# What happend during a fall while spiking?



## Plasmech (Jan 2, 2009)

If one were spiking up a tree with a flip line lanyard and was not yet tied in on a secondary, and both his spikes ripped out out, so only the lanyard was attaching him to the tree, what would happen? Would this lead to major injury while he rides down the tree getting scraped and smashed every which way, or is there a contingency procedure to catch yourself to minimize the damage? Anybody ever experience this? Sounds like it would be worse than a free-fall. Thanks for any advice.


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## TDunk (Jan 2, 2009)

I've gaffed out a couple times with one rope (when i first started) and never fell more than a couple feet. I now climb with two and a third on the belt. I've noticed the rougher the bark, the less you fall. But i'm no pro either, and don't claim to be.


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## tomtrees58 (Jan 2, 2009)

its called the school of hard knots it happens if you climb 1 time or 34 years like me double Ty tom trees


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## Blakesmaster (Jan 2, 2009)

Hasn't happened to me yet ( knock on wood ) but probably will eventually. This is why it's recommended that you put a line in the tree before you start up. I don't do this but probably should and you definitely should.


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## Dadatwins (Jan 2, 2009)

Instinct tells you to grab and hug the tree with your arms which will just help get more skin ripped off as you slide down the tree. Best thing to do it lean back and try to regaff with your feet and that will stop the slide. Takes a long time to get this and you will slide a few times before it sinks in. One of the main reasons for gaffing out is keeping the laynard to short or trying to take to big a step. Low and slow is the way to learn gaffing. Keeping an overhead tie-in and keeping it tight as you move up is the best insurance. Be careful and get someone who knows how to set the gaffs up and show you how before attemping it.


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## ropensaddle (Jan 2, 2009)

Get spurs sharp by someone that knows how or learn how yourself.


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## RedlineIt (Jan 2, 2009)

Plasmech,

Practice gaffing out/recovering. 5-6 feet off the ground. Use a tree slated for removal, perfect would be 24-30" diam.

When spurring or spiking up, keep your lanyard/flipline about as horizontal as you can and adjusted so your bellybutton is about the distance of your elbow to your knuckles from the tree. Wear gloves and grip your lanyard/flipline just an inch or two from the tree. *Keep your grip on the flipline!* Now purposely gaff out. Can easily be done by spacing your feet too wide and/or pulling your body in too close to the trunk. Now *CHOKE* that tree *with your flipline!* Knuckles against the trunk, pull your body up, put one knee on the trunk, push your hips out, get the other foot back in and set the spur, stand up and set other spur. Repeat.

You will quickly learn if you have the grip, forearm and general body strength, control and flexibility required to be a climber. 

RedlineIt


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## treeslayer (Jan 2, 2009)

RedlineIt said:


> Plasmech,
> 
> Practice gaffing out/recovering. 5-6 feet off the ground. Use a tree slated for removal, perfect would be 24-30" diam.
> 
> ...



Excellent advice! 
and a good question, too.  

you gonna try it?

And who bought all that pretty red rep?


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## Bermie (Jan 2, 2009)

I've gaffed out and it was non-stop to the bottom...

Luckily I was coming down a stem I was dismantling and was only about 8' from my feet to the bottom. 
I only had a wirecore lanyard on, D to D, not wrapped. 
I was tired
I stood up too straight
The bark on the tree (casuarina) sloughs off so the wirecore did not grip
I got some scrapes and bruises on my arms
I landed on a pile of branches at the bottom
I unclipped and went home

Now I descend on my lifeline, choke wrap my lanyard when possible


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## Booshcat (Jan 2, 2009)

I've been practicing on a pine on my property (yes, Treeseer it is a removal)
and I'm glad you brought this question up. I didn't have the stones to ask it.
I've not yet gaffed out, but appreciate the answers, and frankly the way nobody jumped on plasmech.
Thanks for the tips...good post.
Wish I could rep you all.

Bob


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## Booshcat (Jan 2, 2009)

tomtrees58 said:


> its called the school of hard knots it happens if you climb 1 time or 34 years like me double Ty tom trees



happy new year tomtrees bob


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## Stihl Alive (Jan 2, 2009)

I've gaffed out probably a dozen times in the past 3 months. Never fell more than 5 feet. I've found out the depending on how tight your lanyard is, it's either your face or your crotch that get slammed. Usually the latter for me. Then i just bear hug the tree and start back up.


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## TreeTopKid (Jan 2, 2009)

One the first times I ever used spikes, and I had a tendency to pull my waist strop too close to the tree.On this occasion I slipped from where I was to the base of the tree in a fairly 'controlled' fashion because I hugged the tree so hard on the way down. I grazed my face and my pants rode right up but I was fine. I,ve never slipped with both gaffs since,and only occasionally lost one. I continually adjust my waist strop with a Micrograb.


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## Booshcat (Jan 3, 2009)

TreeTopKid said:


> One the first times I ever used spikes, and I had a tendency to pull my waist strop too close to the tree.On this occasion I slipped from where I was to the base of the tree in a fairly 'controlled' fashion because I hugged the tree so hard on the way down. I grazed my face and my pants rode right up but I was fine. I never slipped with both gaffs, and only occasionally lost one. I continually adjust my waist strop with a Micrograb.



Thanks Kid.
I'm learning and you're helping


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## treeslayer (Jan 3, 2009)

Stihl Alive said:


> I've gaffed out probably a dozen times in the past 3 months. Never fell more than 5 feet. I've found out the depending on how tight your lanyard is, it's either your face or your crotch that get slammed. Usually the latter for me. Then i just bear hug the tree and start back up.



and you need to seriously address your method.  

that is WAY too many.


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## Dadatwins (Jan 3, 2009)

Stihl Alive said:


> I've gaffed out probably a dozen times in the past 3 months. Never fell more than 5 feet. I've found out the depending on how tight your lanyard is, it's either your face or your crotch that get slammed. Usually the latter for me. Then i just bear hug the tree and start back up.



Bear hugging the tree is why you are gaffing out, you are to close to the tree and end up with the gaffs at the wrong angle to hold in the wood. You need to rely on the rope, lean back, and not have your arms wrapped around the tree.


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## treeslayer (Jan 3, 2009)

Dadatwins said:


> Bear hugging the tree is why you are gaffing out, you are to close to the tree and end up with the gaffs at the wrong angle to hold in the wood. You need to rely on the rope, lean back, and not have your arms wrapped around the tree.



Ditto.  

Stihl Alive, I should have also offered advice when I questioned your method. my apologies.
 
My advice to those starting out,
*Set* the spike before you step on it, basically stomp in in hard enough to get good penetration, THEN raise up and repeat on the other side. its a 2 part process to take one step. NOT "walking up", al least until you have adequate experience. with time, some of us guys can literally run up.

and practice holding the flipline in both hands, as Redline pointed out, and climb without putting your hands on the tree. this should be a fluid, continuous climb without pausing or stopping until you reach the first major branch. you have to find your stride, and pace on your own, and never let anyone rush you from the ground.

Might take awhile to feel comfortable leaning back, remember your hands will be on your side of the tree, with the flipline securely gripped. Of course a cable lanyard is best for this, but rope will still do this fine.

good luck to all learning to spike, I remember spiking up 70' a pine the first time without a rope, and got to spike down. :censored: :censored: 

learnes someting valuable that day.


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## TreeTopKid (Jan 3, 2009)

Booshcat said:


> Thanks Kid.
> I'm learning and you're helping



Sorry Boosh, there was a typo in my original post and a missing word (since). My post was supposed to imply that I had adjusted myself to close to the tree, and that since I adjusted my strop sufficiently outward I no longer have the problem, but on reading through it again I spotted the two mistakes, and apart from that I don't think I made myself clear. Apologies


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## capetrees (Jan 3, 2009)

If I gaff out I usually find instictively that I throw a kneee towrd the tree and that automatically tightens the flip around the tree. Re-gaff one foot and then the other and resume. Another good way to stop a free fall is to keep a few stubs out the opposite side of the tree while you ascend. If you gaff out, you'll probably only fall to the next stub instead of the whole way down.


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## Stihl Alive (Jan 3, 2009)

treeslayer said:


> Ditto.
> 
> Stihl Alive, I should have also offered advice when I questioned your method. my apologies.
> 
> ...



it almost always happens when the tree is leaning and I'm on the side of it. A straight tree I can climb with decent proficiency. The only time I use the micrograb to hold me closer to the tree is when I'm afraid of swinging around to the underside of the lean. I was in a tree for about 3 hrs yesterday and about 1 today and didn't spike out at all. I just need to keep practicing. 

as always, thanks for the tips guys.


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## (WLL) (Jan 4, 2009)

Plasmech said:


> If one were spiking up a tree with a flip line lanyard and was not yet tied in on a secondary, and both his spikes ripped out out, so only the lanyard was attaching him to the tree, what would happen? Would this lead to major injury while he rides down the tree getting scraped and smashed every which way, or is there a contingency procedure to catch yourself to minimize the damage? Anybody ever experience this? Sounds like it would be worse than a free-fall. Thanks for any advice.


put your hands over your eyes and trust your gear, you will stop asap. Just hope your not on a old used line pole in a thin t-shirt when it happens.:jawdrop:


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## TreeTopKid (Jan 4, 2009)

Stihl Alive said:


> it almost always happens when the tree is leaning and I'm on the side of it. A straight tree I can climb with decent proficiency. The only time I use the micrograb to hold me closer to the tree is when I'm afraid of swinging around to the underside of the lean. I was in a tree for about 3 hrs yesterday and about 1 today and didn't spike out at all. I just need to keep practicing.
> 
> as always, thanks for the tips guys.



Yeah the leaning things a pain in the butt. There are lot of twisty pines down here, but it does make it more exciting. Once you get to the branches it's not as much fun. Spiking an awkward tree is a great buzz. It still gives me a great rush.


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## capetrees (Jan 4, 2009)

Funny thing happened on the way up a tree yesterday ...


As I ascended the tree, a 14"dbh pitch pine, I gaffed out while by hands were still on the flipline. Instictively, as I gaffed out, my hands tightened the flip from both sides around the tree and sucked in my elbows. Re-gaffed and I was on my way up again. I also realized one thing to keep in mind is to put the majority of you weight into your flipline, leaning out from the tree against the flipline thus thrusting your spikes into the bark. Maybe the problem you're having is the same I did when I first bought my harness and flipline and that is trusting it to work. Over time, I have trusted it more and more but still not 100%, maybe 95%.


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## Plasmech (Jan 5, 2009)

treeslayer said:


> Excellent advice!
> and a good question, too.
> 
> you gonna try it?
> ...



When my spikes come, I am going to practice climbing a walking dead pine (a pine slated to come down, but not dead). I'll try to gaff out very close to the ground and see what it feels like. 

By the way Slayer, I got instructed today by a guy who just placed 3rd in the western rope ascending finals. Can't remember the exact name of the contest, and it was brief, but VERY cool. Learned SOOO much. It was a real eye opener.

One thing I may owe him my life for is telling me that if you don't dress a Blakes' properly, rotate the rope and all with the twist, that she won't bit and you go dead.


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## Plasmech (Jan 5, 2009)

treeslayer said:


> Excellent advice!
> and a good question, too.
> 
> you gonna try it?
> ...



Oh, the red rep was taken care of. Long story, sort of. All cool now.

By the way, if it seems like I'm not replying to your great replies, it's, not because I'm intentionally doing hit-and-run posting, it's because I've been very busy with my "day job" as of late, so sorry! I'll always try to get back to you and others.


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## joesawer (Jan 6, 2009)

Plasmech said:


> When my spikes come, I am going to practice climbing a walking dead pine (a pine slated to come down, but not dead). I'll try to gaff out very close to the ground and see what it feels like.
> 
> By the way Slayer, I got instructed today by a guy who just placed 3rd in the western rope ascending finals. Can't remember the exact name of the contest, and it was brief, but VERY cool. Learned SOOO much. It was a real eye opener.
> 
> One thing I may owe him my life for is telling me that if you don't dress a Blakes' properly, rotate the rope and all with the twist, that she won't bit and you go dead.





You sould dress every knot properly, no knot is tied until it is properly dressed and set.
As for cuting out. A vast majority of trees I climb are dead with the bark falling off and the outer wood is soft and full of vertical cracks, so cutting out is something that happens very often. I just turn my gaffs in and lean back a little. I most often catch within a few inches. I don't even think about it, it is funny when the spectators gasp as I drop a little and I have to think about why.
Sometimes the gaffs will bark up, get bark stuck and wedged in them and make it harder to get them reset. But if you don't panick and keep them turned into the tree, it will clear itself and reset quick enough.


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