Original Message

Power check on approach. Slow below ETL, 'load the disk' with no or very little ROD. Give yourself a safe exit path to abort. What's your power margin? If you are close to your power limit, you better be able to drop weight at your LZ. Or burn off fuel. Be mindful that the wind may shift, not in your favor, lower in the approach. You may suddenly need to pull more collective than expected. Or suddenly need to add pedal to correct for a crosswind. How much of a power margin you need is dependent on finesse and experience. Best advice I can give is to be conservative; if your instincts tell you it doesn't feel right, don't commit to the LZ. This applies to any approach; performance problems don't just happen in the mountains.