Kennelmaster,

You sound like a person who just prefers to learn on their own. That can be a very good thing. Being told how to do something and then doing it just doesn't have the same impact and satisfaction as that "aha" moment when you "get it" after taking a few lumps. Such as why you try not to do downwind turns. You don't know the science behind it but you can feel the plane's reaction to a bad situation and you learn the lesson far better than being told, "don't do that".

I think that most that posted here were just concerned that you'd meet with grief too early too strongly and might be too discouraged to continue. We've all seen that happen. But in fact, in most areas that have clubs, there are always those who enjoy the solitude of just going flying and don't need or want the hustle and bustle of a crowded flying site. We have a population of some mere 40 thousand. There's one older, established club here, one other informal flying site, several strictly park flyers and one fellow with country property who maintains his own runway. Whatever turns your crank, as they say.