D. Patrick Caldwell on The Joys of Flight

Shortly after I got my first taste of aerobatics, I found a Super Decathlon I could solo after 25 hours dual. Now, I'm checked out in the Decathlon and I've got about 10 hours of aerobatic time under my belt. In fact, this weekend, I'm going to go get my first solo loops and rolls in.

So, when I went to Six Flags over Georgia with my fiancée and her church group not long ago, I realized once again that Aviation Ruined my Life. You see, we got in line for the new Superman Ultimate Flight ride which is where we stood for longer than two hours. We got on the ride and for 3 minutes we were thrilled with 60 mile per hour rolls and loops as tall as 11.5 stories.

Well, some of us were thrilled; others were somewhat disappointed. You see, if I had never become a pilot and had never starting flying aerobatics, I wouldn't have known that for about the same price as a trip to Six Flags, I could've spent an hour out doing aerobatics, that I could have done loops and rolls at 140 MPH instead of 60, that when the weather got too hot I could just climb a few thousand feet and cool off, and that the longest line I would have to wait in would be a 4 minute wait watching jets take off and land.

Have fun. Be safe. Happy Piloting.