I just reread the previous thread so Im editing this but hes saying almost the exact thing..


Theres a difference between being bored as a pilot and as a spectator. [8D]

I think the point the guys who have experienced pattern are making is that pattern is unique in what it provides. It allows you as a pilot to know you airplane better. The act of learning how to fly with precision is the cornerstone of learning how to put the plane exactly where you want it, when you want it there.

3D teaches a lot of skills, but the fun factor and thrill factor are a lot higher at a lower skill level with 3D. Some, not all, well probably most guys who have only really tried to learn 3D are more visually satisfied with their flying before they are really the master of their airplane.

If you want to see an example of what I mean watch Chip fly PERFECT figure 8 torqure rolls, or Jason S do that thing where he pogos the plane straight up and down about 100' in a hover..

or to me what is the ultimate....
I once saw this guy Todd Blaus from Waco, Tx who is a top pattern flyer and TOC competitor do a PERFECT single roll rolling circle with a PERFECT KE to KE snap on all of the 1/8ths of the circle! He never wabbled, never lost or gained altitude, his circle looked perfectly round and the snaps were perfect starting and ending with the wings perfectly perpendicular to the ground.

Only years of practice putting the plane in a specific place in space at a specific attitude and at a specific time can give you those kind of skills, and that is pattern babe...

That is unless you are a prodigy like Mark Leesburg.. I dont know if he flies pattern but he is a STUD with complete command of his airplane...