On June 7, 1997, at 1024 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-17, N4832H, received minor damage when the propeller struck the person hand propping the engine during engine start at the Mansfield Airport, Mansfield, Massachusetts The certificated private pilot and passenger were not injured. The person who pulled the propeller through suffered serious injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the personal flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. In a telephone interview, the pilot reported that he and the passenger had flown to Mansfield for breakfast. When preparing for engine start, prior to departure from Mansfield, the pilot noted that the engine was still "...hot." He stated that the engine was difficult to start when warm and that it flooded quickly if not started right away. The pilot said the passenger hand-propped the airplane unsuccessfully 8 to 10 times and the engine flooded. The pilot stated that he turned the magneto switch to "OFF", pushed the throttle in, and instructed the passenger to pull the propeller through backwards 12 times to clear the flooded engine. The pilot stated: "At this point a guy walks up and says, 'I'll take it from here.' The guy yelled, "Mags off!', and I yelled 'Mags off, but wait a minute!' He was way too close to the spinner. He pulled it through, I heard this 'clunk', and he fell down out of my view. The airplane did not start. We got out of the plane and saw that it hit his left knee. He just went too quick. [The passenger] wasn't even in the seat. There's a sequence you go through when you hand prop an airplane." During an interview, a witness reported that he was intrigued by the airplane and had come over to watch the start, taxi, and takeoff. He said he was immediately impressed with the pilot and passenger of N4832H. He stated that the pair was extremely thorough and conscientious. The witness said he was impressed by the woman hand-propping the airplane and that it was clear "...she really knew what she was doing." He said that after approximately three attempts to start the airplane, the woman started turning the propeller backwards. He further said: "At that point the victim came over. He was fairly insistent, kind of take charge ... intimidating. The pilot waved him away but he pulled the prop through. I was shocked he just walked over and did this. I think maybe he suffered from complacency. Maybe he couldn't handle that a woman was hand propping the airplane, but those two really knew what they were doing. They were very thorough and cautious." The pilot reported that he gave his passenger formal instruction on the hand-propping of his airplane and that she had performed this job successfully for 2 years.