Thank you for your kind words everyone! I was on such a high when I got back last night that I wanted to record as much as I could remember. Of course after I'd posted I remembered much more, so I may produce an appendix while saving up for the next lesson.
Lowtimer - You're right about the carb heat (of course!), that's one of the things I missed out. Another thing I noticed during the walkround, and having a good poke around under the cowling was that the carb heat operates... a little flap! Simple, but it works. There's a huge vent which opens onto the outside of the cowling, and the flap shuts that off, allowing warm air to be drawn in from next to the engine. John mentioned the RAF running them permanently with carb heat too. We did end up using it a lot, because the cloud was so low, and it was wet, and apparently Chippies just
love carb ice.
I'm not sure I'll bother with the gloves, because she is very lovingly maintained, nothing much sticks out, and I didn't damage myself at all. I did get a bit mucky though (especially from the canopy runners), so I'd definitely recommend wearing something you don't mind oil all over!
BlueRobin - unfortunately I doubt this aircraft is available for general training. It's John's personal machine, and he knows me because he's the deputy CFI of my flying group.
One more thing to add... my right arm
really hurts this morning from holding the stick back. It takes quite a bit of strength when you've got some power on.
