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Heather

HeatherP & M Quik; Air Creation Pixel, Tanarg, Skypper, Clipper, Racer; Revo; North Wing Navajo

300+ solo

Petaluma; Gnoss; Aubenas, France; Healdsburg; Shawnee Field; Cloverdale; Sonoma Skypark; Ukiah; Sea Ranch; Nut Tree; Napa; Carson City; Mindon; Santa Rosa; Concord PIC, bunch of others dual.

Girls Fly

Heather
By Heather
  • 4 of 12
Girls Fly

Comments

  • white eagle
    white eagle

     Very cool heather and i love that quik. I admire the fact that  you and sally tucker take the helm. My wife sonya loves to fly. She has flown georges astra from the backseat, I never thought id hear the end of it. Weve talked about getting her lessons  but i have reservations. Not.like i would prevent her. I just dont want to be the motivating factor.I learned in hang gliding that its not a good idea to encourage everyone.So its like fiddler on the roof  on one hand but on the other hand.Any advice?

  • Leo
    Leo

    I feel ya there W.E. I never push anyone into anything, flying included. Those that have the passion to fly will do so naturaly. 

    On another note, I love the Quik. Chris and I spent quite sometime talking about his, and the performance is fantastic on these trikes. Never know.....I may just be talking to Tony Castillo one day. ;) Great Pic Heather. :)

  • white eagle
    white eagle

    Thanks leo. Well sonya wants to fly its just that part when were driving that i ask her to turn right and she gos left that worry me. Yes  i met chriss at bonner and that was the first qick i have seen .looks awesome chris ought to get a dark vader helmet. Very nice looking trike. 

  • Heather
    Heather

    Thanks white eagle. I too have had a front row seat watching guy hang glider pilots talk their girlfriends/wives into flying. It never ended well. I was single when I started - It's something you want to do or you don't. However, I think a lot of women just don't consider flying a possibility. I was lucky in that there were and are a lot of women hang glider pilots in the SF bay area. I think HG/triking has a macho/risk-taking image - when general aviation pilots ask what I fly, they inevitably respond with some variant of "you're a daredevil." As far as I can tell, we have an image problem.

    I'm with both white eagle & Leo in that it's a bad idea to pressure someone and enthusiastic encouraging can become that. People often say they'd like to fly with me - I don't make a plan right then. I tell them to call or otherwise make an effort to show me they really want to. Most of the time, it doesn't happen. So white eagle, my advice is to make it easy for your wife to begin lessons, and let her know you'll support her, but she'll have to take the initiative.

    Leo - I'm having great fun with the Quik :D Since I can't depend on much upper-body strength, it works for me to have a small wing with high wing-loading. I'd like to try some of the newer models myself!

  • Leo
    Leo

    @W.E "chris ought to get a dark vader helmet." LMAO! 

    @Heather, Totally! If you get the chance check em out! As for the comments being made towards you/women in general, I think it's safe to say we're still in the dark ages when it comes to these things. 

    Although guys don't tend to get as "much" of those comments, I personally have friends who completely disapprove of my choice to fly. So much in fact, they will go out of their way to avoid "Liking" any post that has to do with flying on my Facebook, but wil gladly like anything outside of this genre. 

    It's a people perception issue. You know, it's funny....my drive to work 55/55 (110 total) is far more dangerous than flying. I wish those same people would encourage me to stay home and quit work in the name of safety.

    : /

  • Heather
    Heather

    Leo - you're right, risk perception is a funny thing. I once had somebody tell me I shouldn't fly because if I got hurt, that put a burden on everybody's health insurance premiums. I looked her in the eye and said, "so you are willing to give up using your phone while you drive for the good of everybody's insurance?" (she is a constant caller/texter). You can guess the answer.

  • Wile E Scott
    Wile E Scott

    Arrg! Heather, self righteous types!! The worst... If you want to set me off start judging me without education. I'm getting a lot of heat about how "dangerous" my hobby is too. Granted no one who has actually flown with me. I recently took my friend Mike out and he was at first nervous. I took us up to 1k and set the engine back to idle. Gorgeous day out, silky smooth air and my wing is tuned perfect. I let go of the bar and pointed to my throttle foot hovering off the accelerator and said, “this is the aircraft flying itself. If the engine went out right now, it would do this.” He watched for 15sec and said, “well that’s boring”. After that he was fine with the whole flight and wanted me to push it into fun territory as far as I am comfortable.

    People see these “strange” aircraft and don’t understand them. We fear what we don’t understand. Small engines, no rudder, no elevator, no tail at all, one bolt to rule them all; I can tell you that even most of the GA guys won’t fly in my trike. Heck I’ve even got a Tanarg with a 912 now! Debate all you want about 912 vs 582 but I’ve flown both and I’m happier with my 912.

    We really do have an image problem. Not sure how to fix it so I guess we just have to live with it.

  • white eagle
    white eagle

    Hi everyone great discussion   when i was landing once a guy came up to me driving a cafe racing bike .he was like narly man but you wouldnt catch me in that thing there so dangerous. He popped a wheelie as he sped away at 100 mph and almost hit a car head on.

     

        Ever scince i was a baby i had severe flying dreams ,flapping my arms up above a grocery store parking lot . Flapping my arms really trying i could get above the streetlamps. I was telling people you really can fly if you try. Our dreams are premanitions of our future. I would never be happy being one of those who wake up punch the time clock come home watch tv. Like the only purpose in flying is to follow the fishing boats begging for sardines. Iam not happy hanging with the latest gossip at the local pub. Id rather meet the others that can step out and away from the boaring norm and transend to some beach for a fly in. Without us america would never be discovered ,the moon would still be cheese. And if we were in a boat and went to far we would be attacked by dragons and fall into the abiss. Well if a chomelliean has any personal will in developing chamoflauge. Than in my dreams iam developing eagles wings.(white by the way) scott , leo, heather glad to have you as friends scincerily jonathan(david)gull

  • Wile E Scott
    Wile E Scott

    Right back at you WE! Love the Jonathan gull slant BTW. Look very forward to a fireside chat someday.

  • Leo
    Leo

    Same here! I don't think every pilot shares the same passion of flight as some of us do. I've seen pilots treat it as if they just stepped out on an elevator. : /

     

  • Rick D
    Rick D

    Rock on, I agree with all of your passions for flight! Most fun you can have with your pants on...OK, you don't have to have your pants on but it is less embarrassing taxiing back to the hangar. David, I too have dreamt of flying since I could walk. My dreams were running down the road, leaning over as I put my arms out and off I would fly. Flying a trike for Deb and I is the ultimate!

  • white eagle
    white eagle

    Thanks  you guys you know rick its inspiring to see you and debbie fly.leo is definatly talented. Scott  the tanarg is my favorite  someday ill have one

    I think we took over heathers picture.    well it inspired us nice to see friends having fun flying.

  • Heather
    Heather

    You guys take it away - reading all this makes for the best evening I've had for a while