliding, which attracts free spirited adventures (read: ADHD types 😂) home self-driven study might as well be kryptonite. A thing I loved about the small scale of HG instruction was the social aspect, learning each student and tailoring their instruction to the way they learn (to the best of my abilities anyway). Commercial aviation isn’t warm and fuzzy at all, and that’s a big strength for hang gliding- and a reason people will “stick” because there’s way better sense of community and belonging to something. IMHO
Excellent video Ryan! You encapsulated the path to becoming a pilot very well with regard to the potential barriers of achieving that goal. Wish we had had a chance to have several long conversations before you moved and embarked on the path.
Thanks Dave! I definitely could have leaned more into the available resources I had- good friends like you, established in the industry- a lot better before I started. To be honest I thought, with your air force experience and credentials, it was apples and oranges between us. I did talk to a number of people and got some good advice... but I also found some things were a bit different for me than expected, and I think part of that is the flight training environment and the CFI-level has changed a bit since my advisors (mostly senior captains who trained a while ago) got their start. As we've seen in hang gliding instruction also- insurance companies have continued to raise the costs and requirements, so many of those "low time pilot" jobs have become more like "medium time jobs". It is what it is, but I wanted to do my part to share what I learned and help future pilots prepare for what's ahead.
Yeah, I can see how my experiences would have led you that direction. Little known though is that I started as a private pilot before I went the Air Force route.. Currently my daughter is doing your route and son Sam started with his private as well. Regardless, your video was quite good as to the route you chose. I look forward to seeing your next moves!
Went the performance route after hang gliding. Sailplanes, power, etc. Not flying anymore. It's funny, when driving past a field even now I'm immediately looking at landing options based on wind/terrain/obstructions. My wife who drove for me and friends all those years, chasing us on Ham radio (yes, she did just that, thru BS backroads and restrictions I can't imagine) asking what I'm looking at. I play kinda dumb, but she knows EXACTLY what I'm looking at. To me the most fun was simply soaring with a low enough wing loading to make it work. Thanks for the video!
Sounds great. I knew your father from back in the 80's flying in the finger lakes area of NewYork. It's amusing to watch gliders evolve and in this case families involved in hang gliding. I have flown a few of the sites I see on your CH and it's so cool to see them once again from above. luv it..thx
@@RyanVoight How was your experience with the CFI training over there? I’m assigned with the CFI accelerated program starts at Feb. 5th. Really wondering how it will be. Nice to meet you!!!
@@AnguoChen mostly good. Loved the DA40, and the location (non-towered airport, but near towered fields and easy reach of NY and Albany airspace). Those are probably the biggest reasons to choose that school over another. Although the school owner and airport manager are enemies which can create some annoying friction at times 😂
@@AnguoChen the biggest tip I can give is stay on top of the online course and home studying. They try to save you time & money by basically having you teach yourself and then when you fly with an instructor you try it out and they check for understanding. It’s pretty tough to be honest, but considering instructors are still learning too it’s a whole system built to minimize how good of a “teacher” flight instructors need to be. They are pilots first and teachers second, if that makes sense. Follow the syllabus so you know what you’re doing in the next flight lesson and always show up ready to rock it and you’ll do great. Oh- and write down questions as they come up in studying so you don’t forget and can ask an instructor- and ask for the reference so you’re not taking their word for it, but learning where to look up future similar questions 👍
Miss those days !!! Paul V was my teacher. flew with 2 buddies Kevin and Colin. Long,long,time ago. Beautiful flight Ryan. These days the only flying I do is FPV'ing.
EN 1985 ,..TU PADRE PAUL ME ENSEÑO A VOLAR HANG GLIDER,...AHI EN ELLENVILLE,..CUANDO EL TRABAJABA CON GREG BLACK EN KERONSON,..TU PADRE HISO TODO LO POSIBLE,...EL SABIA QUE YO NO HABLO INGLES,.....A PESAR DE TODO APRENDI BASTANTE,,...MY FIRST HANG GLIDER "VISION 18" PACIFIC WINDCRAFT,.....INCLUSIVE,.... VISITE TU ANTIGUA CASA EN EL BOSQUE DE PINE BUSH,.....Y VOLE EN EL TRIKE DE PAUL,.....SALUDOS!....👍🇵🇷
Click and drag on the picture to turn the camera. Or watch the video I posted a couple days ago that also has this footage in it, but I did the editing so you don’t have to move the camera.
