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.

Private Pilot Checkride

I have had great trouble getting to sleep these past two nights and it finally paid off. This morning I awoke and got a weather briefing, for New Orleans to Peachtree City (KPDK). The weather looked great, but I was not going to be flying that route. Instead I was off to the airport to fly down to meet the examiner.
I got to the airport at 12:45 pm and pulled all of my papers, planning, and books to go and spread them out on a table. We started the oral and made sure everything was in order with my papers and the plane’s paperwork. The oral was very calm and laid back. It was like I was talking to a friend who had no or very little knowledge of airplanes and had no interest for very deep questions. The oral was about one and a half to two hours. Went though aircraft systems, private pilot privileges, weather, x-c planning. It was in the PTS, we talked about it. At the conclusion of the oral, he told me to go get setup for the flight.
So I walked out to the plane and pulled my flight plan out, timer, and anything else that might have been useful. When he walked out to the plane, he told me to preflight and watched me out of the corner of his eye. Started her up, did the run-up, and we were off. First takeoff was a soft field. All was well. Departed the pattern and started my x-c. Made my first checkpoint twenty seconds late, but he said I was doing great. Was going to the second and he told me to find out what radial we were on and steer for it. I figured out the radial and had to make a ninety degree turn. I could not figure out why the radial was not centered as I was correcting to get back on it. I then remembered, DG against the compass. Damn thing had precessed a good twenty degrees in ten minutes. I fixed that and just as I was getting onto the radial, he gave me my hood and then came the instrument work. Turns to heading, climbs, and unusual attitudes was all we went into. After that he said he had cleared me for stalls and slow flight so I said okay. Slow flight went fine, executed a couple of turns while slow and he said great. My power off stall was great, but my power on turning stall was a weak one. He said it was alright and then showed me one.
After the stall, my power was pulled and we did an approach to an engine out landing. I was looking at smoke stacks far in the distance for wind direction and he says “Look down.” Sure enough there was a small fire going and giving perfect wind guidance. Around nine hundred feet, he told me to do turns around a point, use the fire, and that I could have the power back. My turn was alright and I was a little confused at what he wanted at the time, so he did get a little flustered, but I was told he is always like that on checkrides.
After the turns around the point, climbed back up and did steep turns. My first one was a little shaky, but the second one was perfect. He asked what happened with my first one. After steep turns, it was back to the pattern.
While entering the pattern, we watched some guy making horrible radio calls as to his location. Once established in the pattern, it was a full stop short field landing. Then a short field takeoff and back around for a soft field touch and go. He said this was our last round of the pattern so I was thinking, perfect, one normal approach and here I am finished. On downwind abeam the numbers, my power was once again pulled. I came in fine, but I was a little high but still had plenty of the four thousand foot long runway left. Got off the runway, taxied back to parking, turned her off, and put the control lock in. Walked inside and finished the paperwork online and made copies of everything.

Overall, I had 47.6 hours going into the test with 11.9 being PIC solo. Around 150 landings and every one of them were dead on (;)).