From reading posts, I feel there are some who are considering "stepping out on their own".
I forever remember a bit of advice that I received from my Father, "Never look back and say I wish that I had tried that or I should have done that".
Several of the things that I have tried:
Air Force pilot (treasured every minute).
Auto Racing (O.K. but I prefer the air).
Boxing (not too affectionate of this one).
Pro baseball (restricted my party time).
Sky-diving (not too bad).
University lecturer (boring as hell).
Motorcycling (didn't pursue this for long as I would have inflicted grave bodily harm to myself).
Skiing (Hated it).
Boating (I'm no sailor).
Fished with dynamite (Kind of hairy).
Earning my BSEE (great feeling)
Qualifying as a Master Electrician (fantastic).
Assisted in a delivery (not my cup of tea).
Bought a racehorse (kept me broke).
So I would say to all, go for it, you may not get a second chance.
Rowdy

Great advice, Rowdy!

If you don't mind my curiousity, what kept you from earning $0.5M annually as a heavy-iron pilot? Was the alure of being an electrician greater than your love to fly?

I'm sure after pulling g's as a jock, the heavies would be quite boring, so I understand your reluctance!

I prefer bush flying and don't have much attraction to jets. Keep the prop up front, the wing on top, and the tail (and the stall speed) down low for me!



Pic of my uncle Bill Mauzy's J-3 Cub. My dad learned to fly in this very plane. Bill's on the right and Dave Hershman on the left. From Dave's website. http://www.eagleswings.net/cub_flight.htm

</armchair pilot>

[This message has been edited by sparky66wv (edited 01-19-2003).]

i like your spirit Rowdy

rowdyrudy... Fished with dynamite.

now there one to try. ( dynamite }and i been using bait all this time.lol

[This message has been edited by lighthouse (edited 01-19-2003).]

Wonder how he got that name?

[This message has been edited by txsparky (edited 01-19-2003).]

sparky66wv-When I retired from the AF I went into business engineering, consulting, and contracting (electrical). I couldn't stand the thought of flying a bus but I did buy myself a Cessna 310C which I only sold about 2-1/2 years ago. BTW the tail dragger brought back a few memories. I very nearly had a major disaster when I did a few aerobatics in a J-3 in my wild, younger days. I retired from business in 1993 but I still assist friends who are contractors as well as a large law firm. (I have been certified by the court as an expert witness).
I get a great kick out of watching people who work hard succeed in their endeavors. My advice to anyone is "Never Give Up"!
Rowdy