Hello from Chicago

Pilot? Student pilot? Future pilot? Interested in learning to fly? If you're reading this forum, you've got flying in your blood! SportPilotTalk is a great place to ask questions about this exciting new segment of (more) affordable aviation!

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chicagorandy
Posts: 277
Joined: Fri Sep 08, 2017 2:39 pm

Hello from Chicago

Post by chicagorandy »

I'm 68, retired, been in the EAA for over 20 yrs, worked AirVenture as a Tram conductor since 2004 and up until two days ago had NEVER been up in any sort of small airplane. Army helicopters in Vietnam? Yes. Commercial aircraft? Yes. But small planes? Not once.

I was out on a glorious weather motorcycle ride Saturday and pure chance and a Rte 52 detour put me riding right past Cushing Field, a grass strip airport near Sheridan, IL. I saw a sign that said Sport Pilot training and pulled in to check it out. I ended up spending a couple hours there just chatting with a few folks and watching their instructors/students take off and land their two Evektor Sport planes.

Call it serendipity or the fates, but it came to me to finally take the leap and I bought a Discovery Flight right then and there. It was terrifyingly terrific, info and sensory overload kept me trying to catch up to the plane, but I managed to remain calm enough to do the takeoff, ascent and in general flit about the clear blue skies under the adept guidance of my instructor Jake. I brought us back down from 3000' and did part of the downwind leg and he of course ably landed the very fine airplane.

Suffice it to say that I am now hooked and will explore how to gather enough $$$ over the next months to pay for the complete training package as a Sport Pilot. I don't want to even start until I am financially secure to finish and a little beyond.

That's my into - I'll now start reading all the posts on this new-to-me forum - lol
Last edited by chicagorandy on Mon Sep 11, 2017 10:36 am, edited 1 time in total.
"Don't believe everything you read on the internet" - Abraham Lincoln
3Dreaming
Posts: 3106
Joined: Sun Jan 10, 2010 6:13 pm
Location: noble, IL USA

Re: Hello from Chicago

Post by 3Dreaming »

Good luck with your endeavor.
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joey4420
Posts: 150
Joined: Tue Nov 22, 2016 8:25 am
Location: Cincinnati Ohio

Re: Hello from Chicago

Post by joey4420 »

Welcome to the forum and the wonderful world of flying. My sport pilot ticket cost me around $6500 if I recall correctly not including the headset I spent a lot on (Clarity Aloft with Bluetooth option). I also did my ground school online which I am sure saved me some money as well. Might not be a bad idea to do this and have it done before you start training, and take the written test.
Joey
Cincinnati OH
Sport Pilot
Double Eagle N35DE
chicagorandy
Posts: 277
Joined: Fri Sep 08, 2017 2:39 pm

Re: Hello from Chicago

Post by chicagorandy »

I saw some Gleim boxed Sport Pilot kits at the airport and know that they are carried at Amazon - I was planning on doing some sort of 'online' ground school and passing the FAA written before starting flight training.

Amazon carries the Gleim product which I think I'll use for my at-home ground school.
"Don't believe everything you read on the internet" - Abraham Lincoln
HAPPYDAN
Posts: 390
Joined: Mon Mar 16, 2015 11:49 am

Re: Hello from Chicago

Post by HAPPYDAN »

Sporty's online course is highly recommended, and it's the one EAA Sport Pilot Academy uses. Good Luck with whatever you decide to do. So were you the guy with "CAUTION - WAKE TURBULENCE" sign on the back of the tram?
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joey4420
Posts: 150
Joined: Tue Nov 22, 2016 8:25 am
Location: Cincinnati Ohio

Re: Hello from Chicago

Post by joey4420 »

I used sporty's online course and passed my written first time.
Joey
Cincinnati OH
Sport Pilot
Double Eagle N35DE
tevbax
Posts: 9
Joined: Tue Feb 28, 2017 2:01 pm

Re: Hello from Chicago

Post by tevbax »

Welcome! I'm just about to do my check ride up in Racine (KRAC). I used the gleim books and online practice tests and really liked them. I would also recommend picking up the pts https://www.faa.gov/training_testing/te ... 081-29.pdf or get the hard copy from Amazon.

Enjoy it, its a ton of fun!
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Jim Hardin
Posts: 274
Joined: Fri Feb 10, 2017 1:33 pm

Re: Hello from Chicago

Post by Jim Hardin »

Keep us up to date on your progress and of course if you have any questions or want a second opinion on anything, this is the place :D
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