I once had a boss or climber who........

[Jumper]

You got to like Brit/limey/sh*teater/pommy b whatever that thinks he is RIGHT while dealing with mere colonials, or as you put it Ekka, convicts in Aus.

I too had climber that I told that a limb was not going to clear the primaries on a hydro pole, TWICE! It did not and a whole neighbourhood was plunged into darkness and cold mid winter for a few hours.

Same guy cut down the clients neighbours tree as well, nice blue spruce that was obviously over the lot line and in any event not one to the six we had been contracted to remove. Diagram and all provided, still cut away even after I pointed out it was number 7. Company owner not impressed.

 

[OTG BOSTON]

oops!!

My boss hired a new climber, of course he was "the best climber ever". He shows up , gears up, and as he walks to the tree with his spikes on.............. BACKWARDS!

Almost as funny as the new bucket operator that was in the bucket ready to fly, without putting the outriggers down.

 

[beowulf343]

Once had a new groundie-second day on the job. I was up in a maple, had walked out on a lead to tie it off and told the groundie to pull on the rope-I wanted to see how much tension he could put on that branch to see if he could stand it up when I cut it. I had brought another line with me tied to the upper d on my saddle in case I wanted to use it as a directional line. However, I wasn't paying alot of attention to what the groundie was doing, and when I told him pull, he yanked on the rope tied to my d. Pulled me right off the branch and underneath it so that I was hanging there on my lanyard. Then to try to pull myself back on top of the branch with my saw and gear-ended up giving up, unhooking my lanyard and swinging back into the trunk. Of course it ended up helping him be more careful-he told me that when he saw himself pull me off that branch, he was terrified. I told him it was no big deal but he always double checked his ropes after that. That's all you can ask for-a groundie that learns from his mistakes and doesn't kill you while he's making them.

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

Pulled me right off the branch ...

This is how I learned to tell peole to grap the white rope, blue rope... what ever color the rigging line happens to be. With real newbies I'll say never the green one, that may make me mad.

For those who've not met me face to navel...I'm near 7 ft tall and 235# coming out the shower.

 

[oldugly]

One of my first jobs was with a southern Minnesota city's dutch elm removal crew. Their standard practice was to post no parking signs several days in advance, then go out early in the day and post blockades, and tape off sidewalks so we had the entire block to drop the trees into and load them out. (If there were power lines in the way they were dropped.)

The crew that went out to post the blockades, also would knotch the trees ahead of time so when the crew arrived it was short work to drop them in the street and clean them up. I was assigned to help with the blockades and knotching, (mainly because I was one of the few that would show up on time, and sober).

One morning we place our blockades, and tape off the sidewalk, and my boss starts to knotch the trees up one side of the block. As he's knotching a large elm with a good lean over the street, a cadillac pulls up to the blockade, moves it, then proceeds to park right under the tree my boss is knotching. The man gets out of his cadillac and proceeds into the house.

My boss got a huge smile from ear to ear, and finishes the backcut. Down comes a 30 inch elm accross a brand new 76 Eldorado Convertible.
Literally pushed the frame of that Eldorado down to the pavement.

The driver comes out of the house bellowing that he'll sue, or wants to kick Mike's butt, then stops, MIke shrugs his shoulders just smiling at the man.
MIke stands about 5'10" wieghs in about 210,,and no fat)

Driver runs in to call the cops. Duh...city workers...city cops....no parking signs...blockade...the cops arrive give the driver a ticket, and arranges a tow truck to haul his car out of the work zone.

Mike and I had several beers over that one

 

[l2edneck]

Back early in my career we were clearing a lot for new soccer field for a school(brazillian peppers,pines,palms)we get all the crap cut and chipped except for one pine.We were just gonna drop it into the clear field(with no stumps)So boss shows up,tells us go to lunch ill drop the pine.Ok aint gotta tell us twice its break time.We get back from lunch and the boss is gone.The pines down.IN THE STUMPS!!!!! Instead of droppin it in the clear he dropped it backwards.Twice as hard to get the stuff to the chipper(which was in the CLEAR FIELD)My foreman was cussin him bad.Needless to say i worked there for ten years he would showup, get all saw happy, and then leave.Instead of helpin all he ever did was make a worse mess but we got paid by the hour so it dint matter back then.Ahh i miss the good ole days

 

[SRT-Tech]

One of my first jobs was with a southern Minnesota city's dutch elm removal crew. Their standard practice was to post no parking signs several days in advance, then go out early in the day and post blockades, and tape off sidewalks so we had the entire block to drop the trees into and load them out. (If there were power lines in the way they were dropped.)

The crew that went out to post the blockades, also would knotch the trees ahead of time so when the crew arrived it was short work to drop them in the street and clean them up. I was assigned to help with the blockades and knotching, (mainly because I was one of the few that would show up on time, and sober).

One morning we place our blockades, and tape off the sidewalk, and my boss starts to knotch the trees up one side of the block. As he's knotching a large elm with a good lean over the street, a cadillac pulls up to the blockade, moves it, then proceeds to park right under the tree my boss is knotching. The man gets out of his cadillac and proceeds into the house.

My boss got a huge smile from ear to ear, and finishes the backcut. Down comes a 30 inch elm accross a brand new 76 Eldorado Convertible.
Literally pushed the frame of that Eldorado down to the pavement.

The driver comes out of the house bellowing that he'll sue, or wants to kick Mike's butt, then stops, MIke shrugs his shoulders just smiling at the man.
MIke stands about 5'10" wieghs in about 210,,and no fat)

Driver runs in to call the cops. Duh...city workers...city cops....no parking signs...blockade...the cops arrive give the driver a ticket, and arranges a tow truck to haul his car out of the work zone.

Mike and I had several beers over that one

BEAUTIFUL!!!!!! gah i wish I had been there to see that!!

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

I had this guy once who thought he was the best climber and rigger since the English invaded Australia. (He was a Pom).....

We were all gob smacked,

Ekka, we've got to get you a translator. I tried running this stuff through Babelfish, but they don't have an Aussie to English option! :bang:

 

[Jumper]

Pom as in Pommy b*stard. A aussie term of endearment used to describe englishmen and their superiority complexes when dealing with mere Colonials such as convict Aussies, displaced Irish, french Canadians and other perceived inferior fellow members of the Commonwealth.

Gob smacked-stunned, without words, etc.

 

[Ekka]

Right on Jumper.

I worked with another crew yesterday, same crew as that video I shot, everything goes pretty well .... till the boss shows up.

Since it's a pseudo crew of self employed blokes working together everyone tries to boss everyone around.

I get called in coz I got the miniloader with BMG and grinder so I gotta move these friggin huge logs around.

8.30am move those grey gum logs over there like I did says the boss, so I move about 10 of these big bastard logs over to this spot. Then the boss pisses off and Jason the fencing guy inspects the pile.

Err, move those 2 bugger logs (from the back of the pile!) over there to the truck, we'll take those coz they're no good for fencing billots, and those others there are in the way (boss put them there) and those ones we're taking coz the customers keeping the ironbark and the bloodwood only.

So another shuffle around completed around 9.30am.

Boss pulls up, what are you doing, put those logs back over there, we'll only keep these few.

WTF, make up ya fuggin mind is this Cool Hand Luke and I got a shovel or something!

 

[jmack]

I went to do this quote once and the lady reckons "just go thru the side gate down to the back yard and have a look."

She wasn't home see.

So the worker and I rock up, open the 6' high colourbond gate to go down the back. The worker is about 10' in front of me, I'm about 2' past the gate with my hand still on it.

Then out of the blue this pissed off blue heeler comes tearing around the corner, growling and teeth showing, man it meant business...

.... in like a split second I had jumped backwards and the gate slammed shut .... worker on the other side!

A split second after that he came flying over the top of that colourbond fence ... like a flamin pole vaulter.

We got back to the car and pissed ourselves laughing and I got hammered for months after that for slamming him shut in there with the dog. After that he always walked behind me when we were in strange territory.

NICE had the same thing, bronx removal went in the gate and down the steps to the front door which was open except the screen, pitbull comes around the corner and the gate is shut , i think i can bound to fence but decide i'll be on the razor wire and bitten, i thought about the door but realize i could be shot, i just braced and went right past him at a walk back up the stairs out the gate he was suprised and i got lucky, now i whistle and always ask if dogs are in the yards.

 

[jmack]

One of my first jobs was with a southern Minnesota city's dutch elm removal crew. Their standard practice was to post no parking signs several days in advance, then go out early in the day and post blockades, and tape off sidewalks so we had the entire block to drop the trees into and load them out. (If there were power lines in the way they were dropped.)

The crew that went out to post the blockades, also would knotch the trees ahead of time so when the crew arrived it was short work to drop them in the street and clean them up. I was assigned to help with the blockades and knotching, (mainly because I was one of the few that would show up on time, and sober).

One morning we place our blockades, and tape off the sidewalk, and my boss starts to knotch the trees up one side of the block. As he's knotching a large elm with a good lean over the street, a cadillac pulls up to the blockade, moves it, then proceeds to park right under the tree my boss is knotching. The man gets out of his cadillac and proceeds into the house.

My boss got a huge smile from ear to ear, and finishes the backcut. Down comes a 30 inch elm accross a brand new 76 Eldorado Convertible.
Literally pushed the frame of that Eldorado down to the pavement.

The driver comes out of the house bellowing that he'll sue, or wants to kick Mike's butt, then stops, MIke shrugs his shoulders just smiling at the man.
MIke stands about 5'10" wieghs in about 210,,and no fat)

Driver runs in to call the cops. Duh...city workers...city cops....no parking signs...blockade...the cops arrive give the driver a ticket, and arranges a tow truck to haul his car out of the work zone.

Mike and I had several beers over that one

holy c that was beautiful

 

[greg carr]

The foreman was a giant Irish kid who came in hungover every day. He was half way through a 50' pine removal, I came around the corner after bringing a load to the chipper and there is a stream of pee coming out of the tree soaking down the brush on the ground. That pile was left for him to drag out.

 

[l2edneck]

there is a stream of pee coming out of the tree

Ima show this to my groundman and tell him hed better stop worryin bout me spittin'

 

[oldugly]

Had another boss while I worked for the big Orange one. During a long and wet storm call, of course in the wee hours of the a.m. one of the climbers on our crew refused to climb in the dark, or (at least that night) in the rain. Our GF pulls onto the job and communes very vocally about the lone man on the ground, who was suppose to be helping to restore power to the homes in the neighborhood.

The climber overheard him, and says if you want that tree down...do it yourself. Dale never even flinched. Walked to the back of his little pickup, grabbed his gear, and the tree was down in a matter of 15 minutes or less.

The climber, impressed as H-ll at this point, started complimenting the GF on his experience, skill, etc. The GF looks at him and stated the words I have used on so many occasions..."If I got to do it myself...I don't need you...get off my jobsite."

I watched from a tree about 30 feet away, and literally could not stop laughing for quite awhile. Dale looks up at me and asked what the problem was. I tried to be as discreet as possible, and as respectful, but could not resist giving him some sh-t about the incident. We both laughed for a few years about the incident...until I left the Orange machine. One of the few fond memories I have of the company.