SteveK's Lucky Day!!

[Ward Odenwald]

With Steve's permission. Steve and others will tell the story.

[Ward Odenwald]

The lucky Dude himself!

[FlyingFelix]

Crazy tuff happened! Glad Steve is OK, glider is gone but that's replaceable.
Apparently he was standing behind of his glider, the place loses control, goes left off the runway and eventually turned on the tip and rammed Steve's glider with Steve behind it and all - the guys I talked to (Sunny, Adam, etc.) said they expected the worse when they saw it all happen but Steve seemed to be fine (got to talk with him a bit). He'll need surgery on the right ear (probably cut by a side wire) - hopefully not much more than that.
Someone that knows more please post...

[stevek]

I actually don't know that much about what happened. I was kneeling down in front of the glider to put on the vario when I heard some engine noise. The engine noise got very loud in the space of a few seconds and I started to get up to see what it was. Then it was all impact stuff. I ended up on my back on the sail. I realized my ear was bleeding pretty badly and then Bob was there helping me up. Pretty bizarre. Not sure if it was my luck day (I could have easily been killed) or just wasn't my day.

[markc]

My god! Steve, man, so glad that you weren't clobbered in that crash (any worse, that is). Took me a while to comprehend what I was seeing in the photos, can only imagine how much of a WTF moment that must have been. Really really glad that you are OK. Not many can say that they've had a plane land on them....

MarkC

[Danny Brotto]

I spend a good amount of time around airports and have witnessed some crazy stuff... but THAT pegs the crazy meter! Looks like you were well away from the taxiway; did this guy veer off of the taxiway that far? Glad you are okay Steve. I see a new U2/T2/S2 in your future.

Danny Brotto

PS: Nice looking cloud streets!

[silverwings]

Steve, when Ward told me you were run over by a plane it was hard to imagine. Glad you are OK. How in the hell could a plane get that far off of the runway and destroy your glider and almost you. I guess you didn't get to fly that day (ha, ha). Just think, the chance of you ever getting run over by another plane is pretty slim now.

[sailin]

Steve, Glad you were not hurt worse!!!! Heal fast !!! At least while you are waiting to mend up you can spend some time picking out the colors to your new glider!!!

Jon

[XCanytime]

Steve I am glad that you escaped serious injury in what could have been a catastrophic event. When Ward texted me the info while on my FedEx route yesterday I almost fell out of the driver's seat ! May you heal quickly. Kinda reminds me of the old Colt 45 commercials from the late 60's into the early 70's. The one commercial that I recall has a man drinking a Colt 45 sitting at a small table in front of an Alamo style façade of a building. All of a sudden the façade falls forward and miraculously the doorway opening falls right in line with the man and the table. He brushes the dust off of his shoulders and continues to enjoy his Colt 45 .

How in the hell could a plane get that far off of the runway and destroy your glider and almost you?

John I'm suspecting that the pilot was dipping his left wing into the crosswind during his takeoff roll to the west. As he got airborne the plane may have not gotten enough airspeed to climb and he may have been heading for some objects (the fuel tanks? The hangar?) that he concluded he couldn't clear. So he aborted the takeoff and tried to stop the plane as quickly as he could but unfortunately Steve and his glider were directly in the path. Just a theory. Bacil

[eggzkitz]

First, someone (Hugh) said that an HG had been hit by an airplane.

I of course assumed... in air. Which made me think, oh W)(@)(*#@)(.

But then Hugh explained the unique circumstances by which the HG was hit by the airplane.

Crazy.

Glad you're OK.

[dbodner]

I don't think Steve was particularly lucky. I haven't been hit by an airplane all week!

[jyoder111]

Yikes! Glad you're ok, Steve!

[mcelrah]

Unfortunately, not getting squashed by an airplane does not decrease your chances of it happening the next time (every time you flip a coin the odds of coming up heads are 50/50, even if it came up heads five times in a row already).

My guess about what happened: Adam said the instructor was demonstrating a soft field take-off. When I was taught this, the drill was to keep it rolling as you turned onto the runway, give up elevator to unweight the nose-wheel and pour on the coal. Try to "pop" it off the ground early, then level off in ground effect and accelerate to climb speed. So maybe the instructor popped it off in a mush/stalled condition and didn't have good control (tail surfaces not seeing much wind because of the nose-high attitude?). It sure is a long way from even the grass runway across the ditch to the set-up area, so he was really out of whack...

- Hugh

[Pete Schumann]

Holly Crap! Man glad you're okay Steve. You and I were just talking about HG stuff.....

That said sorry about your ear/head wound you look like the Red Baron with the bandage....

Pete

[laszlo]

Despite my PhD in mathematical economics, I am with John Middleton in this one. Furthermore, Steve looks better than the Red Baron. And flies much better...

[Richard Hays]

Glad you're ok Steve. My god......what a freak thing! Jeeesh. I do hope the pilot gave you his insurance info. New glider in your future for sure. And medical costs paid for. And.....and....lol. Wow....just plain( plane? lol ) wow....

[Lauren Tjaden]

OMG!! We love you and your mangled little ear, Steve! I'm glad it's nothing more than a hell of a story. A million hugs,
Lauren and Paul

[Matthew]

Did Adam at lest give you your PLOM special skills sign-off?

**Plane Landed on Me**


Matthew

[CraginS]

Steve,
So glad you escaped with minimal injury. I hope the aural damage is not too bad.
I saw the photo on OzReport before hopping over to out forum; wondered whose glider it was, and thought it was nice no one was near it (little did I know).

So, is the instructor who was "teaching" the student how to do a soft field takeoff going to buy you any replacement that Sunny can order?

Truly glad you are OK.

Cragin

[jimrooney]

Yeah, that was my thought as well... is it free new glider time?

[Danny Brotto]

More likely the insurance company not the instructor. Didn't I hear that your vario now no longer works too?

Danny Brotto

[CraginS]

More likely the insurance company not the instructor. Didn't I hear that your vario now no longer works too?

Danny Brotto

And your GPS, and your GoPro 3 you had on the base tupe, and the 2nd GoPro you had on the keel?