PRA at ASC KIMO 2004

[Brian Jackson]

A couple of photos from today's fly-in at the ASC KIMO Nationals, Three Rivers, Michigan. Regrettably we neglected to get a good shot of Don Shoebridge, Richard Lidke and Bob Randall, though it was an honor meeting everyone there.

I also finally got to meet Mr. Taggart today. It was a treat to speak with him about a variety of subjects from 3D photography to the evolution of the GyroBee. I also thanked him for making his GyroBee plans freely available to us builders.

I wish there had been some flying gyros at this event, but all in all there was enough activity (and good company :) ) to make the trip very worth while, and I feel I've made some great friends in the process.

Photo 1: Partial PRA group
Photo 2: Larger PRA group
Photo 3: Me & Ralph

[Brian Jackson]

Following up, I'd like to note that my wife, Cindy, and I would have stayed until closing had she not become fatigued by the heat and humidity. Evident whom was raised on which side of the Mason Dixon :)

She did mention later on that there seemed to be a lack of PRA Wives in attendance. Upon reflection I think she's right. I had the opportunity to meet and converse with several member's children, but didn't really think about the spouse thing until Cindy mentioned it. Though she enjoyed meeting everyone, she couldn't help feeling slightly out of place.

Needless to say I'm kind of at a loss myself. Best I could come up with was "must be a guy thing", which was the way-wrong answer for her :eek: . I mean, there were lots of women at Mentone this year, and plenty at the KIMO event yesterday. In spite of everyone's kindness she felt like the proverbial "5'th wheel", I guess... I mean she's kinda tolerating this whole "gyro thing" because she understands how much it means to me.

Based on the demigraphics, gyro flight is predominately a male sport. And since I'm a male, the difficulty in understanding my wife's needs is inversely proportional to my appreciation for floral arrangements and "metrosexual" TV programming. Sorry babe, no-can-do.

I guess it didn't hit me until today... I mean, most of you all have wives, right? Law of averages dictates wives are better at managing money, which allows us to by rotor blades. But how do we keep our wives interested in the sport?

5 years ago Cindy had her first helicopter ride, and when she landed she looked so "orgasmic" I thought we'd have to find a room right then and there. We both love flying, and at some point I am going to build a X-country 2-place gyro for she and I. But until I learn a whole lot more than I know now about gyros, I would never even entertain the idea of piloting a passenger, let alone her.

Perhaps it's selfish to want something out of life, but dreams were a dime a dozen in high school. Suddenly we're middle-aged and reality puts a damper on most of them... At this stage one must be selective in one’s pursuits. So we narrow it to a single goal. Unfortunately flying gets weighed against mundane realities such as “Oh, we should build a carport,” and “Gosh, ya know, we should replace these dingy drapes.”

Forgive my language here, but F*** the drapes! I feel like I have one chance to pursue something I truly love, or else I may as well hang up any hope of the idea of flying because I’ll be too p***y-whipped anyway.

/end of rant

Bottom line, how do we convince our wives to take part and let us spend money on gyros without us guys feeling like we're always in trouble for something? :D

[StanFoster]

Brian: Thats nice your wife went along. I would love my wife Barb to attend my fly-ins..but she just isnt into flying and I am not about to force her away from her flower work she loves to do. :)

I took her up in my RAF..but unfortunately it was with a crosswind..and she got all bent out of shape why I was flying crooked down the runway after takeoff. :eek: Also...the doors were off..and she hates heights. Soon I will have the doors on and she will then be secure as I wait for a non sidewind day to share her my other world. :D

Flying gyros is not cheap for me either...... Barb and I mutually agreed that what I spend on my gyros...she gets the same for the house. Lets see...so far..new dining room table chairs and hutch...new hardwood floors....that was just for my Air Command. Then my new RAF...that was a new kitchen :eek: :eek:

Ron.....see now why I am holding off on a new SparrwowHawk?? :D :D
There always is more to the story........ :rolleyes:

Stan

[Ralph]

Brian,

There is no such thing as a simple picture with respect to wives and fly-ins. It runs a full range from:

(1) Wives who are pilots and fly at fly-ins

(2) Wives who attend with their husbands:
a. Help hubby with his gyro stuff
b. Put in time as volunteers
c. Socialize in air conditioned RVs with other gyro widows
d. power shop
e. all of the above

(3) Maybe come along for single-day events (refer to #2 above)

(4) Never come to fly-ins, either due to a lack of interest or, even though they may not tell you, they are afraid of the flying you do.

If your spouse joins you at a fly-in, be grateful. If you spouse supports your flying but doesn't care to come, be grateful. If you spouse resents you flying and the time you spend doing it, you've got more than gyro mantainance to worrry about.

As you could see, KIMO is set up to be very family-friendly and we (the PRA) could pick up some ideas, particularly with respect to keeping the kids happy. Kids are an issue with younger pilots - the very people we want to attact. By the way, as the sun went and flying tapered off, a great band was firing up for an evening concert.

Ralph

[Rotornut]

Well I am a wife and I do most of the work at the Fly-Ins. Something wrong with this picture! PRA is My Family has been since Bud O'Neal introduced us to Sunstate in 1994. (thanks Bud:))

In the beginning I did not want to go, till I got to know Others like Annie Cook, Kay Brownie, Sue Goldsberry, Connie Boyette, Marissa Fritts, Carol DeGraw, Liz Bodie and so many other wifes. Charlie Presnell who was the first to approach me under the Oak Tree in Wauchula 1995 and Welcomed me, god I love HIM.

And I dont even Pilot a Gyro! Just a Passenger.

RotoPix Come on down to BD Days and Bring the Wife to Meet all of US.

MJ :)

[gyromike]

MJ,

You need to quit messing around and build your LittleWing...
and make Fish run the booth next year! :D

[Rotornut]

LOL Yes Mike a LittleWing. MJ :)

[Ralph]

Additional KIMO photos can be found at:

http://taggart.glg.msu.edu/gyro/kimo_04.htm

Ralph

[flightexpress]

I was there also.. How come there where not more gyros..I would of like to seen some..

[Hognose]

Based on the demographics, gyro flight is predominately a male sport.

Brian, and guys, (and gals!)

That's just the way it is. Guys are far more attracted to sport flying that gals are, statistically speaking. Suppose the same follows for other motorsports. My girlfriends & wives historically enjoy riding in a Corvette or a vintage Mustang and being the focus of attention, but they aren't gonna stick around while I wrench on it.

There are some interesting stats on the AOPA website.

http://www.aopa.org/special/newsroom/stats/pilots.html

There are about 625,000 pilots, of whom almost 380,000 have some sort of professional licence (commercial, CFI, ATP) and some 90,000 are students. That leaves 240,000 to be private pilots (there are hardly any rec pilots; FAA has given up trying to count them, there were never more than 350 or so).

Pilots who have only a rotorcraft or glider or balloon rating are thrown into a pool of "other" that's about 29,000 certificates deep. (Shallow, really).

(Yes, the numbers don't add up. I'm rounding crudely for one, and the numbers don't add up on the AOPA site, for two). Well, how many of these pilots are women? AOPA used to list that (maybe it's in some media-only ghetto) and I pulled the stats a couple years ago from there onto my Palm Pilot, but I had the bright idea of checking Women in Aviation, Inc. which is a great resource for lady aviators (and girl aviator-wannabees).

http://www.wai.org/resources/facts.cfm

I knew the numbers were low but I was shocked at how low they are. They are sitting at about 6-7% for most ratings. My impression used to be that women were more likely than men (percentage wise) to pursue professional flying, but the WAI numbers give the lie to that, as they hold that 7% across the board. Women make it into the 11-12% range as balloon pilots and air traffic controllers (I live in controlled-to-the-max airspace, and I'd have sworn they were nearly half! Nope).

Boy, I would sure hate to live in a world with just 7% women. But that's what we've got in aviation.

A lot more young girls are interested in a career in aviation. I've observed that there are many more girls who drop out of the aeronautical science (fancy word for flying!) program at ERAU than guys. Maybe it has to do with disparate spatial-visualization ability between the sexes. I dunno. But the girls usually transfer to another discipline, they're not academically weak, they just don't care to, or can't, fly; the guys who don't make it usually drop clean out -- it's usually a matter of boozing and indiscipline. I guess they wind up as layabouts, waiting for the girls to support them on the $20k they make as gate agents or HR assistants... a far cry from that dream where they were both captains for one of the major airlines (two of which will go bankrupt in the next few days).

So anyway, out of 300 million Americans, 600 thousand have a licence to fly. Two tenths of one percent. (And that is probably the highest per capita rate in the world!) Ever wanted to join an oppressed minority? Here's your chance!

Now, women are a minority within the minority -- seven percent of .2 percent. But then gyro pilots are another tiny minority. Perhaps one percent of the .2 percent. Imagine the size of the intersection between those two sets! So the amazing thing is not that there are so few lady gyro pilots, but that there are so many!

I am trying to level the playing field, if too late for me, for the benefit of future generations of aviators. I'll always go the extra mile to encourage a girl's interest in planes or gyros or flying. But its a very individual thing, flight, and you are either attracted to it as an individual (not as a member of a sex, or any other group), or you're not. It is very difficult to raise the interest of someone who's just not interested.

It's less common (well, look at the numbers), but if you're around flying long enough, you will encounter women who have husbands or boyfriends that they can't get interested in flying. Either way, the relationship usually survives, cause there's usually a whole lot between a couple to hold them together... but when one is totally smitten and air-happy, and the other's resentful and (a term I hate, but it works here) passive-aggressive about it, look out!

There's stuff you can do to get your non-flying spouse (and kids) interested in flying, and not scare the living daylights out of them like Stan did his wife... (sorry Stan!). A first gyro flight is a polarizing thing, you love it or hate it. I think significant-other first flights should be in something like a Cirrus, or at least a Beechcraft... not in a gyro and not in a rental 172 with stains and cracked Royalite. If he or she loves snowmobiles and motorcycles, then the gyro may be a better option.

cheers

-=K=-