ADRidge Posted January 24, 2012 Report Share Posted January 24, 2012 Well, the day has finally come. My date with the DPE is tomorrow at 8am. I've been working on my lesson plans for about six months now while working 40 hours a week at a gun store/range down here, and its been a heck of a journey. I'm not exactly a ball of nerves yet, but I'm not exactly relaxed either. It's funny... every other checkride I've ever had, I've had checkride-itis in a major way. I think the reason I don't is just because I've worked so hard for so long that I really don't see failure as a viable possibility. I know I don't know everything, but I definitely feel I'm at or above the level expected of a fresh CFI.... ...but then again, I could totally bust tomorrow on something I forgot to even think about! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pohi Posted January 24, 2012 Report Share Posted January 24, 2012 Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TXFirefly Posted January 24, 2012 Report Share Posted January 24, 2012 CFI checkride is probably the easiest of them all. The DPE (even the FAA) don't expect you to be the perfect instructor. They really want to see that you put the effort in. As my FAA examiner told me "I'm giving you a license to continue learning." And that is exactly what you will do over the next 1000 hours or so. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodrop Posted January 25, 2012 Report Share Posted January 25, 2012 Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whiteshadow Posted January 25, 2012 Report Share Posted January 25, 2012 Good Luck buddy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spirit of '69 Posted January 25, 2012 Report Share Posted January 25, 2012 may the full-down auto gods be merciful! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pohi Posted January 25, 2012 Report Share Posted January 25, 2012 Haha yeah, and a steady 15 knot wind directly down the runway! That's when you know the gods are on your side Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flying Pig Posted January 25, 2012 Report Share Posted January 25, 2012 When I did mine, the DPE asked me to find the word "mastery or all-inclusive knowledge" anywhere in the PTS. I told him I already knew it wasnt in there. He said, "Exactly. The issue I see with many applicants is that they believe a CFI has to know everything. And one of the biggests hazards I see in new CFIs is that they think they need to know everything." He went on to say competence yes, mastery of all subject areas, Not hardly. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADRidge Posted January 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 Well, I passed. The oral was somewhere in the six hour range, which is about what I expected. And you guys are absolutely right... it wasn't about knowing everything and being able to recite infinite sets of tedium on command. It was more about knowing how to think about a situation and come up with the right solution. I think a good 90 minutes to two hours was just talking about scenarios, both during the FOI portion and the endorsements. The flight was good. I didn't figure we'd get to fly yesterday due to the rain we've had down here. Around 3pm the skies opened up for a few, and we got to fly. The ceiling at the Class Golf airport was about 600 feet, so the 180 full-down was intense, made more so by the fact that the wind was off my 10 o'clock on final at 20g30. We got it done with one go-around, so I'm happy with it. I knew I'd be tired after the exam, but I didn't think I'd get home from dinner at 8pm, be in bed by 8:15 and sleep for 12 hours. I guess it was kind of intense. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pohi Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 Congrats, I'm glad everything went well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pohi Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 (edited) Double post Edited January 26, 2012 by Pohi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironranger Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 Congratulations, That has to be a big relief and I bet you slept like a baby after that. ironranger 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeroscout Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 So the adrenaline dump left you exhausted. Nice that you could afford a 12 hour respite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADRidge Posted January 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 Yeah, my work schedule is 12-9, so I had some time to recover Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikemv Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 Andrew, Congrats. I hope the C&E Seminar at CHO in August helped? Keep in touch as I look forward to seeing you again! Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADRidge Posted January 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 Mike, it sure did help quite a bit. I appreciate you putting those seminars on. They really get you thinking on a higher level, which definitely helped prepare me for the oral. See you at the expo, I hope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mechanic Posted January 27, 2012 Report Share Posted January 27, 2012 Way to go AD... best of luck.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozzie1 Posted January 27, 2012 Report Share Posted January 27, 2012 Congrats, glad to hear everything went well. My CFI checkride is coming up soon. I'll be looking for pointers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldy Posted January 28, 2012 Report Share Posted January 28, 2012 Congrats!! Hope to see you at the Expo! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADRidge Posted January 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 28, 2012 Congrats, glad to hear everything went well. My CFI checkride is coming up soon. I'll be looking for pointers. Biggest pointer I can give is be ready to screw something up and keep going. Don't dwell on something you phrased wrong or you won't be able to remember what you're about to say. Get to know your FOIs really well. I had almost no rote FOI questions, but had plenty of scenarios in which I had to apply them. Endorsements are your life, know those inside and out. If you're a Robbie guy, you'd better be able to talk about SFAR 73 in depth. That's all I can think of for now. Also Goldy, yes I'll be there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nolapilot89 Posted January 29, 2012 Report Share Posted January 29, 2012 Congrats there Mr. ADRidge. I know its been a long hard road. Just think back to our first day in private ground some years back, and ask yourself how many of those people made it this far? It really shows who was dedicated to it and who just "thought it was a cool job". Congrats again man, and can't wait to see you at the expo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.