LAX02LA098

On landing touchdown the right wing of the glider struck a cyclist who was on the active runway. A prelanding checklist was conducted that included visually checking to see that the runway was free of objects. The landing was made into the setting sun and the pilot did not see the cyclist until the landing gear had touched down on the runway. The pilot made an unsuccessful attempt to maneuver the glider away from the cyclist.

On February 28, 2002, about 1720 mountain standard time, a Schweizer SGS 2-32, N2466W, collided with a man on a bicycle after landing on runway 23L at the Pleasant Valley Airport, Peoria, Arizona. The glider, owned and operated by Turf Soaring School and rented by the pilot, was operated under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The glider sustained substantial damage. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The man on the bicycle sustained serious injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local area flight, and no flight plan had been filed.

In the pilot's written statement to the Safety Board, he stated that he entered the downwind leg for runway 23L and completed the landing checklist. This included visually checking that the runway was free of objects. The pilot reported that the sun was low on the horizon. He flared the glider about 100 feet down the runway. Immediately after the glider touched down he saw a cyclist directly in front of him on the runway. The cyclists' back was facing the glider. He attempted to avoid the cyclist by kicking in left rudder. The glider started to "crab to the left," and the right wing struck the cyclist. The glider entered a ground loop and came to rest upright.

According to the passenger's written statement, she stated that the runway was clear of objects when they conducted the prelanding checklist on approach. When they turned onto final, she saw a cyclist to the right side of the runway, heading away from them. She stated that she told the pilot, who maneuvered the glider away from the cyclist. She reported that they felt something hit the glider, and the glider went to the right coming to rest off the runway in scrub brush.