funny riggs?

[PRUNER 1]

any one got any funny or not so funny rigging stories, close calls etc?

 

[MasterBlaster]

Usually when rigging fails, nothing funny happens.

I did soak a groundman today. I was throwing the top out of a big pecan on that ditch job. There was only 4 or 5 in. of water, but it hit just right(but of course!) and drenched him.

 

[TimberMcPherson]

Rigging

Me and a friend were doing a sectional snatch takedown of a big sycamore that was surrounded by ornamental garden on one side and deck on the other. I the belay ????? at the time and when a piece got dropped (weight about 200kg) it swung and got stuck in a crotch by some act of god.
I took up as much slack as I could and locked to rope off with a couple half hitches. The climber managed the rock it out and it swung free. when I went back to the lowering device I found I had locked it off the wrong way and that the weight of the block was holding the rope fast.

Situation-200kg block of sycamore suspended about 12 feet above the ground and the knot wont budge. HTF do you get that down?

Hell after I got it down I thought it was funny.

 

[TheTreeSpyder]

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh heck i thought i was going to get to stretch out this explanatinon ........... ohhhhh never mind!

 

[Dadatwins]

I was roping for a guy taking down a Norway maple pretty easy tree to climb lots of branches just a telephone line on one side. Guy tells me he is going to tie off nice size limb over wire and tells me to hold on until it swings past wire and let it run. Sounds easy right? Well he ties it off, I get two wraps on the truck and signal ready. He starts the cut and almost in slow motion the limb breaks off and sails to the ground taking out the wire. I stood with the rope and realized he had made the cut on the wrong side of the rope. What a feeling watching it happen and never feeling the rope tighten. Finished job and got to learn how to splice phone cable that day. Watching him splice that cable back up I got the feeling he had done it a few times before.

 

[Bradley]

I was taking down a 36" dbh red oak that overhung an iron fence and a pool on one side and a playhouse on the other for a friend of mine last year. I had lowered out all the wood over the pool and was about halfway through the other side over the playhouse ( one of those prefab expensive ones ). I tied off the last big top and had the rope running over a big nat. crotch cause I forgot the block. My friend had been lowering on the porta-wrap and had done a great job so far. I told him to take a wrap and get ready. I cut the top and it went to the ground at mach 27 almost catching the crotch on fire. Rope was totally glazed and the crotch was smoking. I looked down and saw him standing there with a rope still in his hand looking bewildered. Then I saw that the rope was the bluestreak I was climbing on, not the 5/8" stable braid. Funny thing was is that the top absoulutely missed the playhouse! No contact was made other than leaves. I'll never be lucky enough for that to happen again in my lifetime!

 

[murphy4trees]

Not exactly a rigging story...
I was taking out a stormdamaged hickory years ago and while lowering a piece the groundman didn't have enough wraps.... from above he looked like he was water skiing across the front yard, leaving two brown skid marks across the grass... His best friend was supposed to back him up but the guy fell on the ground he was laughing so hard....
The groundman had pretty good balance to hold on as long as he did and sense enough to let go as he got near the LZ..
Later on I was bombing a 2-4' wheel from about 35'... We had taken down a 6' wood privacy fence, but left the posts.... The chunk comes straight down on a fencepost with a big thud... I was surprised it didn't break... when we put the fence back up, that post was 1' shorter than all the rest....

 

[Lumberjack]

Originally posted by murphy4trees
...when we put the fence back up, that post was 1' shorter than all the rest....

Dont you hate it when that happens?

 

[PRUNER 1]

i had an ash of reasonable sizelate last year in a conservation site. it had to be climbed but everything was a straight drop, tree was in crap cond. was very windy but in gusts so cutting when gusts stopped, anyway, got to the all important final cut, the top, about 15', 6" dia, little directional gob to take it round and onto the path. top was leaning away from me about 50 degrees. waited for gust to stop, put in back cut and the wind gusted again just as i was pulling the saw out. i ducked a little and watched the whole top go straight over me. i leaned back and watched it sail about 40' away and land in some bushes. quite amusing but lucky it didnt catch me.
also the first tree i topped out after leaving college was an ash. had it all roped up to drop the top. put the back cut in just as a gust came . the top dropped over the top of me and a peg caught my harness, the whole top about 15' hanging on me harness ropes and all. knocked me off the spikes and crapped me sell just about. managed to free the top from harness but gave me a fight. now i put tug lines on tops, learned the hard way. bruised ego out of college tho!

 

[Dadatwins]

Originally posted by netree


Kinda takes a bite off the ego for awhile!

Worse than that I can remember him looking at me like I just f**d up.

I guess that's the typical tree climber though - Never wrong

 

[dbeck]

I guess that's the typical tree climber though - Never wrong [/B][/QUOTE]


I climb w/ a ground guy who is always right. He even blames stuff on people who aren't even there.
anyway, last week we were removing 25" dbh r oak...we were lowering truvk wood. Rigging line in neighboring tree...cut a 300LB piece which swings directly toward him @150mph and he has to jump out of the way at the last second. I asked him what the hell he was thinking and can you guess hie response? "I knew it was gonna come toward me" That was how he tried to make himself look not wrong...

 

[MasterBlaster]

I watched an owner hank up a rope today.
He's been in the biz over 10 years.
He started at the tail.

 

[Lumberjack]

Originally posted by MasterBlaster
I watched an owner hank up a rope today.
He's been in the biz over 10 years.
He started at the tail.

Two words: Rope Bag

 

[MasterBlaster]

Originally posted by Lumberjack
Two words: Rope Bag

Two more words; No thanks.

 

[Lumberjack]

Originally posted by MasterBlaster
Two more words; No thanks.

A-ight... Just tryin. See that you have broke 3000 post now!

 

[treeman82]

I was working on a BIG pine tree at a friend's house a couple winters ago... yes, the friend who burns clothing. I was about to blow out one of the last tops. I had the lowering line set in a lead off to my left. In order to get the top out there, I put a pull line in it at about mid way... maybe 20' top or so? I had a guy on the other side of the house pulling on that, and another guy at the base of the tree on the PW. Put my notch in, tell the guy on the tag line to start pulling. I figured maybe I should have my "friend" come out to help him. Even after threatening to drop the top right on his house, he wouldn't come outside. So, being stupid I made the back cut. The wind came though and took the top over backwards. The way it landed, the lowering line was draped over my climbing line and belly line which wasn't too good. Luckily the groundies got it lowered though, and everything was Ok. But man was I scared for about 5 min.

 

[xtremetrees]

Early in my carreer I saw my teacher attach a friction dievice to a dogwood tree a small one. Climber takes a bigger piece than usual and STRACKKK! strips all the bark on the dogwood up to the crown. Funny looking tree after that.Had to take it out.