Your first leg with the baton stories here

[buzzbee 51]

Starting a thread to post stories of the thrill carrying the baton here. Do you remember your first time carrying the baton in the race?

[buzzbee 51]

Not sure if this is my first leg, but it was my first leg in the 07 race.In the 2007 race I flew OPPG to VAUD Iran to India in the Avanti Piaggio P-180. The tail winds were incredible up at FL 360 and I was just ripping along. I had been practicing in the P-180 and planned my descent pretty well until the weather closed in in dramatic Flight Sim style.Suddenly I was in zero visibility and had to try and make an ILS approach. My instrument skills were ok, but I was not prepared for this change in weather. Luckily one of the team was using FS Nav and was able to give me some vectors and get me onto the ILS. I was so nervous. Never before had I felt such a sense of terror / excitement in flight simulation. I really did not want to crash and bring on a 30 minute penalty. There was truly a sense of terror, almost like when you slide on a slick road in a car and are not sure you will be able to save it. I managed to make out the runway when I was practically over it and get the plane down and post my baton free. Never before had FS been so exciting for me. I was hooked. I think there are some others out there that have had a lot of fun. Vince are you around?

[StoneC0ld 5]

I don't even remember anything about any of the legs in the first race I was involved in, which was the very first RTWR.... Pretty sure I found myself landing at an unlit airport in the middle of the night once during that race, but can't remember any details.... Too long ago, now.... :(

[buzzbee 51]

But I imagine it was fun, you enjoyed the camraderie, and you were hooked.Am I not correct?

[StoneC0ld 5]

This was before any kind of Teamspeak, private forums and extensive use of multiplayer, but yes you would be correct.... :(

[DarkCharizma 10]

My first leg in a RTW race was back in 2006, and had just he right amount of excitement. It was in the middle of the night in the mid-pacific. I was expecting a pretty uninteresting flight, I mean, the middle of the night over the ocean flying between two islands can't be that exciting. I was wrong. About half way, a started seeing lightning strikes up ahead. As I got closer, the plane started getting thrown around, pretty bad actually. The bad weather held on pretty much the entire flight. I had a little extra scare when I looked down at my altimiter once too. The race in '06 had an altitude restricion of 8500 ft on the east hemisphere, and I think I was flying one of the last legs with the restiction. Anyway, I looked down at my altimiter and it said 8600 ft! Adrenalin rushed into my brain, and I immediately pushed down on my stick. Then I looked at my altimiter again, and noticed that I wasn't at 8600' at all, I was at 7600' :-doh I was at least lucky enough not to have to land in the middle of the thunderstorm, I came out of the bad weather just before approach. :)Klas

[jt_williams 291]

I flew my first RTW race leg in the first race in 2003. I was an only an observer in the forum as the race started. There was no organized planning and the early baton holders began to push the baton from east to west into the prevailing headwinds. It was not uncommon for the baton to sit at the destination airport for several hours until someone would claim it and push it along. At some point several days into the race I got an email from MM suggesting that we participate and help the AVSIM team keep the baton moving. My first leg was a night flight into Rahfa Saudi Arabia (OISS-OERF, I think). I flew the FSD Piper Cheyenne LS400 which was a pretty fast plane for that race. I flew another leg the next day from the coast of Venezuala to St Maarten(TNCM).I have returned every year for the race. I've attached a picture from one of my favorite legs from the 2006 race. I was wingman for Chris on a DC-7C night flight from Brazil to Ascension Island where we arrived just at dawn. http://forums.avsim.net/user_files/194719.jpg

[svenks 4]

Hi all,Well, I can't remember the leg, but I'm pretty sure it was in my faithful P-38 :)But I can vividly recall the adrenalin rush, when I pressed Enter to the "I got the baton" message. Boy, was I nervous!!!I do remember my worst leg though: The Concorde crash in 2005 (I think).Ouch!BRGDSSven Sorensen, EKCH