| Sometimes it is a much better thing to just stay home | | | | started heading east to Akron, Colorado. When we |
| and do something else than go fly on a marginal day. | | | | were almost there I already saw the build up of the |
| Sometimes you have to weigh the good and the bad | | | | clouds over the continental divide. |
| on the flight, especially when it comes to weather. | | | | I hurried and did a fast pattern and quickly did a touch |
| Don't let your friends make the decision for you, no | | | | and go and got out of there. Of course I didn't panic |
| matter how much preparation you went through to try | | | | because I don't want my two passengers to start |
| and show them a good time. | | | | freaking out, like we all know they very easily can. |
| I have a little story that may make you think twice | | | | By the time we were about ten miles out talking to |
| before you fly when bad weather is on the way but | | | | tower the turbulence started throwing us around and I |
| you think you can make it back in time to beat it. | | | | couldn't really hold an altitude for very long. I have been |
| About a year ago when I still lived in Colorado I was | | | | in this type of weather before, but not with |
| having some friends coming down to visit from the | | | | passengers, and to say the least they were quite |
| mountains, which was about an hour and a half drive | | | | nervous. I was worried about one thing, that was, |
| down. I promised them we could go on a flight when | | | | where was the wind coming from in relation to my |
| they get there. So I checked the weather, and at the | | | | runway 29. When I heard the ATIS say wind two eight |
| time it was gorgeous, light wind, practically no clouds, | | | | zero at fifteen knots I was much relived. |
| perfect. | | | | So I made a quick right base turn and turned final, I |
| I saw there was supposed to be some weather a little | | | | kept asking for a wind check and it was staying |
| later but I knew I had time to do a 50 mile cross | | | | around 29 the whole time. When I touched down, it felt |
| country. Turned out they ran a little late and by the | | | | like it took me about a hundred feet to stop because |
| time I had finished my pre-flight I had about an hour and | | | | of the wind. My friends started clapping for my |
| a half to get this in before the storm. | | | | beautiful touchdown and we taxied to the ramp. |
| I wanted to do a cross country because I needed to | | | | As soon as we got the plane all tied down it started |
| build cross country time and just doing some sight | | | | down pouring, we all started laughing at the timing of |
| seeing over the front range of the Rockies would be | | | | everything. Even though that could have potentially |
| pointless for my money. So I decided to go anyways, | | | | been a very bad end to the flight, if there was severe |
| we took off at Rocky Mountain Metro Airport and | | | | turbulence or worse some bad wind shear. |