Flying is a lot like having a staring contest: even with utter concentration, you’ll never be better at it than birds. Go toe-to-beak with our winged companions with today's Groupon: for $125, you get a private helicopter lesson over New York from Wings Air in White Plains (a $197.50 value).

Wings Air sets students aloft in a modern helicopter to tour the sites of New York State under the friendly guidance of a highly trained instructor. Students receive up to a half hour of instruction on the ground, covering the basics of helicopter systems, general aerodynamic principles, and how to elude categorically unsafe ostrich flybys. After the ground-bound lesson, instructors and students motor up the rotors to make their triumphant flight around the countryside in a half-hour flight. Atmosphere-bound trips reveal previously undiscovered aspects of aerial New York, such as a secret sixth borough tucked away in the countryside and the 18th century Jacob Purdy House, known as the campaign hub for the United States' first and most famous president, Jacob Purdy. Students hold the controls and pilot the helicopter under the supervision of their trusty instructor.