N4742ECessna A185F

The pilot reported that, while performing a 3-point landing, a wind gust from the right caused the airplane to “balloon” and bounce during the initial touchdown. During the attempted bounce recovery, the tundra tires firmly grabbed the grooved runway resulting in a ground loop. During the ground loop, the left wing struck the ground which resulted in substantial damage to the wing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident malfunctions or failures with the airplane which would have precluded normal operation. At the time of the accident, the pilot was landing the airplane on runway 29 with wind from 330° at 7 knots gusting to 17 knots.

The pilot stated that he was unfamiliar flying this airplane with large tundra tires.

Two deer ran out of a wooded area and toward the runway from left to right in front of the airplane during the landing roll. The pilot applied left rudder in an attempt to avoid the deer, assuming they were going to continue across the runway. One of the deer continued across the runway. The other deer stopped on the runway and turned around going back into the woods. The pilot applied right rudder in order to avoid the second deer and the airplane ground looped. The left wing was substantially damaged when it contacted the terrain during the ground loop.