i know...wouldnt it be nice if we could learn all by ourselves? and we probably could if we had all kinds of money to blow and didnt really care, you know? the fact is, it's not easy to fly these hogs from take off to landing and have something to take home in one piece. there's so many little things that can go wrong. with an instructor, you can learn from experience about all the little pitfalls of this hobby. it's a cool sport though and i hope you go into it and have a blast. building a plane and flying it and landing safely, now thats gratifying for certain. you'll see. and when you do your solo flight, you'll feel pretty darn good. i know i did. it wasnt long ago for me. and you know, if you've got questions about any of this stuff, you can come here or go to someone in your local club and ask, you'll get the right abswer and more. good luck and come back and report now and then. "lets fly!"