Highclimber OR
ArboristSite Operative
Yesterday I went out to do some work for a friend of mine who owns a small Tree Service.
When we arrived on the job it was like any other "small job", or so I thought. It was in the back yard a row of semi ornamental cedars that were about 40' tall. The customer wanted them topped down to about 20' and since it was not my gig I did not have a chance to lobby against topping them so I sized them up good. My friend said that he would start on the ladder with the pole saw but I knew I would have to climb to get a few tops as they were pretty tall and had some good back lean.
We agreed that my best shot was to climb while he pole sawed. So all was going well and I was knocking them out pretty quick. I then came to a step over that was a bit far, but I was pretty certain that I could make it with the bow of the tree I was on. I was wrong. I got a hold of the top on the next tree which I already cut and started to shift my weight. When I thought I had it I quickly unsnapped my flip line and continued the step over. Suddenly the limb my left foot was on broke just as my right foot came off the other tree, I knew at that moment that I was taking "The Big Ride" and tucked my arms in and put my head down. On the way down I could feel all of the dead limbs breaking and, BAM!! I hit the ground. To my good fortune I landed on my A#@ in between two of the trees and luckily this guy had never raked under there as far as you could tell so there were plenty of dead needles to pad my landing. I didn't even land on my MS 200. It was about a 25" drop and I was ok. As soon as I realized that I was not hurt bad I let out a chuckle because I couldn't believe how stupid I was for allowing that to happen. The saw was good to go and I got right up and finished the job but I can't stop kicking myself for not tying in real quick as I more than know better. So I hope somebody out there can learn from my stupidity and not let this happen to you even on small trees. I became a little complacent and could have paid a horrible price, but instead I just have a swollen tail bone. So please be tied in even on the "little one's" as they present a danger all their own and you vets like me do not get careless as you may not be as lucky as I was.
When we arrived on the job it was like any other "small job", or so I thought. It was in the back yard a row of semi ornamental cedars that were about 40' tall. The customer wanted them topped down to about 20' and since it was not my gig I did not have a chance to lobby against topping them so I sized them up good. My friend said that he would start on the ladder with the pole saw but I knew I would have to climb to get a few tops as they were pretty tall and had some good back lean.
We agreed that my best shot was to climb while he pole sawed. So all was going well and I was knocking them out pretty quick. I then came to a step over that was a bit far, but I was pretty certain that I could make it with the bow of the tree I was on. I was wrong. I got a hold of the top on the next tree which I already cut and started to shift my weight. When I thought I had it I quickly unsnapped my flip line and continued the step over. Suddenly the limb my left foot was on broke just as my right foot came off the other tree, I knew at that moment that I was taking "The Big Ride" and tucked my arms in and put my head down. On the way down I could feel all of the dead limbs breaking and, BAM!! I hit the ground. To my good fortune I landed on my A#@ in between two of the trees and luckily this guy had never raked under there as far as you could tell so there were plenty of dead needles to pad my landing. I didn't even land on my MS 200. It was about a 25" drop and I was ok. As soon as I realized that I was not hurt bad I let out a chuckle because I couldn't believe how stupid I was for allowing that to happen. The saw was good to go and I got right up and finished the job but I can't stop kicking myself for not tying in real quick as I more than know better. So I hope somebody out there can learn from my stupidity and not let this happen to you even on small trees. I became a little complacent and could have paid a horrible price, but instead I just have a swollen tail bone. So please be tied in even on the "little one's" as they present a danger all their own and you vets like me do not get careless as you may not be as lucky as I was.
