I recently had the opportunity to try my luck with a taildragger. My taildragger experience is basically zero, so I was very excited to hop on and see what a wheel "back there" would do to a Cessna.
My instructor for the day said to look out the window at all times and to forget about the avionics for a while (although this particular airplane has plenty to look inside). He stressed the fact that if I looked inside I would end up in the fence...... So with that warning my pulse accelerated a bit.
We did four takeoffs and landings, and we returned the plane to its parking spot ready to fly again! I am told the 185 is a heavy taildragger and it can get messy quickly if not handled properly. With the manual trim and flaps you really work out, specially in the pattern. All I know for now it is a FUN and sweat producing machine.

Rgs,

Patrick.

I have over 200 hours flying the C185 hauling jumpers, with lots of takeoffs & landings.

It's a good honest machine that will do what you tell it to. I liked flying it.

One trick an old guy taught me was NOT to put the flaps at 10, then 20, then 30, then 40 degrees. He said it wears you out. He said, on down wind, pull the yoke back, as the speed decreases (to make it easier), just throw in 40 degrees & push the nose over & land. It did make it easier.

One time there was a really bad crosswind, turbulent, when I was landing at a paved airport to buy fuel. It was the only time in my life that I aborted a landing because I couldn't do it. I went back to the grass field that was more aligned with the wind and gave up jumping for the day.

Shortly after 9/11 they started allowing IFR flights only. The jumpers wanted to jump. It was the in the C185 that I filed an IFR flight plan to a nearby fix at 11,500'. I tried to pick up a clearance and FSS said I couldn't. That probably initiated the words you see now in every TFR - no parachute jumping in the TFR.

All in all a great airplane but at the end of the day, when I am tired, or landing in a storm, or crazy weather, it's just nice to be doing it in the Bonanza and not have to work so hard as I did in the Cessna 185.

That reminds me of my taildragger training in a Luscomb L2. I spent an hour doing 3 point and wheel landings. My legs were shot by the time we taxied in. During that time the instructor never touched the controls. The next instructor and student jumped in the plane right after us. They taxied about 100 yards and turned around. The instructor got out and declared the plane "uncontrollable". It turns out the mechanic forgot to install the centering springs on the tailwheel. I guess some people's "uncontrollable" is just another person's workout.

Vince