But sadly, its not Mach1, but a hell of a lot more fun than an airliner. My goal is the much more reasonable SR-22 turbo, just need to get my instrument raiting first.
The chute might be why: false sense of security. As a safety measure, it's like an air bag in a car. It can turn some bad situations into ones that are somewhat less bad. But I get the impression that a lot of Cirrus pilots treat it as a get-out-of-jail-free card instead of the last-ditch safety measure that it is.
There's also the danger that comes with any expensive, high-powered, prestigious airplane, namely that people with more money than time will see it as a great place to start flying and will end up exceeding their abilities and experience. For an earlier example of this, see the Bonanza and its reputation as a "doctor killer". Flying is tough, flying high-performance aircraft is tougher, and people with lots of money may try to take shortcuts they really shouldn't.
But sadly, its not Mach1, but a hell of a lot more fun than an airliner. My goal is the much more reasonable SR-22 turbo, just need to get my instrument raiting first.