First Low Wing Flight

So I called up Bill a few days ago to see if I could get a ride in N81916. He said sure and we set up a flight for Saturday afternoon at Louisiana Regional.
I went out to the airport after I finished my last final at LSU on Saturday afternoon. Bill was running a little late, so I sat and watched the planes in the pattern. When Bill arrived, we went down to his hangar and pulled out his Cherokee.
The Cherokee's preflight was different in many ways. Nothing in the preflight is difficult, it's just crawling around on the ground to check the fuel sumps, pitot tube, landing gear, and such. Once I completed the preflight, we crawled into the cockpit. My first impressions of the left seat were wider but shorter. The Cessna's provide more leg room, but less rear room. The cockpit check took longer than normal just trying to find all of the gauges. Once I figured out how to look at a new GA panel, startup commenced. The engine start was very different, especially in that the piper starts with the mixture rich, unlike the C172 where it is at full lean. Once started, we taxied to 33, did the pre-takeoff run-up, and held short of 33. After a Cessna CAP plane landed, we took-off and headed toward Baton Rouge. The takeoff roll was longer than the Cessna I usually fly. 81916 has a 150HP engine, where the C172S have 180HP. Using the trim wheel was a pain because it was located between the seats. Best rate of climb speed was faster for the piper, but cruise was significantly less than the 172, about 100 Knots in the Piper versus 115 in the 172. The low wing provided many advantages while climbing, but during the descent was another story. The view of the earth below is not as easily seen in with the wings on the bottom. There was no big difference, but extra care must be utilized. Baton Rouge was quiet when we arrived and we taxied over to LA Aircraft for Bill to pick up some papers.
On the return flight, Bill and I took a direct route back to L38. I flew the pattern and made a 180 from downwind and cut out the base leg. Bill told me not to do cut out the base leg because the wing blocks the view of any aircraft on final. We came in a little fast due to our forward center of gravity. Bill taught me a "Piper trick" if one is coming in fast and floating over the runway. He said drop the flaps. In a piper, the flaps are manual and by releasing the flap bar, the lift is decreased and the floating stops. Upon releasing the flaps, the plane stops floating and lands. I thought it was pretty neat.
Overall, the flight was an excellent learning experience. The Piper's had both noticeable advantages and disadvantages, but the low vs. high wing debate will never end.