Cameltoe,
You can go and throw your toys out of your pram if you want, but you asked a question on an open forum and you have gotten some excellent input. You may not agree with it all (and, frankly, I don't agree with it all, either) but when you've got 500 hours under your belt, come back and read this thread, and then decide if you still disagree with me or not. In other words, you're being taught a very pedantic way to fly, which is as it should be, but real-world experience in light aircraft flying in the UK will teach you much different lessons. The answer you got from me was based on experience, not the Trevor Thom books or the view of a particular instructor who's being measured on his adherence to procedures
Yes, if you take position on the runway, stop, and then commence a checklist, you are wasting time on the most valuable and limited resource an airfield has. Show respect for all the other users and minimise your time there. That's dealing in the real world, not training land. You can get pissy about it if you like, but that's reality. It's an unwritten contract amoungst pilots that while you have the runway, it's completely and entirely yours, and everyone will respect that 100% and let you do what you need to do for as long as you need. Your part of that contract is to make most efficient use of your time there. Checking things that you've checked before or you should know before you cross the hold is wasting time on the runway.
At the end of the day, I guess I get frustrated by pilots who try to complicate this hobby of ours. One of my biggest frustrations is people who fly by numbers but don't really understand why. A typical symptom of this approach is an over-reliance on checklists, because they can't think their way through their situation. It's expected of students, but not of experienced pilots, and I hadn't appreciated your situation in my original response.
Comparing our environment to what happens in "commercial aviation" is not terribly relevant and just serves to overcomplicate a very simple light aviation model. If you're flying a C152 out of Heathrow, mixing it up with 747s and the like, then you may have need for more complex checks, but for anything else, try to simplify your flying, not complicate it. A few key check items and a sharp mind that is ahead of the airoplane is far more valuable than a binder full of checklists, graphs, and the like.
Come on down to Popham some time and I'll show you what I mean over a coffee at the clubhouse/hold for runway 26.
Pitts2112