Solo at Last!

You know I was talking to my Dad after having solo'd the Mighty Viper (F-16C) and he reminded me that it has been a long time coming. Some of you might know this story, but I felt like sharing it anyway. It started with a great friend of our family, Ralph Williams. Ralph had a Cessna 172 and he offered to take my Mom and I on a ride. Well, I was hooked! From then on I would dream about flying and getting my pilot's license. Fate, again stepped in while I was a Junior in High School. During one of our career days, an AF recruiter showed up, and so I thought I would see what the Air Force had to offer. It was pretty simple. The recruiter asked me a few questions? "Do you want to go to college?" and "Do you want to be a fighter pilot?" Uhhh.....yeah! So the adventure started.

I applied for and recieved and AF scholarhip, attended College and participated in AFROTC. There I competed against my peers for a pilot slot and was lucky enough to recieve one. After commissioning as a Second Lieutenant I attended Undergraduate Pilot Training at Laughlin AFB, in Del Rio, TX. With the help of my wife, I completed Pilot Training and was selected to be a First Assignment Instructor Pilot (FAIP) in the T-6 Texan II. Although it wasn't my dream of being an F-16 fighter pilot, it was a welcomed experience and a rewarding one at that. Following my three year assignment as a FAIP, a deployment to Kyrgyzstan, and axiously stressing my assignment drop, it was all rewarded with the news that I would get my chance at becoming a USAF F-16 pilot and would be continuing my training at Kelly AFB, TX in San Antonio.

However, one more delay was in store for me. The first week of training for F-16's I experienced a crazy phenomenon where I would see double. Not very good for a pilot. And although the issue only lasted 8 days, it took 8 months of labs, MRIs, and many other specialist visits and recommendations to convince the Air Force that I was still able to continue as a pilot.

So now, after about 18 years from my first flight in that Cessna with Ralph, I am finally here, training to be an F-16 pilot, on my way to becoming a Fighter Pilot, and let me tell you, there is no other place I would rather be than in my single seat fighter jet, hair on fire, screamin for the stars!

First Soccer Game

Madelyn had her first soccer game yesterday. It was hilarious seeing the little girls run around trying to kick the ball. It is fun having daddy as coach!

The "Bumble Bee" Team

My baby is 3 months old today! Such a happy little one!