Flying left-handed

[Tim Wescott]

I've recently come down with acute bursitis in my right shoulder.  I had thought that I was recovering nicely, but it's been going downhill in the last few days (coincident with visiting the doctor -- hmm).  I'm hoping the condition will be temporary, but I don't think I'll have my shoulder back before the next contest or two.

I'm reasonably ambidextrous, so I'm confident that I can retrain myself to fly at least passably with my off hand.  I don't have to worry about being competitive, since I just moved up to Expert last year which means I wasn't going to be competitive anyway.  I tested this notion yesterday in the back yard with a 1/2-A plane, and was reasonably successful at flying level and inverted flight, although the plane isn't nearly up to the whole pattern.  I'm planning on just starting in practicing with a plane I don't mind crashing, keeping the bottoms up as much as seems to be reasonable until my sinisterity improves.

Some of the motions and reflexes must be different flying lefty with a counter-clockwise plane, though.  Presumably it's the same for a righty who's flying clockwise.

Any comments or tips on learning how to fly?  Thanks.

[Gerald Arana]

Wouldn't a shot of cortizone  help that? Just wondering.....

Jerry

[James Holford]

As I've never done it myself.

 Here is a video I took a few years back while visiting the late Dave Roland.  He flew left handed and pretty well I might add!

[Chris Wilson]

Just wondering if you have a dominant eye or side that prefers to lead into the direction of flight.

If you were right handed (or dextrous) and dominate with that side then changing to being left handed may result in that hand crossing the body to be more connected with the dominant side.

Good luck.

[Steve Helmick]

From my observations, flying left handed while the plane is flying counter-clockwise is a bit of an advantage, except for the RWO, which looks to be much more difficult. Maybe you should also start to fly clockwise at the same time? We'd let you drop back to Advanced, maybe, if you did both.  Steve

[john e. holliday]

I know of several people that fly with left hand and show me up a lot(not hard to do).  I can fly a little left handed and have made some of my best landings left handed.  Easier to lead the plane.  I remember the late Big Iron in racing would take off with one hand and land with the other.  It really depends on how much you practice and try.

[Dan Berry]

I know that my brother learned how to do it. He had some success.....
I also know that there some things that he couldn't do with the left hand even though he tried.

[Mike Keville]

Bart Klapinski and Jim Hoffman (among others) fly left-handed.  Pretty hard to argue with their success.

That being said, I'm left-handed - yet couldn't fly that way on a bet!

[Randy Powell]

Well, I decided that flying with the lines reversed doesn't work.

[Tim Wescott]

Wouldn't a shot of cortizone  help that? Just wondering.....

Jerry

I'll see what the doc says.  I'd been gradually improving for the last month, but slowly enough that I went to the doctor this past Tuesday.  She prescribed some exercises and icing the joints -- but the exercise appears to have kicked off a relapse.  It doesn't help that I play bells in church, and since I'm the only guy in the bell choir they give me the big bells.

While I'm working on getting the shoulder better I'm scheming on still being able to fly.

From my observations, flying left handed while the plane is flying counter-clockwise is a bit of an advantage, except for the RWO, which looks to be much more difficult. Maybe you should also start to fly clockwise at the same time? We'd let you drop back to Advanced, maybe, if you did both.  Steve

I thought about petitioning to move down to Advanced, but decided I'd rather just do worse in Expert.  Who knows?  Maybe after a few months of practice I'll do well at it.  I'm definitely right handed, but I'm not one of those poor sods who just can't do anything left-handed -- if I work at it I can usually learn to do tasks left handed nearly as well as I can with my right hand.  It comes in handy when I'm wrenching on equipment sometimes, and was a plus back when I was young and had delusions of being a pool shark.

[John Park]

A quote from my 1946 copy of Bill Winter's Model Aircraft Handbook: 'U-Control models are flown on two piano-wire guide lines.  The operator holds the control grip with his left hand.  This is done for two reasons.  The left hand has been proved capable of more delicate movements, and...'  (The other reason is to do with motor speed control.)
For myself, I write left-handed, do all my modelling work left-handed and shoot a rifle from the left shoulder, but I'm right-handed when it comes to archery, golf, playing guitar, and control-line flying.  I suppose I could learn to fly left-handed, but I'd want to start with something pretty tame and crash-proof...

Regards
John

[Eric Viglione]

Hey Tim,

I am sorta ambidextrous as well, and took it on a challenge to learn left handed flying several years back before we lost our old pavement field. It was mainly so I could see what the fuss was about for overhead 8 entry doing the OTS pattern. Some people thought lefties had a huge disadvantage. Well, I am here to tell ya, I did it the period correct over the shoulder entry and was just fine. It's more about un-learning the other way of doing it, and since I never did it the other way lefty, I was fine.

Back to learning lefty - yes, use a junker, but I never crashed, and I did finally manage a full recognizable pattern within the third day flying session.

You know how you hold one hand over your head, and the other over your belly, and some people have a hard time doing them in opposite directions out of sync?

Flying is the same way! To learn, as long as your shoulder is good enough to hold your arm out a little and support it's own weight, have your right hand doing the same movements at the same time as your left hand. They will synchronize, and eventually, you will be comfortable enough to stop the mirroring and just fly with your left hand.
Try it, you will be amazed how much faster you progress.

Wish you the best, pain is no fun, I've had my share lately, don't wish it on anyone.
EricV

[john e. holliday]

Go find Shug's video of the electric P-51 in the electric section.   He makes it look easy.

[Ken Burdick]

I agree with Steve. Maybe contact Leo and get one of his birds. I tried it once at the Bladder Grabber years ago after I injured my right hand........it was a short lived experience.

K

[Tim Wescott]

On the plus side, my foam-winged trainer design seems to hold up well to lawn-darting (soft ground helps).

On the minus side, my left hand needs a bit of work before it can do a reverse wingover -- I think next time I won't start by trying to do the whole pattern, in order.  I may not be flying at the next few contests...

[RandySmith]

Tim 
just get handle time..that is most important, I used to fly the pattern with either hand, as it helped me in flying combat, nothing will help more than just getting flying time.

Randy

[Russell Shaffer]

I can launch you and see if the old good luck holds.  From the days when we were duking it out for last place in Intermediate and you never actually crashed when I launched.

[Tim Wescott]

Tim 
just get handle time..that is most important, I used to fly the pattern with either hand, as it helped me in flying combat, nothing will help more than just getting flying time.

Randy

Yup.  The odd part of it was that the executive part of my brain knew just what was needed, but my right motor cortex was simply refusing to do it.  I expected that I'd do everything more or less correct, only with poor coordination.  I'm finding it very interesting from a science-geek perspective to find out just what I need to learn.

Next time I fly I'm going to go out and do inside rounds and outside rounds, and then try inside squares, and then do some top-hats.  If I can do a top-hat (up 90, level at 45^o, down 90, and then level at 5 feet) then I'll try a wingover again.

[Steve Helmick]

Tim, did you try "Dry Flying" left-handed, or just go straight to the flying field?  Steve

[Tim Wescott]

Tim, did you try "Dry Flying" left-handed, or just go straight to the flying field?  Steve

I did.  Gonna do more!

[John Leidle]

   Tim,
  I believe most people can use either hand  especially problem solver as you are. I've done it in several cases.
                   Anything to keep flying.  John