Thanks for the compliment!BrianL99 wrote:
FastEddie and a few others on here ... now they're pilots!
But we're virtually all pilots here - barring those here who may not have yet started training.
We can talk about pilots and pilots and aviators and even, disparagingly, of "airplane drivers", but I'm not sure to what end.
Let me put forth that I recognize that, throughout my career I have been, at best, an average pilot. I took a fair number of hours to solo, needed some additional training beyond the 141 syllabus to get my Private, and really nothing ever came easy.
On the plus side, I'm good at written tests, so always did well there. And I never failed a checkride.
And thankfully, to date, no accidents or violations, though I have admittedly bent and scraped a few small parts along the way.
But if any of my skills now are now above average, it's mainly due to repetition and the insights gained from years of instructing.
I also recognize that my skills may be waning, both from the ravages of age, and lack of practice. It's humbling to admit I used to be a better pilot, but as Dirty Harry said, "A man's got to know his limitations". And it is what it is.
Anyway, I think it's important to realize one's own strengths and weaknesses - they'll always be there, and it's only a matter of recognizing them or not.