brickhistory Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Bearing any OPSEC issues in mind, any superstitions or rituals anyone does for checkride or major league mission prep? Mine, as goofy as it sounds, was to crank up some bagpipe music on the drive in. My German ancestors would be proud... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nsplayr Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Bearing any OPSEC issues in mind, any superstitions or rituals anyone does for checkride or major league mission prep? Mine, as goofy as it sounds, was to crank up some bagpipe music on the drive in. My German ancestors would be proud... Lucky underwear and t-shirt under the bag...always a must Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Techsan Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 I rock out like my man Dwight...in the first part, replace "Why are you going to give me a raise?" with "Why are you going to give me a Q1?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sputnik Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Is that too much info? Chuck Yes. But that explains the xlarge thong panties I kept finding during my FOD checks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skitzo Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 My wife makes baked goods. The one time she didn't I hooked my low level check for the localizer approach. Easy superstition as it requires no effort on my part. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Techsan Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 4. Chew only Polar Ice flavored Extra chewing gum. It helps me air refuel... Wow, I use that one too. I definitely have to chew gum during AR. Polar is the most refreshing & helps the concentration. I'll give you a zero breakaway guarantee. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HuggyU2 Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 I don't believe in superstitions, or "lucky" underwear. Lots of flying the week prior (and always), and a good night sleep. You don't need "luck" in that case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck17 Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 I don't believe in superstitions, or "lucky" underwear. Lots of flying the week prior (and always), and a good night sleep. You don't need "luck" in that case. Whatever dude! Being a former baseball player and a hockey player too, Im way superstitious. It helps! Chuck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butters Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 (edited) I don't believe in superstitions, or "lucky" underwear. Lots of flying the week prior (and always), and a good night sleep. You don't need "luck" in that case. My ass! First of all, I have a 12 yr old T-shirt that I only wear on checkrides so it will last another 8. "Lots of flying the week prior" Oh, so you are one of those guys that refuses to take there check ride because they haven't been able to "memorize" the profile. I love giving checkrides to people like that. Change one thing on the profile and they screw themselves right thought the ceiling. The best check rides I have ever had were ones where I didn't fly at all prior. If you practice your profile you are only trying to learn how to pass, not learn how to fly. Someone once said fly everyday like you are on a check ride. Well, he was dumber than shit. I say fly a check ride like you fly every day. Last time I took a check ride without any prep the scheduler asked me if I wanted to postpone and get some practice. I said, no. I am an IP and if I cannot pass a checkride without practice the DO probably needs to know that and fire my ass. If you need practice to pass a checkride, I have a job for you. It is called a dumb ass copilot. Not to be confused with hard working copilots that know their shit! Edited January 11, 2009 by Nole_96 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slacker Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 I just fly shit hot and don't f<ck up. My last 2 checks were as a staff guy with no flying 58 days prior- Warm ups are for p#ssies. It also helps to make sure the evaluator get an assualt after yours- it humbles their ass and I find most of the time they'll suck. This is why also when I'm evaluating- I don't get in the seat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F16Deuce Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 I listen to Metallica on the ride to the squadron and I take a big sh!t before I fly. I do this everytime I fly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skitzo Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 Then I imagine myself having the self-confidence of Rick James. "Flaps 50, Bitch!" I'm not sure that it helps, though. Follow that up with a bitch slap to the evaluator, I'm sorry Mr. Evaluator I was having too much fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FourFans Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 I've gotta say I'm with Huggy on this one. Checkride superstitions are silly. Good habits are different. You should do the same things on a checkride that you do on any other flight. If your daily rides wouldn't pass a checkride, you need to re-think some things. You want to do good on a checkride? Fly as much as you can and attempt to master every flight regime of the airplane. Be a master of your craft. sex, sleep, and sustenance are important, and all statistically proven to help you focus. But proper prior preparation is paramount. On the day of a checkride I remind myself of three things. Something weird WILL happen. I WILL make mistakes (no matter how small). I WILL be taught something new (EPs were IPs first and they probably like instructing better than evaluating). That's the closest thing I come to a ritual. FF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BQZip01 Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 sex, sleep, and sustenance are important, and all statistically proven to help you focus. Sorry, but that claim definitely needs a source to back it up... ...so we can all show it to our wives and girlfriends (God help us if they ever meet each other...). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest soflguy Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 (edited) Pre-check night before sex, morning sex, lucky boxers... then loud Disturbed on the way to work, followed last minute by 'I stab People' by ICP. Then a quick shot of coffee before step. Edited January 12, 2009 by soflguy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stiffler Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 I usually like to volunteer at the local food pantry the day before, wake up the day of the checkride and do a little yoga and have a chai tea...I also dont believe in "sex" but instead spend about 2 hours listening to my girlfriend and "sharing our feelings." Then I get in my PT Cruiser, drive to the squadron, go into the bathroom and have a good cry.... Then Im ready to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brickhistory Posted January 12, 2009 Author Share Posted January 12, 2009 stiffler, you're a giver... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skibum Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 I always schedule the aircraft parked on spot Q3. I figure what are the chances I would Q3 on the aircraft parked on Q3...that would just be way to big a coincidence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JarheadBoom Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 Nope. Wouldn't help me on a no-notice anyway. I'd rather get my AR and cargo checks done on the same mission, but the scheduling doesn't always work out that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WeMeantWell Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 Fly as much as you can and attempt to master every flight regime of the airplane. Does such a world exist? I haven't see those days since UPT. 2 week trips where you get a few sets of 1+1+1 and 33 hrs of cruise, helps a lot on checkrides. Lucky to get a local every month. If AMC has there way, everything will be SIM SIM SIM!! I prefer "black-cherry shasta" before AR (no caffeine, makes me jittery), and mint-millano cookies during the brief, nonchalantly passing them to the EP (trust me, they love 'em). For Crew acft, do everything required before the EP asks for it, i.e. discuss overrun, PAR, etc... procedures in brief, then brief everything at ground speed 0, so during the checklist everything is brief complete. Over do everything so the EP can't think of any questions. And lest you all forget, the EPs favorite hobbies, no matter how stupid discussing "Cat Fancy" is on a flt deck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoAround Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 My only ritual is getting nervous...kinda a "good" nervous though. If I ever stop getting nervous, I think it's time for me to move on to something else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daynightindicator Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 Seems like a good topic for a first post... For combat missions, I always fly with a pocket-sized copy of the Constitution. I usually also have a US flag in my helmet bag but that's more for post-deployment gifts than superstition. I don't usually do anything special for checkrides since I'm usually too concerned with getting my pubs up to date, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FourFans Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 My only ritual is getting nervous...kinda a "good" nervous though. If I ever stop getting nervous, I think it's time for me to move on to something else. True. True. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toasty Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 No rituals...just eat a solid breakfast right after brief so I don't get sick on the low level. Worked today, Q1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Beast Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 Marinate a big, juicy ribeye the night before a checkride. If I Q1, I have a large slab of celebratory cow flesh waiting for me. Other than Q1, at least I have a steak (hasn't happened yet, knock on wood). Also, I carry a 1903 Morgan Silver Dollar on important flights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now