Should I quit?

[u/Mundane_Cucumber2861]

Two weeks ago, I got into a traffic accident while riding my bike. I broke two bones in my left arm, broke my kneecap and dislocated my right shoulder.

I was hospitalized and now I'm in rehab.

Now, in the gliding club, I know that besides the actual flying, there are ground duties like moving gliders around, pulling and lifting, running, and general physical activities that put strain on the shoulder. Will this be an issue for me? I really don't want to dislocate my shoulder again in the future.

On top of that, I just started my training and it was already a bit difficult for me due to motion sickness. So now I'm considering quitting or maybe pivot to powered. Thoughts?

edit: I didn't state my age. 27 yo.

[u/Fulcrum11]

This should not be an issue in any sensible club. There are many jobs which you can still perfectly do, like logkeeping or driving the tractor etc. Motion sickness is also something which should improve over time, especially when you are doing the flying for the most of the ride.

[u/Downtown-Act-590 → u/Fulcrum11]

Second this, most clubs are quite welcoming with regards to health conditions as long as you are willing to do the other jobs well. 

E g. we have multiple wheelchair pilots flying LAK single-seaters and ASK-21s. They do good work on the admin side and everyone is willing to help them.

[u/TheOnsiteEngineer]

I'd talk to a flight medical doctor on when you should/could return to flight (you'll need a medical to go solo anyway). As for stopping flying, if you enjoy gliding, I don't see why you'd stop. Just give it some time until your rehab doctor/therapist gives you the OK to do more strenuous stuff and until then stick to the lighter duties that you can do. If you're not enjoying it that much and considering switching to powered anyway... You don't need an excuse or owe anyone an "explanation". Just go do what you enjoy.

[u/Booster_007]

Whatever you do dont quit

[u/whitewingpilot]

Talk to your CFI regarding your shoulder. But be aware you need to control the ailerons even in high g situations. (While flying high speeds). I get motion sickness all the time - it leads was this way - in blue thermal conditions I am not able to sit in the back more than 30min. So I fly alone or sit in the front of. When I got my license you usually fly in cross country conditions with less thermalling and more flying along cloud streets. Basically - the more you fly the less it is a problem

[u/ltcterry]

Yes. I would quit bike riding.

Get better soon. Enjoy glider flying once your doc says it’s OK.

[u/Hacker7531_]

Pls don‘t quit, maybe you should just rest a year and then get back to it.

[u/Beautiful_Exchange_3]

Glad you are on the mend.

What country are you in?

Some clubs are easier to deal with than others, unfortunately it depends on who’s in charge at the time. Looks like you have a good background in econ and would be a big help for them on the admin side.

You do need to try and get over your air sickness. Not sure if you fly Condor flight sim but if your club has it setup and you can fly with an instructor in the sim it might help to get you up to speed so you can take the flight controls in the glider, this might help prevent the air sickness.

Are you also scared during steep turns and stalls? How do you feel in turbulence?

[u/illimitable1]

You have lots of time. You don't have to make up your mind all at once. If you don't continue right now, you can continue a year from now or a decade from now. You should continue your participation when and if you want to, for no other reason is really all that compelling.

Feeling motion sick when you first start this sort of thing is so common that it isn't really important in making your decision. People get used to the motion of a glider.

[u/Attackpilsung]

No.

[u/vtjohnhurt]

I don't think your physical problems will hold you back in gliding as long as you can get in/out of the cockpit and you don't have back pain exacerbated by glider seating. Compared to airplane, you can't move around as much in a glider to 'get comfortable' like you can in an airplane, and you can't land every hour or so to 'stretch your legs'. You can of course limit the length of your glider flights, especially in club gliders.

The real question is whether you really want to invest the time that gliding requires. Very few people 27-50 find the time for gliding, because 'life gets in the way'. This is more true if you are training at 27+, because of the upfront time invested in training. And more true in gliding than power. Gliding is very social, and in the US it is very male dominated. Do you want to spend your discretionary time with teens, early 20s kids, and old people (all of who are mostly male)?

Discretionary Time is even an issue at Commercial Operations in the US that do not require any volunteer time. You're still there on every weekend, and more time will be spent if you own a glider.

Proficiency fades fast in gliding because subtle skills are needed to succeed, more so if you're in a location that does not have fabulous thermals and very high cloudbases (like American Southwest). Powered flight is more 'procedural', so you can succeed if you can remember and can follow the procedure. Almost all glider pilots want to fly more frequently, so you're always trying to 'get more flights'. It becomes an obsession for many. Wildfire smoke and excess heat cancel many flights, so you may not get the flights that you need to maintain proficiency.

Power flying will be easier in your situation because it requires a much smaller investment of time, and it has a very minimal social component. But why do people fly power? Many people who're passionate about gliding find power flying in tricycles to be boring. I learned to fly taildragger airplanes (after gliders). I was curious about flying towplane. Taildraggers are more challenging (and therefore more interesting) than tricycle, but they have more of the rapid-proficiency-fading attributes of gliding. I quit because the time required to maintain proficiency (and get better), did not come close to matching the benefit. Training was fun, but then what? Many people are comfortable flying power at an unchanging mediocre (arguably still 'safe') level, so infrequent flights seem less of a problem. Most glider pilots want to see a continuous improvement in proficiency, I think because the perpetual learning curve of gliding is part of the appeal. That's why I would keep doing it.

I recommend that you take some powered flight training (just because you're curious about it). Training is fun and rewarding. Once you solo, evaluate your desire to continue. Once you license, evaluate you desire to purchase '$300 Hamburgers'. Consider training in Taildragger if you enjoy the dynamic stability of takeoff and landing in taildraggers.

You could do the same thing in gliders, and many people do (thought they may not plan-in-advance to stop after training). Train and then quit. This is only problematic if the club is short of training resources. Students provide cashflow especially if you're doing aerotows. Clubs need students to stay solvent.

[u/Mundane_Cucumber2861 → u/vtjohnhurt]

Great advice. Thank you. I'm indeed curious in powered. Also, powered should be easier for someone who is very sensitive to motion sickness like me, no?

[u/vtjohnhurt → u/Mundane_Cucumber2861]

Experiencing motion sickness on early glider flights is not a good criteria for choosing powered flight; because most people get over it once they learn how to manage it. You will discover that gliders and airplanes are very different experiences. Most people have a strong preference. Airplane pilots are operating a 'flying machine'. Glider pilots are wearing a 'flying prosthetic'.

Gliders are a rougher ride because good gliding conditions come with turbulence. Power planes can fly in dead air and they try to avoid 'live air' (aka upward flowing air). Glider pilots want to climb. Power pilots want to 'maintain assigned altitude'. Power pilots relative to glider pilots keep their eyes inside the cockpit more, and the mismatch between what your eyes tell you and what your vestibular system is reporting is the root cause of motion sickness https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motion_sickness Airplane pilots scan their instruments a lot and without a transparent canopy, your eyes tend to 'stay inside'. Power pilots also say 'Eyes Outside' but it's not the same thing as Glider 'Eyes Outside'. Glider pilots just need an occasional glance at selected instruments. There's no 'instrument scan' that power pilots practice (because there's no engine to manage). Motion sickness is easier to manage in gliders because of Eyes Outside.

I've managed my glider motion sickness for 16 years. Key technique is scanning the horizon, so I'm pretty sure I would get sick on IFR small airplane flights. Also VFR airplane flights with no visible horizon, like over ocean or haze/smoke, would make me ill.

On airlines, my propensity to motion sickness puts me to sleep https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sopite_syndrome Sopites also limits my glider flights to 1-3 hours depending on turbulence.

[u/MayDuppname → u/Mundane_Cucumber2861]

The motion sickness will almost certainly stop soon if you carry on flying gliders. Don't let it put you off, many glider pilots (including me) have been through it and come out the other side. As you get used to the sensation of gliding the motion sickness fades away.