I recently got my sport pilot's certification and have been wondering if any other climbers on this site also fly. Now that I am through the schooling, I am hoping to combine the two hobbies and start my own form of "road trip"..

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We love the flying part, but then we wanna' land ourselves.

BETA TRIPS!!!!!!!!!!

Love yer canopy colors Hank :p Just teasing of course but I'm a charter member of SAP - Skydivers Against Pink :D quote>

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That's my wife, my parachute is all black with a red flamejob..

I've had my pilot's license since about 1994. Haven't flown in forever however. Just too expensive.... Can't remember now but what are the restrictions with the "sport" license? I seem to remember being restricted to within a certain radius of the airport. I've always thought it would be a gas to fly out to the creek and land on the dirt strip out behind the bridger jacks!

Starting at the Moab Airport. There's a small pile of little remote dirtstrips that small aviation companys/pilots use to drop off rafters/fisherman and I'm sure climbers if wanted. There's one at Mineral Bottom on the way near Moses Tower, Moab. Looks like it would be a blast. Congrats on the license.

I fly to pay the bills. I've always thought it would be neat to use a plane to get to climbing spots. But then I got to thinking...what if I got hurt :p

But if I owned a plane that is what I would use it for:)

I'm thinking like a Cessna 206.

I fly and currently own a 206. My recommendation is to continue on and complete your private. The sport rating is very limiting.

I've found that flying and climbing are very similiar in their requirements for risk management and personal assessment. And in both, there is no substitute for experience!

Have fun!

I was once fortunate enough to get to hitch a ride from Denver to the Needles resort landing strip via a friend of a friends Cessna. It was a blast. Enough so that I still toy with the idea of taking flying lessons and buying a old fixer upper plane.

Wow...I didn't expect so many responses!

As to the limitations of the sport pilot, I am restricted to one passenger, during daylight in VFR conditions. The plane must qualify as an LSA (light sport aircraft) and I can't get paid to fly. I went this route because it would allow me to fly sooner, and when I take long trips, they can be counted as solo time when I move to my private (which will be soon!). I'm currently planning a flight to Custer state park in SD! Oh, and the planes are generally cheaper to rent and better on gas.

I would like to get a glider endorsement, but getting involved in that sport is very expensive at the beginning.

Mr Lane, I think were on the same page. I know you boys down south have, on occasion, used pilots to help explore the South Platte.

wow...enjoy, but safety first

Still love the flying thing.
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Can't seem to get enough of it!

Hank, That is one SICK PIC!
Cheers!

NICE shot Hank!!

Thanks for the pic, got my blood boilin just thinking about it :)

This keeps up I'm going to have to go get current again....

I've been into aviation my whole life, had a cousin who was a pilot, and I racked up a lot of time flying with him before he got his fist job as a pilot. He passed away suddenly at 28 from unknown causes so it's been a few years. But I'm planning on saving up for a zenith 801 and my LSA so I can move out in the middle of no where.

Ryan: nice work, would you recommend your instructor? I've been looking at PPL options around CO. What are the time/money situation for sport lic vs ppl?

Sport is 2000 something dollars, PPL is pushing 7k, and even more depending if you require more than the required time before you're able to solo. I haven't looked in a few years, so I imagine these numbers are very conservative.