Checkride prep flight first thing this morning. She can fly, but she keeps forgetting the important other things.  Radio calls, checklists, clearing turns, etc.  She wants everyone to tell her what to do every time, and instead she needs to be pilot in command.  Her checkride is in less than two weeks, so I hope she gets it together.

Lunch at Glenndale today was chicken and noodles, and veggies, and desserts.  I ate too much today, but it was pretty nice, and we had a decent sized group for one of the first times since we shut down last year for Covid.

I was supposed to fly at 2, but instead our Cherokee 180 was ready to bring back from Illinois.  So I flew the guy (Dan) I was supposed to fly with at 2, and Steve, over in the 172RG.  Steve flew the 180 home, and I followed behind him in the RG.  It took me 60 miles to catch him and I took off right after he left the pattern, so that's a pretty speedy 180!  At the end I caught up to him and we did a little formation.  I felt pretty rusty, actually.  Dan loved it though.  I kept a reasonable distance away just in case.

I stopped at Steak n Shake for dinner, Steve is on the deck with his friends, and I'm sitting in here trying not to be sleepy.  I'm really glad to have the 180 home finally though.  Tomorrow we were supposed to fly to lunch, but with 30 knot winds, the other guy in the other plane can't do it so if he can't do it, the rest of us can't go without him, and the other plane is already full.  So we'll go to Bob Evans in the morning for brunch instead.  It's not flying, nor as fun, but it's something to do.  ;)

There's a lady named Piper who is one of those people who always has one problem after the other, has been to just about every flight school in Ohio and Indiana, has won a couple scholarships to do her ratings, but has over 200 hours and can't get anywhere.  Now she asked for places that have low wing airplanes to do Instrument training in because she can't land a 172 and her instructors keep taking over and not listening to her and she has a fear of 172s because an instructor spun one on her once accidentally and she can't land them but she doesn't want the instructor touching it and taking it away from her and making her feel incapable too, etc.  People tried to help her with her problem, but she's one of those people where no matter what solution you provide, no matter what you say, it won't work. A few people listed a few places and she said "I already flew there" or "I used to fly there until my CFI moved" or "that's too long a drive away".  Anyone trying to help with the 172 problem or asking why that has to do with instrument flying she shuts down and says "I'm not asking for help on that I just need a new instructor and plane".  But she's used up all the instructors and planes around.  WE have a low wing plane you could use to get your instrument rating, but I'm not offering it, because she's the problem person who will then just trash you, your business, your plane, and your mama, all quite publicly online like she has every other place, before she hunts for the next solution to her problem.  She doesn't realize that she is her own biggest problem, and her only real solution.  It's hard to listen to her constant complaining and whining and deflecting though.

Lafayette from 5500' in the 172RG

Me coming up behind the Cherokee

There she is.  :)