New student pilot apprehensions

Hi all,

I’m a new student glider pilot. I have a grand total of 77 minutes
flying time in six flights. The challenge of all of this has been
immensely satisfying.

I’m hoping yall can help me out with some “okay, that was a little
different than I expected” items.

First, when I am flying straight and level, the glider does not follow
a direct path, but rather is buffeted about a little bit. The nose
will go a little left and right and also up and down and I have to
make small adjustments with the stick. My instructor noticed I tend
to way over correct. In my youth, I played those very primitive
flight simulators (Apple II SimLogic anyone?) in which the flight was
ice-smooth, just like an arrow, I suppose. “Real life” isn’t like
that in gliders, apparently?

The tow rope keeps me up at night. Aerotow freaks me out. With my
inexperience in coordinated flight, I am terrified that these
oscillations I get into will upset the tow plane (and pilot). I feel
I’m doing this left bank, right bank, over correct, left, right, left
right…. I know my instructor is back there. This stuff does get
easier doesn’t it? I mean 14 year-olds do this…. (I’m 33.) My last
instructor (I’m in a gliding club in which we have a different
instructor each week), demonstrated boxing the wake and I was sure the
rope was going to break….but it didn’t, even going through the prop
wash of the tow plane.

And speaking of the tow rope. I need to get more confidence in it.
When that rope gets taught, I freeze up. I am terrified of it
breaking. However, I recently ran across a video (It’s on the SSA
site) of a real rope break. It really was no big deal. The rope
broke, the glider had a momentary shudder, the pilot muttered
something, then calmly landed the glider. It was no big deal. I
need more confidence in the rope!

I’ve been grounded for two weeks due to the flu, but I can’t wait to
get back up in the air!


--Michael