Ed_Wischmeyer
Well Known Member
Although I'm hopeful that the current round of physical therapy will help my spinal issues, there's no hope that my spine will ever again be good for more that 2 Gs (five level fusion, L1-L5, and additional recent symptoms). And the other day, it's newest complaint was whining in moderate turbulence (enough that the downdrafts would lift you out of the seat a little, but not slam your head into the canopy.) The sharp edged updrafts were the uncomfortable ones.
So what to do about getting a better ride in turbulence?
* I talked to the good folks at OregonAero, and their suggestion was to make sure that I wasn't slouched over in the seat. I climbed into the -9A on the ground, and guess what I was doing? Yup, was slouching, but when I sat up straight, my upper arm was pressed against the side rail;
* Fly slower. The RV-9A has adequate speed for cross country, but I'd hate to have to slow down whenever it got bumpy;
* Get a faster plane and fly it slower. That could be a -7A, -10, or -14A. I've already been spoiled by the Garmin G3X touch system for IFR, and that's $40K to replicate in a new plane. The -7A has the same fuselage as the -9A, but I could slow it down to RV-9A speeds. The one time I tried, the -10 seemed heavy enough that I probably shouldn't try pushing it on the ground. RV-10s are also pricey, as are RV-14s which are rare on the market. An -8A is a possibility, but the ride in turbulence is not good for the back seater, and I don't know that the G3X yaw damper will work on an -8A.
* Get a (horrors!) spam can with springs in the seats.
Hate to do it, but the time has come to sell the RV-8, which I love to fly. And the -9A is also a candidate for replacement if I find a reasonable alternative. At this point, however, the easiest solution is to keep the -9A and slow down in turbulence...
Anybody got any better ideas, other than turning the clock back a decade or so? Surely other folks have gone through this, or very similar...
So what to do about getting a better ride in turbulence?
* I talked to the good folks at OregonAero, and their suggestion was to make sure that I wasn't slouched over in the seat. I climbed into the -9A on the ground, and guess what I was doing? Yup, was slouching, but when I sat up straight, my upper arm was pressed against the side rail;
* Fly slower. The RV-9A has adequate speed for cross country, but I'd hate to have to slow down whenever it got bumpy;
* Get a faster plane and fly it slower. That could be a -7A, -10, or -14A. I've already been spoiled by the Garmin G3X touch system for IFR, and that's $40K to replicate in a new plane. The -7A has the same fuselage as the -9A, but I could slow it down to RV-9A speeds. The one time I tried, the -10 seemed heavy enough that I probably shouldn't try pushing it on the ground. RV-10s are also pricey, as are RV-14s which are rare on the market. An -8A is a possibility, but the ride in turbulence is not good for the back seater, and I don't know that the G3X yaw damper will work on an -8A.
* Get a (horrors!) spam can with springs in the seats.
Hate to do it, but the time has come to sell the RV-8, which I love to fly. And the -9A is also a candidate for replacement if I find a reasonable alternative. At this point, however, the easiest solution is to keep the -9A and slow down in turbulence...
Anybody got any better ideas, other than turning the clock back a decade or so? Surely other folks have gone through this, or very similar...