# He's not a tree climber but...



## Ed Roland (May 7, 2007)

I understand this fella died doing this sort of thing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Hjs1bmx320


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## zopi (May 7, 2007)

Wouldn't take much to die doing it....>snap!<



:jawdrop:


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## xander9727 (May 7, 2007)

Never work beyond your skill set.


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## moray (May 7, 2007)

What you see was well within his skill set. And he didn't die climbing, but jumping.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=994500903799016230&q


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## ScottTree (May 8, 2007)

Beyond his skill set? That is by far one of the most insane amazing things i've ever seen. After reading more about this guy, he was one of the best climbers to ever live, hands down. They say he knew more about ropes and rigging than almost anyone. He just kept pushing the extreme. He died in a 1200ft jump and the rope failed because of the angle of the jump. The rope was analyzed and it is believed because of the angle of his jump one of the knots failed at one of the attached sections. I believe it was determined it was user error not the rope. This jump took place at Yosemite National Park in Northern California in the late 90's. It was also said he was an extremely well natured loving guy that everyone liked. Just one of those individuals that have a need to push the limits as far as they can be pushed. That part i don't think i'll ever get. But what an incredible climber.


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## treesquirrel (May 8, 2007)

ScottTree said:


> Beyond his skill set? That is by far one of the most insane amazing things i've ever seen. After reading more about this guy, he was one of the best climbers to ever live, hands down. They say he knew more about ropes and rigging than almost anyone. He just kept pushing the extreme. He died in a 1200ft jump and the rope failed because of the angle of the jump. The rope was analyzed and it is believed because of the angle of his jump one of the knots failed at one of the attached sections. I believe it was determined it was user error not the rope. This jump took place at Yosemite National Park in Northern California in the late 90's. It was also said he was an extremely well natured loving guy that everyone liked. Just one of those individuals that have a need to push the limits as far as they can be pushed. That part i don't think i'll ever get. But what an incredible climber.



Yep, and due to stunts like his it becomes ever increasingly difficult for the rock climbing community in general to retain access to prime climbing areas.

I once did a lot of climbing in the southeastern US and we lost access to several key climbing areas close to me due to risky stunts and stupidity resulting in injuries or death.

No doubt he was good. But he was not doing the sport any favors by climbing unprotected.

He also orphaned a little girl due to his adrenaline addiction. What a hero.


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## oldirty (May 8, 2007)

that guy is unreal. he had more balls in his underwear than anyone else that is fo sho!

you see him leap up that shearface and two hand the crack? 


wow



oldirty


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## xander9727 (May 8, 2007)

The required skill set for a 1200 ft jump includes the knowledge of how rope angle affects knot strength........without that knowledge you can get killed!
I'm not saying I know all of the calculations needed to do the jump he died on but.........until I do.......I won't be trying it.


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## clearance (May 8, 2007)

oldirty said:


> that guy is unreal. he had more balls in his underwear than anyone else that is fo sho!
> 
> you see him leap up that shearface and two hand the crack?
> 
> ...



Was.


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## polingspig (May 9, 2007)

*Thinking*

Ok, I do not doubt that Osman was a nice guy. That's the impression I got of him. I really believe he was intelligent. I know from the videos he could climb. But the thing to ask yourself is why are you taking the risk. I do not want to sound critical of him, but his death was avoidable. I have often wondered about people with adrenaline addictions. I did things in the Military that I will never do on the outside because they are too dangerous. I did it then as part of a force serving my country. There was reason. I climb trees to make money for the family, help to protect other people's assets, sometimes their lives (large weak branches over the child's bedroom in hurricane land), etc. There are reasons. If I fell out of a tree and died there would be something to tell my son I was in the tree for. My worst fear is that my son will have to think, "My Dad died for no reason." I don't live a life of fear, but I don't take unnecessary risks either. I feel for Osman's family.


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## ropensaddle (May 9, 2007)

polingspig said:


> Ok, I do not doubt that Osman was a nice guy. That's the impression I got of him. I really believe he was intelligent. I know from the videos he could climb. But the thing to ask yourself is why are you taking the risk. I do not want to sound critical of him, but his death was avoidable. I have often wondered about people with adrenaline addictions. I did things in the Military that I will never do on the outside because they are too dangerous. I did it then as part of a force serving my country. There was reason. I climb trees to make money for the family, help to protect other people's assets, sometimes their lives (large weak branches over the child's bedroom in hurricane land), etc. There are reasons. If I fell out of a tree and died there would be something to tell my son I was in the tree for. My worst fear is that my son will have to think, "My Dad died for no reason." I don't live a life of fear, but I don't take unnecessary risks either. I feel for Osman's family.


 I will second this post.


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## moray (May 10, 2007)

polingspig said:


> Ok, I do not doubt that Osman was a nice guy. That's the impression I got of him. I really believe he was intelligent. I know from the videos he could climb. But the thing to ask yourself is why are you taking the risk. I do not want to sound critical of him, but his death was avoidable. I have often wondered about people with adrenaline addictions.
> 
> I don't live a life of fear, but I don't take unnecessary risks either.



I want to respectfully suggest that you are taking too narrow a view of Osman's life. I think I could sum up your position thus: when you take risks, you can cite wholesome reasons for doing so, and so they are justified. Osman took risks because he was an adenaline "addict", so his risk-taking is not justified.

The broader view would be that people take risks when they believe the likely benefit will exceed the likely harm. The risks are probably the same, or nearly so, for everyone, but the benefits surely aren't. I would never argue that your list of benefits is faulty--if you say they are benefits to you then I will take your word for it. The only place I can really enter the argument is to discuss the magnitude of some particular risk, because that is an area subject to measurement and science. Osman well understood the risks he was taking.

So instead of calling him names (adrenaline addict), we should marvel that people can be so moved by some vision or idea that they will do magnificent things that we, who live in a different world, would never dream of doing. I was very moved by Osman's feats and his huge love of life. Even if my life does not much resemble his, and even if I might hesitate to jump off a 1200 foot cliff, I have benefited greatly from the fact that he showed us it can be done. I know his life and death have affected a huge number of people beyond his own circle of friends. We are having this discussion because of him. Did he die for "no reason?" Did he take "unnecessary risks?" No way.


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## pbtree (May 11, 2007)

treesquirrel said:


> ...He also orphaned a little girl due to his adrenaline addiction. What a hero.



This is the part that bugs me - when you make the decision to become a parent, you need to think beyond yourself - his adrenaline addiction should have been put on hold until she reached 18...


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## treesquirrel (May 11, 2007)

pbtree said:


> This is the part that bugs me - when you make the decision to become a parent, you need to think beyond yourself - his adrenaline addiction should have been put on hold until she reached 18...



Yup, I remember all the ads in the climbing magazines asking for donations for her care. He had no savings, no life insurance, etc...

NOTHING resembling parental responsibility to his child. 

Oh but he was sooooo marvelous and amazing. Yeah, amazingly STUPID!


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## MonkeyDo (May 13, 2007)

*Insane Crazy!*

Can't begin to fathom the skill, endurance and strength this guy possessed. Wow!
Here's on e to ya'


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## polingspig (May 13, 2007)

Moray, I am sorry if I offended you. I certainly mean everything I write on this thread to be taken with the knowledge that I care about all people and do not want to insult. 
You were right to suggest that Ozman weighed the risks and thought the benefit outweighed them. If that is entirely true, then he basically believed that jump was more important than his daughter having her father. I for one hope that it was an addiction to adrenaline which forced his decision and that he didn't strictly reason against his daughter.


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## moray (May 13, 2007)

*not offended*

Polingspig, you said nothing offensive. We are just comparing ideas here. 

After watching a few more posts in this thread, I realized I agreed with most of what everyone was saying, but I guess I add it all up a little differently. I don't think Osman did right by his daughter. From what I have read about him, he was highly irresponsible, drove around with a glove-box full of unpaid parking tickets, and so on. If he had stopped climbing and jumping, was he really the type of person who could have become a dutiful parent? I seriously doubt it. 

Albert Einstein was also a miserable parent. Like Osman, we can criticize him for it. Like Osman, he had other gifts and left something special for the rest of us.


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## treebierd (Jun 26, 2007)

treesquirrel said:


> Yep, and due to stunts like his it becomes ever increasingly difficult for the rock climbing community in general to retain access to prime climbing areas.
> 
> I once did a lot of climbing in the southeastern US and we lost access to several key climbing areas close to me due to risky stunts and stupidity resulting in injuries or death.
> 
> ...



it may be a small point but i feel like it should be made. Danno, as he was known in the climbing community, died due to a failure in the ropes. He set up his jump at leaning tower and couldnt make the jump that night because of the onset of night. He was arrested that night for outstanding parking tickets in the valley. He was bailed out later, and decided to continue with the jump. One of the ropes was thought to have been dry treated, but it hadnt been. The night before the jump there was a small rain that was soaked up into the rope. The extra weight from moisture put the rope outside of its maximum tensile strength and snapped when jumped. I know this from friends of danno.

Danno got bored with regular climbing when he saw some super-star frenchman climbing in one or two tries what he had been projecting for weeks. Instead of climbing he turned to small rope jumps where he continued to up the ante. The daughter that he left behind is active in the climbing community still to this day.

Although he died doing "stupid stunts", as some people call it, he did far more for the climbing community as a whole than many people ever will. Access was never in danger due to HIS stunts. Access is denied due to improper use of land, unwanted bolting, etc. His help in increasing understanding about climbing has resulted in a proliferation in legal climbing areas.


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## Butt Log (Jun 26, 2007)

Ya know Guys. _It is what it is_. He chose to live life on the edge and paid the ultimate price. And for that decision he will never get laid again, have some beer with his friends, or see another beautiful sunset. It's really kinda sad.


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## treesquirrel (Jun 26, 2007)

Butt Log said:


> Ya know Guys. _It is what it is_. He chose to live life on the edge and paid the ultimate price. And for that decision he will never get laid again, have some beer with his friends, or see another beautiful sunset. It's really kinda sad.



Yep. That pretty much sums it up.


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## Kneejerk Bombas (Jun 27, 2007)

treebierd said:


> One of the ropes was thought to have been dry treated, but it hadnt been. The night before the jump there was a small rain that was soaked up into the rope. The extra weight from moisture put the rope outside of its maximum tensile strength and snapped when jumped. I know this from friends of danno.



It makes one wonder what kind of safety factor he used in rope strength that a little moisture made the rope too weak.
He was obviously using ropes that were right at their breaking strength, and the only reason I can think to use such small ropes, is to add danger. If he used the standard equipment, there would be much less danger, and he would just be another bungee jumper. Did he need the added risk of inadequate equipment to get the thrill? Sure sounds like it.


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## gasman (Jun 27, 2007)

Mike Maas said:


> It makes one wonder what kind of safety factor he used in rope strength that a little moisture made the rope too weak.
> He was obviously using ropes that were right at their breaking strength, and the only reason I can think to use such small ropes, is to add danger. If he used the standard equipment, there would be much less danger, and he would just be another bungee jumper. Did he need the added risk of inadequate equipment to get the thrill? Sure sounds like it.




Sounds about right to me. Anyone can get hit by lightning, or blindsided by a truck, but it sounds like he chose to put the pedal to the floor when the light had just turned red. I certainly understand the desire to do that, but I would respect him more if he could do amazing things and keep his head about him as well.


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## treebierd (Jun 27, 2007)

He used regular climbing gear and played around with anchor set-ups and angles in order to hold falls. A bungee cord cant be used for the kind of jump he wanted. When you are making a 1000+ foot jump then everything you use is close to the limit. Contrary to popular belief, water is heavy, and over 600 feet of rope there is a lot of area to suck up water.


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## treesquirrel (Jun 27, 2007)

I'd guess those unpaid parking tickets are a good indication of his financial state. This is an indicator that the equipment he was using was probably well worn and most likely had been shock loaded multiple times previously.

In any event RIP and all that jazz.


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## lees trees (Jul 1, 2007)

WOW!!! that was a amazing. I would have loved buy Danno a beer or hold his coat.


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## moray (Jul 2, 2007)

Mike Maas said:


> It makes one wonder what kind of safety factor he used in rope strength that a little moisture made the rope too weak.



I researched this a bit a few months ago and read the report by the engineer at Black Diamond (?) who was the first to inspect the broken rope. He was very clear that the rope was not overstressed. The rope was knotted (you can actually see a knot about 150 feet above Dan in one of the shots) and the rope was melted through right at the spot it entered a knot. The rope otherwise looked fine. He surmised that the knot had snagged another line during the jump, and rode along the other line until the friction heat melted it. It was known that Dan changed takeoff position at the last minute to one never used before, so it is possible some tag line or haul line was now in the way of the jump. It was definitely operator error, but the error was not using underrated or worn-out equipment.


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## Ed Roland (Jul 2, 2007)

This is the Ozman of the rain forest climbers.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9MV5CgPgIQ


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## Anthony909 (Jul 31, 2007)

dout an insurance company would give him life insurance if they knew what he did. amazing climber, none the less:chainsawguy:


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## Lumberjacked (Aug 6, 2007)

UNREAL...

Did anyone else see that puff in the last clip of the original movie? that must have been the knot breaking no?


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## Davey Dog (Oct 3, 2007)

He was an amazing climber, BAR NONE. I personally wouldnt attempt the things he excelled at. But I also wont sit here and say anything bad about him what so ever. It is tragic that he passed away, But also glorious that he passed away doing what he loved to do. I know of many people who arent so lucky. And worse yet, I know many people who grow old and bitter knowing that they were always scared to go that extra distance. People are so overwhelmed by the fear of death that they never experience life. Just because you dont want to do the same things as the next person, doesnt give you any right to say it was careless or wrong. He knew he was taking a chance EVERY time he jumped. Its not a sport of ( if you die ), its a sport of ( when you die ). He knew that and still had the ability to enjoy it. More power to him.

I know one thing about my life. We start dieing the day we are born. I am not going to waste any of my time being scared to try new things and experience life at its fullest... Now, thats doesnt mean I am going to jump off 1000' foot tall cliffs, But that also means I am going to try and be open minded about my life and enjoy what ever it is that makes me happy.

All of us who Climb Trees for a living know that we work in a dangerous environment, yet we do it each and every day. I take my safety very seriously, But I am also aware that equipment fails. I am not going to stop climbing trees because of the chance that I could fall.

Ok, done venting, sorry about that.


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## Podaltura (Oct 6, 2007)

Dan Osman, the man whit the biggest balls of the world.
http://es.youtube.com/watch?v=6P-ZTjdWxPI


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## Davey Dog (Oct 7, 2007)

Thank you for posting that. He was a free soul for sure. He lived the way he wanted to and died doing what he loved. Tragic, but I feel he was one of the lucky ones. I hope when I am out of time its doing something I love.


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## Kogafortwo (Oct 18, 2007)

pbtree said:


> This is the part that bugs me - when you make the decision to become a parent, you need to think beyond yourself - his adrenaline addiction should have been put on hold until she reached 18...



I agree wholeheartedly. Besides working for a living and sawing wood for fun, I race road bikes (pedal, not motor). I crashed in 2003, broke a shoulder, an elbow, and got a monster concussion. No one else involved, just dove into a turn too fast 'cause I like speed and thought (past tense) that I'm invincible.

I have a beautiful wife (see avatar) and two young children who were very scared for me. SInce then, I let lots of people beat me in the corners. I have ridden screaming down passes in the Alps and Blue Ridge Mountains under race conditions since my crash, but no way will I enter a turn or take any traffic risk that goes beyond my sense of responsibility to my family. Period.

P.S. Wear a helmet.


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## chainsaw1 (Oct 18, 2007)

Now that is a true spiderman!!


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