It was AWESOME! Never had more fun in my life.
The day was perfectly clear, but a bit bumpy and gusty. However, I was already used to this from my 172 stick time, so even when I was flying formation on the way to the combat zone I did it nearly flawlessly. I flew with an old Navy F-4 pilot, Bludo. My dad flew with another old Navy guy, Worm, an A-4/MD-80 pilot. Both of them were extraordinarily nice guys, who were dedicated to giving you a safe and fun time. They really were a joy to fly with.
The "official" final score was 3-3, after 6 dogfights. In reality, I shot him down 3 times and he got me twice-we busted the hard deck at 4,000' once, and that counted as their kill. I mention this because I had my dad right in my gunsights, and pulled the trigger JUST as I descended through 4,000.
The only other kill I'll make excuses for they got when we were coming off of a split-s, and I lost sight of my dad. They have a saying-"lose sight, lose fight" that is absolutely 100% true. The only times I lost were the times I lost sight. It took a little bit to break out of my Cessna instincts, and really yank her around, but I adjusted quickly.
I discovered quickly that nothing can really prepare you for what 5 Gs actually feels like. I had a full blackout once, and came close two times more.
The coolest part of the day though, was being told by Bludo that I was a natural stick, and that if I did in fact decide to go the fighter track, I'd make a great fighter pilot.
The most surprising part? I almost got airsick! WHAT?! I DON'T GET AIRSICK! I was starting to feel just a might bit of unease after the third dogfight-I now think that this was caused because I was uncomfortable; I played 8 games of paintball yesterday and MAN was I sore. Well, now I know how to avoid it.
If you ever are able to get the cash together, I would absolutely recommend it. That's the only downside, the price, which is about $1,000. Any questions, go ahead and post them or PM me.
