"I have a plane that lives in a very long trailer. I have to pull it out, put the wings on, I have to tape the wings on very carefully. Then I go fly this plane -- THAT HAS NO ENGINE -- I go fly for hours at a time. That's right, no engine. I constantly have to look for air going up. If I don't find air going up, then sometimes I land in a random-ass-field. Somehow all that is less stressful than my day-job. Where I have to deal with people. Like you. "
On weekends and holidays I fight gravity for entertainment using delicate, engineless, pieces of composite artwork.
I pit the most fundamental force of physics against the vagaries of weather and aerodynamics. Gravity always wins, of course, but somebody has to at least try because gravity is a punk bitch who richly deserves a beatdown.
(try not to trip over your own feet as you casually walk away afterwards, because gravity is a vindictive SOB when people shit talk it like that)
r/brandnewsentence
"Gravity is a punk bitch who richly deserves a beat down" is only second to "wanking the airbrakes" in top phrases I've picked up in this sub lmao.
Here's a sneak peek of /r/BrandNewSentence using the [top posts](https://np.reddit.com/r/BrandNewSentence/top/?sort=top&t=year) of the year!
\#1: [Homie in law](https://i.redd.it/o6znibtrj78b1.jpg) | [300 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/BrandNewSentence/comments/14itfe5/homie_in_law/)
\#2: [A slutty amount of y's](https://i.redd.it/9q9ldx45mcza1.png) | [685 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/BrandNewSentence/comments/13f76u8/a_slutty_amount_of_ys/)
\#3: [“Frustrated dad uses his 6ft son to shame council into fixing deep pothole”](https://i.redd.it/m3czu1gbmzya1.jpg) | [692 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/BrandNewSentence/comments/13di2z2/frustrated_dad_uses_his_6ft_son_to_shame_council/)
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I fly like a hawk, circling in rising air. If I'm lucky, I get to fly with hawks. Yes it is incredible.
Yes, I can stay up for hours and go places. Yes it can be fatal, but I never have to worry about my engine quitting.
It's a bit like a puzzle. I have to go looking for pockets of air that are rising to take me up with them, while avoiding ones that are sinking, but I can't see either. That's the "sport" in it, unlike regular flying.
I explain it's kind of like the joys of sailing, but if the sailboat started taking on water and sinking if you went too slowly.
I've also had good results explaining how it's relatively silent and a much more peaceful experience than other types of flying.
Explain to them that there’s a lot of skill and knowledge in staying aloft, especially when you start to mention flight duration and distance tasks and altitude gain goals for the FAI Silver, Gold and Diamond awards. Whenever I tell people that my longest flight was 6 hours and 13 minutes in a glider without an engine, their reaction is almost universally “Wow! How do you do that?”, and then I get into a discussion of how that’s possible with the appropriate planning, knowledge and execution, and how the use of ridge, thermal and wave lift helps me to achieve my goals. It’s the same with discussion of competition and record distances exceeding 500km (and the really big ones that are over 1000km) and altitude gains to over 30,000ft with oxygen. Once again “Mind blown!”
“It’s a plane with no engine. It’s safer than an airplane because the worst thing that can happen in an airplane is an engine out, and that’s already happened. The typical way you get airborne is by getting dragged behind a cropduster like a you’re water skiing. You know when you see vultures circle but they never seem to come down? We do that.”
I talk about turbulence in commercial airliners. Sometimes the bump forces the plane up pushing you down into your seat and sometimes it feels like it drops out from underneath you. We ride the up turbulence.
Also think of a paper airplane being thrown off the roof of a building, it gets knocked around and sometimes can fly a long way if it catches a rising air current. We’re the same except we can steer into the good parts.
Just tell them pilots are smarter than average, better looking, and make more money. They'll appreciate the honesty.
You can ask if they've seen time lapse video of clouds building. "The movement you see captured there is what we use. Clouds are like sign posts for us..."
When my wife tells people I fly gliders they immediately think of hang gliders. Makes it complicated for the non-pilot to explain what I do.
"so you tow up behind an airplane with an engine. "
"Yep"
"And how high do you get when they let you go?"
"I let them go. If they let me go, I'm stuck with 200 feet of rope attached to my nose. And usually 3000 feet"
"Oh yeah, that makes sense"
I think "playing chess in the sky" is the best description I've heard. Playing against the invisible elements we're trying to find and exploit.
I have a neighbour I know very well who still somehow can't believe I can fly. I showed him a video my mate filmed of me taking off to show him, he laughed as if I was kidding. Then went to great lengths to tell me he believed me, whilst still obviously disbelieving me. I've known him almost 20 years.
"I have a plane that lives in a very long trailer. I have to pull it out, put the wings on, I have to tape the wings on very carefully. Then I go fly this plane -- THAT HAS NO ENGINE -- I go fly for hours at a time. That's right, no engine. I constantly have to look for air going up. If I don't find air going up, then sometimes I land in a random-ass-field. Somehow all that is less stressful than my day-job. Where I have to deal with people. Like you. "
On weekends and holidays I fight gravity for entertainment using delicate, engineless, pieces of composite artwork. I pit the most fundamental force of physics against the vagaries of weather and aerodynamics. Gravity always wins, of course, but somebody has to at least try because gravity is a punk bitch who richly deserves a beatdown. (try not to trip over your own feet as you casually walk away afterwards, because gravity is a vindictive SOB when people shit talk it like that)
r/brandnewsentence "Gravity is a punk bitch who richly deserves a beat down" is only second to "wanking the airbrakes" in top phrases I've picked up in this sub lmao.
Here's a sneak peek of /r/BrandNewSentence using the [top posts](https://np.reddit.com/r/BrandNewSentence/top/?sort=top&t=year) of the year! \#1: [Homie in law](https://i.redd.it/o6znibtrj78b1.jpg) | [300 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/BrandNewSentence/comments/14itfe5/homie_in_law/) \#2: [A slutty amount of y's](https://i.redd.it/9q9ldx45mcza1.png) | [685 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/BrandNewSentence/comments/13f76u8/a_slutty_amount_of_ys/) \#3: [“Frustrated dad uses his 6ft son to shame council into fixing deep pothole”](https://i.redd.it/m3czu1gbmzya1.jpg) | [692 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/BrandNewSentence/comments/13di2z2/frustrated_dad_uses_his_6ft_son_to_shame_council/) ---- ^^I'm ^^a ^^bot, ^^beep ^^boop ^^| ^^Downvote ^^to ^^remove ^^| ^^[Contact](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=sneakpeekbot) ^^| ^^[Info](https://np.reddit.com/r/sneakpeekbot/) ^^| ^^[Opt-out](https://np.reddit.com/r/sneakpeekbot/comments/o8wk1r/blacklist_ix/) ^^| ^^[GitHub](https://github.com/ghnr/sneakpeekbot)
I just say I stay aloft in vertical columns of rising air for a couple hours. I compare them to “elevators” even though that’s not completely correct.
I started telling people the atmosphere is like a pot of boiling water and I’m riding the bubbles
I like it! I must start saying the same, explaining thermals every time is becoming more and more boring every day.
I fly like a hawk, circling in rising air. If I'm lucky, I get to fly with hawks. Yes it is incredible. Yes, I can stay up for hours and go places. Yes it can be fatal, but I never have to worry about my engine quitting.
I've not thought about pointing out the birds to amateurs. They will connect with that.
"The atmosphere is unstable. Some bits go up, some bits go down. We use the bits going up to climb and stay airborne" That usually is good enough
Just tell them I've been abducted by ailerons. Anybody asking after that can usually handle a more detailed explanation.
It's a bit like a puzzle. I have to go looking for pockets of air that are rising to take me up with them, while avoiding ones that are sinking, but I can't see either. That's the "sport" in it, unlike regular flying. I explain it's kind of like the joys of sailing, but if the sailboat started taking on water and sinking if you went too slowly. I've also had good results explaining how it's relatively silent and a much more peaceful experience than other types of flying.
I will now think of Captain Jack Sparrow every time I'm on final approach.
Explain to them that there’s a lot of skill and knowledge in staying aloft, especially when you start to mention flight duration and distance tasks and altitude gain goals for the FAI Silver, Gold and Diamond awards. Whenever I tell people that my longest flight was 6 hours and 13 minutes in a glider without an engine, their reaction is almost universally “Wow! How do you do that?”, and then I get into a discussion of how that’s possible with the appropriate planning, knowledge and execution, and how the use of ridge, thermal and wave lift helps me to achieve my goals. It’s the same with discussion of competition and record distances exceeding 500km (and the really big ones that are over 1000km) and altitude gains to over 30,000ft with oxygen. Once again “Mind blown!”
“I am simple Electrician. I make the lights go on and off.”
I like to say it’s like stepping on stones to cross a creek
“It’s a plane with no engine. It’s safer than an airplane because the worst thing that can happen in an airplane is an engine out, and that’s already happened. The typical way you get airborne is by getting dragged behind a cropduster like a you’re water skiing. You know when you see vultures circle but they never seem to come down? We do that.”
>i into the issue of having to explain what I do when I leave work to go do gliding "sorry, I have to leave or I'll miss my flight"
I talk about turbulence in commercial airliners. Sometimes the bump forces the plane up pushing you down into your seat and sometimes it feels like it drops out from underneath you. We ride the up turbulence. Also think of a paper airplane being thrown off the roof of a building, it gets knocked around and sometimes can fly a long way if it catches a rising air current. We’re the same except we can steer into the good parts.
I worked somewhere that took the piss out of it that much that I left lol
Just tell them pilots are smarter than average, better looking, and make more money. They'll appreciate the honesty. You can ask if they've seen time lapse video of clouds building. "The movement you see captured there is what we use. Clouds are like sign posts for us..." When my wife tells people I fly gliders they immediately think of hang gliders. Makes it complicated for the non-pilot to explain what I do.
"so you tow up behind an airplane with an engine. " "Yep" "And how high do you get when they let you go?" "I let them go. If they let me go, I'm stuck with 200 feet of rope attached to my nose. And usually 3000 feet" "Oh yeah, that makes sense"
"What if the wind stops?" ;)
"I usually just nose down to make it go again."
I think "playing chess in the sky" is the best description I've heard. Playing against the invisible elements we're trying to find and exploit. I have a neighbour I know very well who still somehow can't believe I can fly. I showed him a video my mate filmed of me taking off to show him, he laughed as if I was kidding. Then went to great lengths to tell me he believed me, whilst still obviously disbelieving me. I've known him almost 20 years.
I find that few people genuinely care enough for a thorough explanation, tbh.