Nick Rae
Pilot · Builder · OpenClaw Playbook Author
Commercial pilot and builder behind The Non-Developer's OpenClaw Playbook: useful AI automation, field-tested the hard way. Based in Merced, CA.
Commercial pilot and builder behind The Non-Developer's OpenClaw Playbook: useful AI automation, field-tested the hard way. Based in Merced, CA.
Stop losing weekends trying to make OpenClaw useful. This is the setup guide I wish existed before I broke things, leaked config shapes, burned tokens, and rebuilt my gateway 40 times.
The pages already getting search traction now point at each other on purpose. Google likes a clean topic cluster. So do I.
Private, instrument, commercial, and multi-engine prep built around practical questions, oral exam traps, and checkride reality.
Midlife career 2.0: commercial pilot, builder, and author of The Non-Developer's OpenClaw Playbook. Based in Merced, CA.
But aviation is only half the story. I build iOS apps, research prediction-market automation, publish study guides for pilots, and use OpenClaw to run AI automation workflows that actually ship. I taught myself to build the same way I learned to fly: by doing it, breaking things, and iterating fast.
Two decades of managing teams, budgets, and high-pressure operations gave me a foundation that shows up everywhere now: CRM on the flight deck, product decisions in my apps, and risk controls in automation research. I bring intensity to whatever I'm working on.
The setup guide I wish existed before I broke things, leaked config shapes, burned tokens, and rebuilt my gateway 40 times. Setup, memory, cron jobs, coding agents, security, and cost control in one place.
Featured ProductPaper-first Kalshi weather research using NOAA + Open-Meteo forecasts, calibration gates, and risk controls. The live run is paused because the market baseline beat the bot. Useful lesson, mildly rude delivery.
Research · Paper GatePublic live tracker documenting the push from 371.0 to 500 flight hours and the AI/app income funding it. April KDP is now at 24 paperback sales with $198.34 USD plus €9.41 EUR booked.
LiveTrade steps for screen time. FeedFare helps you earn your scrolling with movement, streaks, and step-to-screen tracking. Live on the App Store while the deeper enforcement layer waits on Family Controls approval.
Live on App StoreSelf-published pilot training products built from my own checkride prep. The workbook series now covers private, instrument, commercial, and multi-engine add-on prep, with focused study tools instead of generic fluff.
Available NowiOS personal growth OS for people who want structure, momentum, and a harder edge than generic habit apps. Quests, daily protocols, and AI reflection aimed at helping users actually change, not just track themselves.
Second Focus501(c)3 nonprofit using volunteer pilots to fly rescue animals from danger to forever homes. Board member alongside founder Joe Orr. Domestic and international rescue missions, Eastern Seaboard and beyond.
LiveStudy materials I wrote to help student pilots, instrument applicants, commercial candidates, and multi-engine add-on pilots pass the written, survive the oral, and walk into the checkride less dumb.
500+ practice questions covering all PPL knowledge test topics. FAA-aligned, real exam format, fully explained answers.
ACS-aligned IFR workbook for the written and oral. Weather, procedures, charts, systems, and the stuff that actually bites people on instrument training.
Written test and oral exam prep with practice questions, flight scenarios, and checkride review built around the commercial ACS instead of random trivia dumps.
PA-44 Seminole-focused multi-engine checkride prep covering V-speeds, engine-out procedures, Vmc, OEI approaches, and oral exam review without the usual textbook sludge.
50 oral exam flashcards covering the questions a DPE is most likely to ask, with both a full PDF study deck and a printable 3x5 card version.
Quick-reference cheat sheets for checkride prep, plus low-cost study tools for student pilots. Grab them on Gumroad or the Payhip store.
Author of The Non-Developer's OpenClaw Playbook, building practical AI automation workflows, publishing FAA study guides on Amazon KDP and Payhip, maintaining iOS apps including FeedFare, and researching prediction-market automation with strict paper gates.
501(c)3 nonprofit using volunteer pilots to fly rescue animals from danger to forever homes — across the country and beyond. Coordinating multi-leg domestic and international rescue missions, including medical transport flights. Co-founded by fellow commercial pilot Joe Orr. runwaysandrescues.org
Earned PPL, Instrument Rating, Commercial certificate, and Multi-Engine rating in under 18 months. Trained in Class C airspace (Pensacola Regional). Completed Complex and High-Performance endorsements. Intensive, full-time accelerated program focused on procedural discipline and IFR proficiency.
20+ years in automotive management and leadership. Responsible for P&L, team development, customer operations, and multi-department oversight. Built transferable skills in CRM, decision-making, and high-pressure operations management.
Coached at the high school and junior college level. Game planning, player development, and coordinating under pressure — the same skills that make for a disciplined, team-oriented aviator.
Minor in Information Systems
Graduate-level coursework in organizational leadership
Commercial Pilot — ASEL/AMEL, Instrument Rating, Complex & High-Performance Endorsed
Whether it's about flying, building, or working together — I'd like to hear from you.