I'll chime in here seeing as I think I started this "debate" by mistake...
I've been flying simulators for over 20 years now, all different types and shapes and forms.
I've been with the VRA for over 5 years now and flown a variety of posistions but never as solidly as I do now in #8.
In real life I've only flown props and that was many many years ago in the Air Cadets so have a remote feeling of what flying a plane is like, but no where near the experience most of you guys do.
When I was a recruit for #8, I used to fly the VTB 2008 routine in #3 with the F15 and then when I flew thew SU27 in RED8 and on the wing, I was so much more stable.
I think that contributed to my formation flying massively in trying to stay close on the wing in the 15 compared to the 27 is a world of difference, for me anyway.
However, when I got my stability pretty good with the 27, I stopped flying the 15 and kept flying the 27 with our phantom and of course on practices and I won't fly the 15 again for a while at least until after our shows are done.
For me personally it helped a lot in the beginning flying the two different jets, but now I wouldn't use that for trainig myself. Flying with the 27 all of the time with our phantom or the team is the only way to go for me now.
And of course the A10 in DCS.
Man I'm so unstable when trying to tank I disconnect in about 10 seconds.
I'm fine in slot or wing of the tanker or any other jets and of course try to ignore the boom in my nose but when I crack that stability, I think my VRA will improve along with it.
There is a line said in the film Contact, "small moves Ellie", and I have always had that in my head, and say to myself out loud, when I think I'm getting unstable, that's my calm phrase.
Of course I change Ellie to Ells, unless at weekends
I think the main thing is do what you think is best for you. I am sure we are all different on our training approaches and relaxtion techniques before a show (Beaker and I were talking about this recently).
With all that said I'd stil llove to fly with the VBA and VTB some time to get a "feel" for how you fly compared to us as I imagine all teams are different.
I've flown a routine with Blaze on a phantom (albeit not VPJT) and that was errrm "interesting" on my part, but again was F15.
Anyway, to end my 2 cents as you guys say, or two penneth worth as us Brits say...
"Each to their own"