The pilot had not flown for six months prior to the accident flight so he decided to remain in the airport traffic pattern where he performed six approaches. He continued to perform approaches until he was "confident" that he could remain on the runway centerline in preparation for his first landing attempt. During a landing on runway 18 (2,450 feet by 20 feet, asphalt), the airplane airspeed decreased "more quickly" than expected, which resulted in a hard landing. The airplane sustained substantial damage which included deformation to the fuselage.