Dale Masters on flying and understanding

This sport can be terribly frustrating at all levels, but after we pay our inevitable dues, it becomes more than worth the effort. Less experienced pilots must be patient and persistent, and continue to try different variations of method. After a few long thermal flight we begin to develop a sense of what is about to happen, and what to do about it. Then, after a few hundred flights, we begin to gain an intuitive sense of how to perform little miracles, almost on demand. To avenge the disappointment of short flights when the old-timers are trumpeting how good the soaring is, preserve, be as sensitive as possible to all forms of information, and use your imagination.

And never assume you really understand.

~ Dale Masters, 12,000 hours in gliders, from his book Soaring: Beyond the Basics.