Buddy boxing
 

I just started flying like a month ago. I always think that the person I buddy box with always takes it from to soon. I know that they dont want me to crash but I always think that I can recover it. I practice alot on the sim I can do flips & turns (somewhat). What should I do?

Pgbabygirl

RE: Buddy boxing
 

The instructors at my club are very clear that they will take over control whenever they don't feel comfortable. It has nothing to do with how comfortable you are.
There may be some instructors that will let you death spiral for a while whereas others will never let you get into that scenario.

RE: Buddy boxing
 

pgbabygirl,
When I am instructing someone I tell them I will take the plane away from them when I think they can't recover it themselves. When a student first starts out I will take it away quite often, but as I see their skills increase I will let them have it longer so that they can learn to recover the plane themselves. You need to realize that a lot of instructors out there have been instructing for a long time, so they have a pretty good idea of what you can and can't do. Give them some credit that they know what they are doing and that they'll bring you along in your training just as fast as they possibly can.

Ken

RE: Buddy boxing
 

This is a very interesting situation and one that i am sure arises allot. Just how much rope should the instructor give to let you hang yourself is a tricky and where i feel i need to take over I will. Every student is different and with more time on the sticks as a student, i will let them try to recover when they show they have the ability to recover, just not think they can. It is different student to student. Talk to your instructor before a flight and ask if you can "have more rope", really just talk and see where you stand in the instructors eyes as to your abilities.

RE: Buddy boxing
 

Thanks guys this helped me alot.

RE: Buddy boxing
 

The instructor must keep the plane at a point where he (the instructor) can still have a high confidence of saving the plane. Different instructors will have different thresholds for when he takes over. The guy you are flying with may not be as experienced a flyer as another instructor also. Let him decide what he, and you, are capable of. Your plane will last longer and he will gradually give you more latitude. Remember also that it is possible for you to do structural damage in your recovery attempts.

RE: Buddy boxing
 

pgbabygirl,

talk to your instructor, tell him how you feel, ask him to let you fly a few things up high that you have been practicing on the sim. If he then still feels you need to be recovered quickly then trust his judgment. You also may just impress him/her enough that he does exactly what you are looking for. Sometimes instructors may not think you can do something and will actually hold you back, not intentionally I'm sure but it does happen. Remember, communication is key in learning to fly. You both must be able to talk to each other and both must be willing to listen. If you both cannot get along, then it may be time to get another instructor. Sometimes to people just do not match well, it happens all the time and not just in R/C

It's happened to me as an instructor. I've actually held a student back because I did not see much improvement but it turned out I was not trusting him enough and though I was "hearing" him, I was not listening and as soon as I let him show me what he learned on the sim, we got along allot better, even though when he would scare me I'd take control, sit on him a bit to settle him down which really did not happen that much after our little talk. He now has turned out to be one of the best pilots we have in the club considering he is wheelchair bound.

RE: Buddy boxing
 

And there are some students that do so well very quickly that you don't dare advance them too fast just in case the good flying is a matter of luck.

I just solo'd a student in about a dozen flights that I never had to take over from except to demonstrate what I wanted to see. I kept waiting for him to mess up but he refused to do it. :D

RE: Buddy boxing
 

The student-instructor mix is an important ingredient in the learning process -- not all combinations work well together. If you have a choice of instructors, try another one & see if there is a better fit.

If the problem goes away, good, but if it persists, you may be over confident & your instructors are doing exactly what they should be doing.

RE: Buddy boxing
 

Learning is as hard as YOU make it --- instructing is as hard as the STUDENT makes it. As said above you need to talk, without it neither knows what is happening.

Stop and think about this: As an instructor how far can you really let a student go before you take over, and was that last second that you hesitated / let him go, the one that WILL end his flying, if not for the day maybe forever. YOU trusted me to take you up the first time, if I haven't really screwed up somehow , Trust me to teach you to the best of OUR ability.
ENJOY !!! RED

RE: Buddy boxing
 

This totally depend on three things; the instructor’s confidence in you, the instructor confidence in the model and with himself. Even with a new trainer ARF the first couple flights with an unknown model is a little nerve raking. Especially when it's someone else’s you don't know and is trusting you with his stuff.

Personally I always insist on leaving the buddy box off and fly the model a couple times myself making sure the thing fly’s. This for me take allot of the pressure off of me by improving my confidence in the plane. I personally have every confidence in my own skills.

That leaves the student. The first few flight I'm taking over at any hint the student might loose control. A little at a time I'll start letting him try to recover. By that time I know every twitch and bad habit of the model and could recover even from a bad spin. I did lose one trainer, I instructed the guy for a while so I let him off the cord, was doing fine. 10 minutes into the flight he dove it hard and the wing folded. What can you do?


The best advice is your going to just have to stick with it. Walk before you can run. Learn how to fly the model. Once you do and get bored with that when you need to really learn how to fly the model. Be your own worst critic. Are you dipping the wings on every turn? Discipline your self not to do it. Is the tail dragging below the nose around the turns? Start learning to use your rudder. Can you hold it inverted with any confidence. The only way to get comfortable with flying is to do it. Of course if you’re not even noticing these things then you’re not ready in my option.

Everything is learned and you learn it by doing it. I get guys all the time, students usually. Darn that thing is fast how do keep up with it, usually with my pylon racers? Simple I started at half throttle and practiced. Then add power and added some more each flight until I was out of throttle. You just learn by doing.

RE: Buddy boxing
 

its not his fault. when i am buddy boxing with somebody i take over even when they are coming in a hard dive high up.

RE: Buddy boxing
 

My way is to say to my instructor "did I save that or did you?" The better I get the longer he leaves me, but as most of the guys said, it's the instructor's panic button that's the key here. My instructor suggested I fly a bit higher in the sky, more time for me to save it, less stress on his nerves.

Having said that, this instructor also teaches my 11-year old son and lets him do all sorts of loops, rolls, reversals etc until the inevitable near miss occurs, then it's back to left hand circuits LOL

RE: Buddy boxing
 

Well, another way of looking at it is if your plane is still in one piece, you should not be complaining too much.

RE: Buddy boxing
 

If you just started flying a month ago then you are doing fine with the instructor taking over when he is uncomfortable with your flying. It has taken most of us a few months to learn. Some of us have different handicaps to over come in learning to fly. Everyone is different and you and your instructor need to communicate honestly and often about your skill and learning curve. Rmember he has a learning curve as an instructor also and you may be taxing that curve. So talk to him (or her) and see what it is that is bothering you. Communication is the key here.