Circuit trouble
Recently I struggled with a standard OHJ. I'm fairly inexperienced having only qualified this year, and most my training was at a quiet airfield. I fly a C42 microlight (so fairly slow). I made a standard OHJ. At the point of me crossing the upwind end of the runway and joining crosswind, I heard another aircraft call downwind (LH circuit). I couldn't see them but they were probably to my right as I'm joining the downwind (about halfway down the downwind leg because of the OHJ). Potentially we are now on a collision course (both at circuit height). I still can't see them. So, as I can't see them, I climb 1000ft back up to Overhead join height and join again. I think I did the right thing, although its frustrating as I think they were too far out to call downwind, and definitely not following the prescribed circuit pattern.
On that last point I have also made the mistake of assuming that just because someone has called downwind / finals etc that they are also following the published circuit pattern. Joining downwind I knew there was another aircraft (PA28) ahead of me although I didn't have visual. That's because they were at least 1 mile further out that the published downwind leg. I'm following the correct downwind leg (a mile closer to the runway), and still no sight. I reach the point of turning final, and then they call final. Still no sight I then decide to climb and continue downwind into the deadside.
I suppose in both of these examples, I'm following the prescribed circuit (published in Pooleys) , and others are not, yet it's me that has to take the avoiding action. You could argue I need to get better and looking out and fitting in, but then in both cases I would not be following the published circuit.
I wondered if on both occasion this was the right thing to do? How much deviation in the published circuit is acceptable? Thoughts?!!