What The **** Am I Doing?

[happyfeet]

A few days ago I had my 41 st Bday. It was nice sitting around with friends new and old talking up stories of flying. Then the subject of an old buddy that was killed a few years back while bird towing. In a strange type of epiphany it dawned on me that my number could be the next one up. I mean statistically speaking I probably have a better chance of getting hit by a car crossing the road. But my friend could have used this logic too. So what the **** am I doing having all this fun flying around in a contraption that is trying to shake its self apart at every chance. Then I thought about the statistical fact that for over 5000 hours I have had lots of fun burning around, and sure there have been a few minor happenings but nothing catastrophic. So I guess things being what they are am I just plain nuts and is flying these things crazy? How long can I cheat the odds? Am I the only pilot that has these self imposed moral fear of death and presses onward knowing full well that flying helicopters is bloody dangerous? Sure is a blast though.

 

Any suggestions on how to reason this thing out.

 

[dimit]

Every time you flip a coin the odds are 50/50 that it'll turn up heads. The odds don't "stack up". 50/50. Everytime. Same with a single dice: 1/6 that you'll get a six. Every roll.

 

Keep on havin' fun!!

 

Dick

 

 

[dimit]

Every time you flip a coin the odds are 50/50 that it'll turn up heads. The odds don't "stack up". 50/50. Everytime. Same with a single dice: 1/6 that you'll get a six. Every roll.

 

Death scares me, too. Got a lot of friends who've died... It's a very, very bad thing. If I could be happy as an accountant, or greeter at Wally's, or carpenter, I'd hang up my helmet in a second! I feel pretty selfish doing a job where there's a greater than "usual" chance of death or serious injury. But flying's fun, adventurous, challenging, and pretty darned satisfying, and I figure that enjoying my work is worth the minor additional risk. Luckily my sweetheart feels the same way!

 

Keep on havin' fun!!

 

Dick

[Hello-bird]

A few days ago I had my 41 st Bday. It was nice sitting around with friends new and old talking up stories of flying. Then the subject of an old buddy that was killed a few years back while bird towing. In a strange type of epiphany it dawned on me that my number could be the next one up. I mean statistically speaking I probably have a better chance of getting hit by a car crossing the road. But my friend could have used this logic too. So what the **** am I doing having all this fun flying around in a contraption that is trying to shake its self apart at every chance. Then I thought about the statistical fact that for over 5000 hours I have had lots of fun burning around, and sure there have been a few minor happenings but nothing catastrophic. So I guess things being what they are am I just plain nuts and is flying these things crazy? How long can I cheat the odds? Am I the only pilot that has these self imposed moral fear of death and presses onward knowing full well that flying helicopters is bloody dangerous? Sure is a blast though.

 

Any suggestions on how to reason this thing out.

 

I wondered if anyone had thought of that...

I remember watching a surf flick called Riding Giants. In one part, they interviewed Jerry Lopez, "Mr. Pipeline"... A group of them went out to explore an outer reef on Maui. They call it Jaws. It's a massive line up of, oh, I dunno... 80 foot waves? He said he basically had his balls in his throat the whole time as they rode out there on their jet skis. By the time they got there he thought, JEEZ!!! I'm not going to be able to ride this thing. Then he sat there on his board. He thought about riding it, and not riding it. He decided, he said, that this was a good day to die. And he went.

 

I think about that a lot. Whenever I get that hard core dose of reality. It can shake a persons confidence, I think... which just invites an accident, really. I watch Riding Giants often when I feel underpowered. Or as my friend Johan likes to call it, "The Fear." Watching those guys ride big waves, and seeing how they keep their heads on straight seems to help, me anyway. There's also a website of a girl I played soccer with. She's the third time Xterra world champion. No one, man or woman, has ever done that before.

If you google Melanie McQuaid, or racer girl, it will come up. She's got pages on mental training (and lots of hot photos of herself too if you just want pictures !!). I emailed her once and asked her how she did what she did, and how did she not let overwhelming emotions (which all of us can feel now and then) interfere with her training. She follows a cognitive behavioral approach, which basically says that all emotions are caused by thoughts. So if you're thinking is off, you're going to have all these wacky emotions to deal with. And that's a total time and energy drain. Who can afford that?

 

There's also a best selling book called Feeling Good, by David Burns. It's categorized for people who suffer with depression, but (in my humble opinion) it would make a great instruction manual to receive when we're born. In it, there is a list of cognitive thought errors that contribute to overwhelming emotions. It offers basic things you can do to get your head on straight quickly, and get on with it.

 

You're just keenly aware of your life, and that it's not exactly natural for a human being to be flying around in the air.

 

I hope this helps.

HB

[happyfeet]

I hope the helll I am not getting a bout of early mid life crisis. Thanks for the insight. please carry on. All good advice.

[sling]

A few days ago I had my 41 st Bday. It was nice sitting around with friends new and old talking up stories of flying. Then the subject of an old buddy that was killed a few years back while bird towing. In a strange type of epiphany it dawned on me that my number could be the next one up. I mean statistically speaking I probably have a better chance of getting hit by a car crossing the road. But my friend could have used this logic too. So what the **** am I doing having all this fun flying around in a contraption that is trying to shake its self apart at every chance. Then I thought about the statistical fact that for over 5000 hours I have had lots of fun burning around, and sure there have been a few minor happenings but nothing catastrophic. So I guess things being what they are am I just plain nuts and is flying these things crazy? How long can I cheat the odds? Am I the only pilot that has these self imposed moral fear of death and presses onward knowing full well that flying helicopters is bloody dangerous? Sure is a blast though.

 

Any suggestions on how to reason this thing out.

 

Back to basic.

try to remember your first solo in 35GTS final on a 47............why you got back?

trust and comfort zone are the key for me, as well as dealing whith small little bugs in my head...

keep going!

[I FLY]

all very good replys to a question we all have, with out fear, why would you do anything, we only live once, I have knocked on the door before, but no one answered, i am here, I live, I breathe, I fly, i dont think about what could happen, I just do it, always fun, live your life like it was your last day here, its fun, might as well go as hard as you can as long as you can.................. :punk:

 

fly safe so we all can fly with out learning from someone elses mistake............

[Freefall]

I've thought about it. The fatality rate I heard is about 1 pilot in 250. Not sure on the source of that though it could just be totally made up. We all know pilots who have died. We all put ourselves in that position. The first person I knew that died was a helicopter pilot. Not a relative or someone old. The way I think about it though, I can either live my life doing something I don't like, or I can live my life doing something I love. Each job is a new adventure. Regardless of if its cut short for some unfortunatly reason, when its all said done, our lives must be worth the ride right?

[Heliduck]

Flying helicopters is not about the destination, it's about the journey. Don't worry about the destination, just apply self discipline & attention to detail so your journey will be prolonged, & hopefully the destination will end up being old age.

[Phil Croucher]

My take is that I won't be leaving this prison planet without Allah/God/Manitou*'s permission. If I'm still here I haven't got my release dates yet. You'll go when your time's up and not before!

 

Either that or I don't bother with future pain - I've got enough right now!

 

*Delete as necessary

 

Phil