I guess it depends on what you fly. I own a Beech C-23 that loves power-on approaches and is a basically a brick$hitouse with wings otherwise. It also, if you use the correct approach speeds (75 knots, two notches of flap or 70 knots, 3 notches), tends to float in a nose-up attitude for quite a while, before stalling out and plonking down. It's not really a short-field aircraft.
YMMV, mine is an aerobatic certified model and has greater horizontal stab surface area than the non-aero models, which have a reputation of plonking down on the nosewheel instead.
I personally try to avoid marginal runways at night. My own home field is 5000' long, which hardly qualifies as "short" for a light single, plus it has PAPI. So I have lots of room to get it right.
I agree with the comments on not staring at the landing light. A sure killer of nose gear...
Beech (C23 and 77).
Last edited by BeechNut; 4th November 2005 at 00:35.