C172 PRACTICING OP AT NON TWR ARPT. DELAYED AWAITING SPACE FOR DEP. THOUGHT HAD ENOUGH ROOM TO TAKE THE RWY. C172 ON CLOSE IN APCH HAD TO GAR AND VERY UPSET. RPTR HAD NOT SEEN THE ACFT ON APCH BUT HEARD THE CALL TURNING FINAL.

Narrative

SINCE I AM NOT AS EXPERIENCED IN ACFT OPS AT AN UNCTLED AIRFIELD; I DECIDED TO PRACTICE UNCTLED OPS AT HAF. BEFORE ENTERING THE PATTERN; I MONITORED CTAF AND DETERMINED THAT THE PATTERN WAS NOT BUSY; WHICH WAS UNUSUAL FOR THE ARPT. I PERFORMED AN UNEVENTFUL; FULL STOP LNDG ON RWY 21 AND TAXIED BACK FOR TKOF. WHILE ON THE GND; NUMEROUS AIRPLANES ENTERED THE PATTERN AND THE CTAF BECAME VERY BUSY AND KEEPING TRACK OF ALL ACFT IN THE PATTERN WAS DIFFICULT. I NORMALLY FLY OUT OF A CTLED ARPT (SAN CARLOS; SQL) AND WAS ACCUSTOM TO ASSISTANCE FROM GND AND TWR CTLRS. I WAS HOLDING SHORT OF RWY 21; WAITING FOR SUFFICIENT SPACING IN THE LNDG TFC TO TKOF AND DEPART THE AREA. I WAITED FOR APPROX 5-10 MINS WHILE SEVERAL ACFT PERFORMED LNDGS AND TOUCH AND GOES. I FINALLY THOUGHT THERE WAS AN OPENING IN THE TFC; SO I QUICKLY ANNOUNCED ON CTAF THAT I WAS TAKING THE ACTIVE FOR IMMEDIATE DEP. THE NEAREST TFC APPEARED TO BE JUST TURNING BASE TO FINAL; I THOUGHT I WOULD BE CLR OF THE ACTIVE IN TIME FOR THE LNDG ACFT. I ACCELERATED; ROTATED AND BEGAN A NORMAL CLB. DURING CLBOUT I HEARD ON CTAF THE LNDG ACFT ANNOUNCE A GAR. I THEN HEARD ANOTHER ACFT CALL FOR THE LNDG ACFT TO 'TURN R!!!' THE OTHER ACFT ANNOUNCED TURNING R. I DID NOT SEE THE ACFT SINCE IT WAS ABOVE/BEHIND MY ACFT. APPARENTLY WE HAD JUST EXPERIENCED A NEAR-MISS. THE LNDG ACFT WAS UNDERSTANDABLY ANGRY AND DEMANDED THAT I LAND BACK AT THE ARPT AND MEET HER AT THE FBO. I REMAINED IN THE PATTERN; LANDED AND MET THE ACFT ON THE GND. ON THE GND THE OTHER PLT STATED THAT I HAD TAKEN THE ACTIVE WHILE SHE WAS ON SHORT FINAL AND THAT WE HAD COME VERY CLOSE TO COLLIDING. OBSERVATIONS: I AM UNCOMFORTABLE AT VERY BUSY UNCTLED ARPTS. I NORMALLY DO NOT PERFORM PATTERN WORK AT HAF; DUE TO ITS NORMALLY BUSY LOAD. ON THAT DAY; I WAS NOT INTENDING TO LAND AT HAF; BUT I THOUGHT I WAS FORTUNATE TO BE AT THE ARPT DURING A SLOW PERIOD. SO; WITHOUT PROPERLY PLANNING; I PERFORMED AN IMPROMPTU LNDG TO PRACTICE UNCTLED ARPT OPS. I HAD ONLY LANDED AT HAF WITH FLT INSTRUCTORS. THIS WAS MY FIRST TIME SOLO. I SHOULD HAVE PREPARED FOR THE ARPT MORE PROPERLY. ON THE GND; I WAS NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE TXWYS. I ALSO; WAS NOT AS COMFORTABLE TALKING ON THE CTAF; AS I THOUGHT I WOULD BE. BEFORE THE TKOF WITH THE INCIDENT; I THOUGHT I HAD POSITIONED MY ACFT SO I COULD SEE THE TFC ON BASE AND FINAL. I AM STILL UNSURE IF THE OTHER ACFT WAS THE PLANE I SAW TURNING BASE/FINAL; OR IF I HAD MISSED SEEING IT COMPLETELY. I DO RECALL THE OTHER ACFT CALLING ITS TURN TO FINAL; RIGHT AS I TOOK THE ACTIVE. I'M STILL CONFUSED AS TO HOW THE PLANE ARRIVED OVER THE THRESHOLD SO QUICKLY. I BELIEVE I MISJUDGED THE DISTANCE OF THE PLANE TURNING FINAL. I FELT PRESSURE TO TKOF. I HAD BEEN HOLDING A WHILE AND WAS FRUSTRATED TO GET INTO THE AIR. IT WAS A HOT DAY AND I HAD NOT INTENDED TO BE ON THE GND AS LONG AS I WAS. THERE WERE OTHER ACFT BEHIND MINE AND I FELT I WAS HOLDING UP THEIR DEP. I SHOULD NOT HAVE LET THIS AFFECT MY JUDGEMENT. OTHER PLANES IN THE PATTERN WERE CONFUSED BEFORE THE INCIDENT. THERE WERE SEVERAL OTHER TENSE CONVERSATIONS BTWN OTHER ACFT IN THE PATTERN. TENSION ON THE CTAF WAS ALREADY HIGH. I RECALL GETTING NERVOUS AND THINKING THAT I JUST WANTED TO TKOF AND GET CLR OF THE AREA. HAF HAS A VERY LONG RWY (5000 FT). THERE IS AN EXIT TXWY AT BOTH ENDS OF THE RWY AND AT THE HALFWAY POINT. THE LNDG ACFT MUST STOP BY THE HALFWAY POINT; OR TAXI TO THE VERY END OF THE RWY TO EXIT. MOST OF THE LNDG TFC WAS TAXIING TO THE END OF THE RWY AND THEREFORE WERE ON THE ACTIVE A LONG TIME. THIS CONFUSED ME; I WAS TRYING TO DETERMINE WHEN THE LNDG CRAFT WAS OFF THE ACTIVE AND IF THERE WAS ENOUGH SPACING IN THE NEXT LNDG FOR ME TO DEPART. THIS CONFUSION CONTRIBUTED TO THE INCIDENT. MORE EXIT TXWYS WILL HELP FREE UP THE RWY FOR TKOF AND LNDGS. THERE WERE OTHER GARS CAUSED BY MORE THAN 1 AIRPLANE ON THE ACTIVE. FINALLY; I REALIZED THAT I NEED TO SHARPEN MY SKILLS AT UNCTLED ARPTS WITH MY INSTRUCTOR. I HAD FELT COMFORTABLE AT UNCTLED ARPTS WHICH ONLYHAVE A COUPLE OF ACFT IN THE PATTERN. I NOW REALIZE THAT I NEED MORE PRACTICE HANDLING UNFORESEEN SITS AND THE BEST WAY TO REACT. OVERALL; THIS INCIDENT HAS SHOWN ME THAT I AM NOT AS SAFE OF A PLT I HAD PREVIOUSLY THOUGHT. I HAD ALWAYS CONSIDERED MYSELF 'SAFER' THAN OTHERS AND NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD SHOW SUCH BAD JUDGEMENT WHICH LED TO THIS INCIDENT. I AM GOING TO SCHEDULE TIME WITH MY INSTRUCTOR TO GO OVER THE INCIDENT TO BETTER UNDERSTAND HOW I SHOULD HAVE REACTED TO THE DIFFERENT SITS. I WILL ALSO PRACTICE WITH THE INSTRUCTOR IN THE AIRPLANE AT UNCTLED ARPTS BEFORE ATTEMPTING UNCTLED ARPTS AGAIN. I AM EXTREMELY CONCERNED THAT MY MISTAKE COULD HAVE COST THE LIFE OF THE PERSON IN THE OTHER ACFT; AS WELL AS MY OWN. I HOPE THE INFO IN THIS RPT IS USEFUL. PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT ME IF YOU WOULD LIKE MORE INFO.