Can too much "knowledge" hurt during PPL training?
I am 33 years old, and have been wanting to fly since I was a teenager. Since then, I have spent countless hours researching flying, watching videos of people flying, reading about almost every aspect of flying there is, and yes, spending time flight 'sim'ing on my PC with Microsoft Flight Simulator (I started out with the original DOS version and currently have FSX.
I am on the verge of starting actual, real world PPL training.
I ponder whether what I already know (or *think* I know) will help or hinder my actual PPL training. The last thing I want to do is act like a know-it-all punk student and get off on the wrong foot with my instructor. I imagine that instructors absolutely HATE training another dreaded flight 'simmer. I also worry that what I (think I) know could actually get me killed or hurt or just make me a bad pilot. In 2003 I went on an explorer flight and within seconds realized that the real thing is absolutely, positively NOTHING like the sim...any sim, be it x-plane, FSX, or even a full-blown full motion sim. Being in 3 dimensions as opposed to two and being buffeted around and experiencing g-forces and feedback just doesn't happen on a home PC. On my PC, I can fly almost any aircraft and look like a pro. I realize that in the real world, I am nothing.
I guess the fact that I am aware of this and even talking about it up front is a good thing...better than going in naive. But I'm still afraid that things I've "learned" are going to only work against me.
Has anybody on this forum "transitioned" from being an "on-paper", "PC" pilot to the real thing and had major growing pains along the way?
I am really concerned that I will, even sub-subconsciously, think that I know everything the instructor tells me and come off as not taking him/her seriously...or for example come off as thinking I'm way ahead of my time, knowing for example what all the instruments are before he tells me...and this will just royally piss him off and put a bad taste in his mouth.
Maybe I am worrying too much about this?
I have thought about playing dumb...keeping my knowledge to myself and letting the instructor think he's telling me everything for the first time, perhaps this is the best "angle of attack", pun intended.
Granted, when I speak of things he might tell me that I already know, I do realize that probably 95% of what he tells me I will NOT already know...just obsessing over that 5% I guess.
Sorry for such a rambling post. I imagine this one will make for some good convo!