AC C170 ENTERING THE TFC PATTERN AT B24; NY; ALMOST HITS A C177 WHO HAD ANNOUNCED ON DOWNWIND.

Narrative

I ENTERED DOWNWIND FOR RWY 17 AT B24. ARR PATH WAS FROM THE NE. I FLEW TO A POINT APPROX 2 MI E OF ARPT AND ANNOUNCED INTENTION TO ENTER TFC PATTERN. I TURNED TO A W HDG TO ENTER MIDFIELD DOWNWIND AT B24. AT APPROX MIDFIELD POINT I TURNED AT 45 DEG ENTRY TO DOWNWIND; ANNOUNCED; AND ENTERED PATTERN. AT 2 MI E POINT; I ANNOUNCED POS IN RESPONSE TO A CESSNA CARDINAL PURPORTING TO BE ON MIDFIELD DOWNWIND. MY ALT AT THE 2 MI POINT WAS 2300 FT MSL; 200 FT ABOVE PATTERN ALT. I CONTINUED TO DSND TO PATTERN ALT OF 2100 THEN TURNED R TO DOWNWIND. I ESTABLISHED DOWNWIND WHILE CONTINUING TO SEARCH FOR THE CARDINAL. THE CARDINAL THEN BROADCAST SHE WAS ENTERING A L BASE FOR 17. I CONTINUED DOWNWIND AND FINALLY SPOTTED THE PLANE AT LEAST 4 MI NE OF THE ARPT -- AN UNUSUALLY WIDE L BASE. THE CARDINAL TURNED A LONG FINAL. I EXTENDED MY DOWNWIND TURN UNTIL PAST THE CARDINAL; WHO WAS THEN ON FINAL. I ANNOUNCED AND THEN TURNED L BASE AND SUBSEQUENTLY FINAL. THE CARDINAL TAXIED SLOWLY BUT FINALLY CLRED THE RWY WHEN I WAS AT LEAST 1 MI OUT. THE LNDG WAS UNEVENTFUL; AND I CLRED THE RWY AND TAXIED TO THE GAS PUMPS. AT THAT POINT THE MALE AND FEMALE FROM THE CARDINAL CAME OVER TO MY ACFT AND ASKED TO TALK TO ME. (IN ALL SUBSEQUENT CONVERSATION THE MALE DID MOST OF THE TALKING THOUGH THE FEMALE WAS THE ONLY VOICE ON THE CARDINAL'S RADIO. THEY NEVER MADE IT CLR WHO THE PIC WAS DURING THEIR FLT.) HE INQUIRED IF I HAD SEEN HIS ACFT; AND I STATED YES; ON AN EXTREMELY WIDE L BASE BUT NOT BEFORE. HE THEN CLAIMED THAT ON HIS DOWNWIND WE HAD NEARLY COLLIDED AND HE HAD TAKEN EVASIVE ACTION BY DIVING. HE FOLLOWED BY STATING THAT I HAD NEARLY HIT THE CARDINAL AS IT WAS FLYING THE DOWNWIND AND I HAD APCHED FROM THE NE. I COUNTERED THAT I HAD ARRIVED FROM THE NE BUT HAD ENTERED THE PATTERN CORRECTLY BY TURNING W TOWARD THE RWY THEN TURNING AGAIN ON A 45 DEG ANGLE TO ENTER A DOWNWIND AND ANNOUNCING EVERY TURN. IF OUR ACFT HAD INDEED BEEN NEAR EACH OTHER; THE CARDINAL WAS AT LEAST 1-2 MI OUTSIDE THE NORMAL L-HAND DOWNWIND AS FLOWN AT B24. ADDITIONALLY; AT THE PURPORTED POINT OF THE INCIDENT; I WAS STILL 200 FT ABOVE THE PATTERN ALT DSNDING TO BE ESTABLISHED AT THE CORRECT PATTERN ALT (2100 FT) AT THE NORMAL DOWNWIND ENTRY POINT. THE OTHER ACFT; THEREFORE; WAS NOT IN EITHER THE CORRECT POS FOR DOWNWIND AS THEY HAD BROADCAST NOR AT THE CORRECT ALT. ALSO AT THIS TIME THERE WAS GLIDER ACTIVITY AT THE ARPT; ONE OF WHICH I SPOTTED OVERHEAD AS I ENTERED THE DOWNWIND. THE GLIDER ENTERED THE PATTERN AND WAS ABLE TO COMPLETE A PATTERN BEFORE THE CARDINAL COMPLETED THE TURN TO FINAL. FURTHER DISCUSSION ENSUED; AND I QUERIED THE OTHER PLT IF HE WAS FAMILIAR WITH THE OPERATIONAL PROC AT B24. HE CLAIMED TO BE A TENANT AT THE ARPT WITH 'EVERY RATING' AND 'THOUSANDS OF HRS.' I EXPLAINED THE STANDARD PATTERN AS I FLEW IT THAT DAY AND AS IS FLOWN BY OTHER PLTS AT B24. I TOLD HIM I HAD NOT SEEN THE CARDINAL WHERE IT WAS ANNOUNCED. I HAD 2 OTHER PEOPLE IN THE C170 TFC SPOTTING; AND THOUGHT THE CARDINAL HAD FLOWN AN EXTRAORDINARILY WIDE PATTERN. I EXPLAINED THAT THE CARDINAL'S ACTIONS AND RADIO WORK MISCOMMUNICATED ITS POS RELATIVE TO THE ARPT; LEADING ME TO SEARCH THE NORMAL DOWNWIND AREA. NOT SEEING TFC; I TURNED MY DOWNWIND AND FLEW THE PATTERN. I DO NOT BELIEVE THERE WAS A CLOSE ENCOUNTER WITH THE ACFT. GIVEN THE VISIBILITY AFFORDED BY THE C170; HAD THE CARDINAL HAD TO DIVE TO AVOID THE ACFT; I WOULD NO DOUBT HAVE SEEN IT. I DID NOT -- NOR DID MY PAX. I DO NOT BELIEVE THERE WAS A CLOSE ENCOUNTER OR NEAR MISS WITH THE CARDINAL. CONCLUSION: THERE MUST BE EVER-PRESENT VIGILANCE BY ALL PARTIES AT UNCTLED ARPTS. I WAS MISLED INTO SEARCHING THE NORMAL PATTERN AREA FOR ANNOUNCED TFC WHEN IT OBVIOUSLY WAS NOT THERE. WHEN AN ACFT EXCEEDS; BY A LARGE MARGIN; THE AREA IT PURPORTS TO BE IN; IT LEADS OTHER TFC TO LOOK THE WRONG WAY FOR IT. LIKEWISE; ESTABLISHED LNDG PATTERNS NEED TO BE FOLLOWED AS PRECISELY AS POSSIBLE; FLYING AN EXCESSIVELY LARGE PATTERN -- AS THE CARDINAL DID -- IS THE SAME ASNOT BEING IN THE PATTERN AT ALL.