Yup no trees fences or people out here but let me tell you what we do have: boiling heat or freezing cold with nothing in between on this rather remote lake pictured that is only thirty miles away and we use only for potentially dangerous maidens. Do with have unlimited runways, well yes but we also have Mohave Greens who can move faster than me in my chair. Also we have two suns almost everyday that come from above like you but also below with just as much intensity. Now if one wants to brave monsoon season one may risk being marooned in a sea of sand with no traction anywhere with in miles or running the risk of being stranded on a road between complete washouts.

No it times like this you will certainly be glad you have someone standing beside you

Yes this photo is from what we call the secret site and the edge of the lake in the back ground is approximately four miles. look at it. Fact is it is extremely difficult to to know where you are landing and very difficult to even choose your landing spot. It a horrible place otherwise for a maiden actually and increditably lonely. I do all my maidens at the home field and only here with certain of our turbines. To pass up on all those lovely little organized fields around you say nothing of the comradeship and possibly the all important mentorship you can receive is, well is simply foolish.

Am I self taught? Yes however there was no such thing as a mentor or a buddy cord back in the middle fifties. An that is not necessarily something to brag about as virtually all of us who stuck it out went thru what to day would be in the many thousands of dollars and increditable frustrations.

Back then we could only just dream about buddy cords as we crashed our way through at least five different methods of controlling our airplanes and the complete releaning require by each.

You are not unique in the idea that you can learn it all on your own and with sims or forums , well most who keep insisting on the going it totally alone end up failing and eventually moving on to some other activity. And that's a shame virtually all here would love see and read of your success.

For whatever it worth don,t be silly, find that mentor and you would be most welcome to the fold.
Oh and ask about cordless buddy systems from those potential mentor's

John