I'll chime in and hopefully this will help. After several years of teaching UAV pilots as well as practicing pattern I have learned a couple of things. Also have had this confirmed by several other pattern pilots. First, DO NOT practice more than 4 flights in a session. We found in the UAV training environment that about 40-45 minutes of flight time per session, split into 10 minute groups and the performance started to drop. Think about it, how many times have you gone out and flown all day, and then at the end of the day you arent flying quite as well, so you keep trying and trying. The only thing this does it hurt the progress you made earlier in the day. If you fly in the morning 4 flights, then take a few hour break to let your brain recover then fly again in the evening, this can help, but usually even then you can only do 2 maybe 3 good flights in the evening session. This is purely a concentration thing with how the brain works. There are very few activities that require 100% concentration for 10 minutes like pattern flying does.

Another thing..always practice how you fly. Perform your safe takeoff routine and everything exactly how you would in a contest. Practice doesnt make perfect...perfect practice makes perfect. Practicing one way and flying another does not help.

When learning new maneuvers, always fly the previous maneuver as well as the maneuver afterwards. Learning a new maneuver only to not do it correctly to be set up for the following maneuver doesnt help.

Another important item is there are going to be days when you just don't have it. There will be days when you go to the field and everything you do will be wonderful, and there will be other days that no matter what you do it will be horrible. It is important to remember that when you are having a bad day. Walk away. Your frustration will only teach you bad habits. If you are up in the middle of a practice flight and it is just going horribly wrong, either land, or even circle a few times, take a deep breathe and try it again. If it still is going horrible, sometimes you just have to land and walk away for a few minutes.

These are just a few observations after 10 years of competitive flying, and several years of instructing in the UAV industry. Although the flying is different, the concept is the same, learning new techniques (maneuvers). Try them and let me know what you discover,

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