This is derived from something I received a while back, originally about full-scale aviation...

Rules of Flight

1. Every takeoff is optional. Every landing is mandatory.

2. If you push the stick forward, your blood pressure goes up. If you pull the stick back, it goes down. That is, unless you keep pulling the stick back, then your blood pressure goes way up again.

3. Flying radio controlled helicopters is not an expensive hobby. Properly cared for, your equipment will last forever. Crashing radio controlled helicopters is what's expensive.

4. It's always better to be at home wishing you were at the field than at the field wishing you had stayed home.

5. The ONLY time you have too much fuel is when it's on fire.

6. The rotor is just a moveable derivative of a ceiling fan, used to keep the owner/operator cool. Notice how much they sweat when it stops.

7. When in doubt, hold on to your altitude. No one has ever collided with the sky.

8. A 'good' landing is one after which no spectators need medical attention. A 'great' landing is one after which you can fly the model again.

9. Learn from the mistakes of others. You won't live long enough to make all of them yourself.

10. You know you've landed with the wrong side up when the tail boom is spinning faster than the rotor blades.

11. The probability of survival is inversely proportional to the angle of arrival. Large angle of arrival, small probability of survival and vice versa.

12. Never let the helicopter assume an orientation your brain didn't prepare for several seconds ago.

13. Fly over tall grass if at all possible. It takes a lot longer to find the wreckage, but it's usually in fewer pieces, and much easier to carry.

14. Always try to keep the number of landings you make equal to the number of take offs you've made.

15. There are three simple rules for a perfect auto. Unfortunately no one knows what they are.

16. You start with a bag full of luck and an empty bag of experience. The trick is to fill the bag of experience before you empty the bag of luck.

17. Helicopters can't fly; they just beat the air into submission. Raptors fly better than most because they're so ugly the earth repels them.

18. If the helicopter's movements are exactly the opposite of what you expect, don't panic. If the people who were admiring your flight are scrambing to get underneath the picnic tables behind you, panic.

19. In the ongoing battle between hordes of 6-to-12 pound objects made of plastic and aluminum, and a single 13.2 x 1024 pound object made of dirt, the dirt has yet to lose.

20. Good judgment comes from experience. Unfortunately, the experience usually comes from bad judgment.

21. Between flights, keep looking at the helicopter. There's always something you've missed.

22. Remember, gravity is not just a good idea. It's the law. And it's not subject to repeal.