We did some touch
and goes at Livermore (LVK - http://www.airnav.com/airport/LVK)
but the pattern got kind of busy so we headed over to Tracy (TCY - http://www.airnav.com/airport/TCY).
We did a few touch and goes and Tracy and my CFI told me to make the next one a
full stop and let him off at the FBO. So a full stop, a little bit of paperwork
to make me legal and I started it up and headed for Runway
30.
Then it got weird. I had just turned onto the taxiway for Runway 30 and some guy called out of the
blue declaring an emergency and that he was attempting to make runway 30. Okay
I think - this is pretty odd. Everybody else in the pattern started to do 360s
and this guy pretty much had final to himself. I had enough time to make it
into the air but figured hey - at least the guy has a paramedic waiting on the
runway for him. He then said he was having engine problems but thought he would
make the field. I stopped about on the taxiway about 600' short of
the threshold for runway 30 with one good taxiway away from the runway to my
left. There was a Cessna behind me that I knew was waiting too. There were some
good thermals off of runway 30 and they tended to act like a bit of wind shear
so I called and gave my call "Warrior Two-Niner-Zero-Niner-Quebec - all ground
traffic holding short runway 30 - also lots of turblance about 1000' short of
runway 30 threshold advise high approach". I waited a few minutes and finally
spotted him turning to final. For about a minute (probably more like 20
seconds) it looked like he was coming straight at me and I eyed that taxiway to
the left but he finished his lineup and make a nice touchdown and taxied to
fuel.
So all excitement
over, turned the corner and held short of runway 30. Waited for all the guys in
the pattern to come around and get their landings in and did my quick runup and
lineup checklist. Well, all was good so taxied onto the runway and one last
look at the guages and I was off. Pushing the throttle forward to full there's
that initial feeling of oh my god this is it. But the training takes over and
you don't really have time to wait. Gagues in the green, rotate at 50kts, off
the runway about 55kts, trim for climb, call my upwind, drifting a little so get
the crab right, turn to cross wind, oops, got to call that, next thing I know
I'm at pattern altitude on my downwind and setting up for my
landing.
I had two good touch
and gos and a landing - first was easy and real smooth. The second was pretty
bumpy and I pretty much had my rudder maxed out on the crosswind correction but
got into ground effect and things settled down. My final touchdown was full
stop and then go back to get my instructor. My instructor said pretty good -
the last two were 13kts gusting to 18kts with some crosswind. Then back to
Livermore which was still pretty busy. We got shifted from 25R to 25L at the
last minute due to traffic and made a nice touchdown and we were
done.
