My 1st cross country out of Packsaddle. I have flown to the airport in Kingsland. I went north, then west towards Llano airport for a total distance of 13 miles before turning around and decking it 5 miles east of Llano airport – 12 miles from Packsaddle.

My mistress

Mark has some footage of me before I left the scene. Thanks Mark! I am in the 1st minutes… check it out.

It was a cloudy day but looked like plenty of ridge lift. Dan punched off 1st.

It looked like just ridge lift until Dan jumped west and made a good climb out stinking high. At this point, I just tried to copy what Dan did and climb out. When I did, I just kept going.

I headed down 29 west after choosing not to drift further north. I caught another good climb after going west. The more you climb, the more you drift until I had drifted to far north and didn’t have altitude to keep charging west. Drifting at this point would have only taken me further away from an easy retrieve. Land.

Here comes the cavalry

Lessons:

My declared goal for the day was to not land at Packsaddle. Goal setting works.
Goal setting works both ways. Had I started towards the Llano airport, I may have made it – Instead of ever changing goals – Kingsland airport, then flatrock, then 29, then Llano airport.
Radios – was nice to be able to radio my intentions to go when I went.