Getting comfortable in bigger trees?

When you advance to a point where your expected to do just about anything It's never about one tree or the next tree. It's about coming in everyday ready to go. From your diet, to your stretching, to your work outs, to your sleep, to how you handle your recreation. To be a top climber ready for the "monsters" it's a ritual (not routine) lifestyle of making every decision count for the betterment of yourself. You shouldn't make the decisions for your job but for yourself because if you obsess with work your head will go crazy. When you balance yourself as an industrial athlete you will be able to objectively handle the next days task with a clear mind and stable body. You only can handle your next hardest job if your at your best. So consistently coming in with a holistic zen is your best chance at taking on a challenge that to most seems impossible
 
For me it all comes down to trust.
Being a powerlines climber has accelerated my climbing ability exponentially, some days I may climb 10 or more trees.
Being a metre or so from certain death should something go wrong, quickly teaches you to have a trust and confidence in yourself and your observer not required in many occupations.
 
It's no wonder you guys are so stressed out. Do you even have time to get laid?

It's all about diet, true enough. You need 3 or 4 thermos bottles full of that good, strong coffee. Go to a truckstop and see if you can clean the bugs off of your windshield with their coffee. If you can, find out what brand they use. And switch to a light beer. A nice lemon shandy, maybe, or a cold filtered wheat beer. None of that imported crap in a fancy bottle that requires you to get tools out to open it. Those heavy, dark beers are bad news.. you can barely tell them apart from the coffee. The proper ratio, for tree work, is 3 cups of coffee per beer you drink.

And donuts... you want those Krispy Kreme ones, not those styrofoam turds they have at the convenience store. Those things are loaded with high fructose corn syrup and preservatives that would have kept King Tutenkhamun spry as a teenager if they'd used that crap when they mummified him.

Forget the philosophy. You don't have time to be reading the Bhagavad Gita in a tree. If you need a good workout, change those dull chipper knives and bad hydraulics yourself, instead of dropping the machinery off at a repair shop.

Stay in shape. Remember, round is a shape, too. If you're getting too round, switch to the low-sugar pie for lunch.
 
JeffGu said:
It's no wonder you guys are so stressed out. Do you even have time to get laid?

It's all about diet, true enough. You need 3 or 4 thermos bottles full of that good, strong coffee. Go to a truckstop and see if you can clean the bugs off of your windshield with their coffee. If you can, find out what brand they use. And switch to a light beer. A nice lemon shandy, maybe, or a cold filtered wheat beer. None of that imported crap in a fancy bottle that requires you to get tools out to open it. Those heavy, dark beers are bad news.. you can barely tell them apart from the coffee. The proper ratio, for tree work, is 3 cups of coffee per beer you drink.

And donuts... you want those Krispy Kreme ones, not those styrofoam turds they have at the convenience store. Those things are loaded with high fructose corn syrup and preservatives that would have kept King Tutenkhamun spry as a teenager if they'd used that crap when they mummified him.

Forget the philosophy. You don't have time to be reading the Bhagavad Gita in a tree. If you need a good workout, change those dull chipper knives and bad hydraulics yourself, instead of dropping the machinery off at a repair shop.

Stay in shape. Remember, round is a shape, too. If you're getting too round, switch to the low-sugar pie for lunch.
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Thats some funny shit JeffGu! For me it's good strong coffee till my scalp is tingling, then I'm good to go, and the chips start flying! All this lifestyle talk is a little silly. Either you've got the skills, experience, and nervous system to tackle the tree in front of you, or you don't. Its all relative anyhow, as one man's monster is another man's pecker pole!
 
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Jem4417 said:
When you advance to a point where your expected to do just about anything It's never about one tree or the next tree. It's about coming in everyday ready to go. From your diet, to your stretching, to your work outs, to your sleep, to how you handle your recreation. To be a top climber ready for the "monsters" it's a ritual (not routine) lifestyle of making every decision count for the betterment of yourself. You shouldn't make the decisions for your job but for yourself because if you obsess with work your head will go crazy. When you balance yourself as an industrial athlete you will be able to objectively handle the next days task with a clear mind and stable body. You only can handle your next hardest job if your at your best. So consistently coming in with a holistic zen is your best chance at taking on a challenge that to most seems impossible
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That's a real good way to put it. I think being a climber is a lifestyle, not just an occupation. You either prepare for it and have it or you don't. And I think the mental preparation is one of the most important things if not the most important.
 
JeffGu said:
It's no wonder you guys are so stressed out. Do you even have time to get laid?

It's all about diet, true enough. You need 3 or 4 thermos bottles full of that good, strong coffee. Go to a truckstop and see if you can clean the bugs off of your windshield with their coffee. If you can, find out what brand they use. And switch to a light beer. A nice lemon shandy, maybe, or a cold filtered wheat beer. None of that imported crap in a fancy bottle that requires you to get tools out to open it. Those heavy, dark beers are bad news.. you can barely tell them apart from the coffee. The proper ratio, for tree work, is 3 cups of coffee per beer you drink.

And donuts... you want those Krispy Kreme ones, not those styrofoam turds they have at the convenience store. Those things are loaded with high fructose corn syrup and preservatives that would have kept King Tutenkhamun spry as a teenager if they'd used that crap when they mummified him.

Forget the philosophy. You don't have time to be reading the Bhagavad Gita in a tree. If you need a good workout, change those dull chipper knives and bad hydraulics yourself, instead of dropping the machinery off at a repair shop.

Stay in shape. Remember, round is a shape, too. If you're getting too round, switch to the low-sugar pie for lunch.
Click to expand...
Can't all be badasses who popped out of the womb with a saw in their hand. Some of us have to really try
 
Not every arborist/treeman is gonna become comfortable working in big wood, or at big heights. Sad, but that's just the way it is. Some are wired for it, and some ain't. When we are in a tree our nervous system knows that we are in danger, so it goes into sympathetic mode. Some of us are very good at operating in this state, and some aren't. I worked with 2 young climbers in the last few years that were combat vets. They already knew how to operate at a high level, while being in a "fight or flight" state. After learning the necessary skills, they became good, big wood climbers real quick. Ive also seen plenty of experienced climbers lose their shit when they get over 140-150 ft. I really do believe that the nervous system is a big factor in becoming truly comfortable at heights.
 
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I think generalizing some people are made for it and some people aren't is a cop out. You can say that about anything. If you say your never scared your lieing. But if your looking to figure out how to be more comfortable in pressure situations you need to bring your 100% everyday. And as stated you need your lifestyle to reflect and complement what your trying to accomplish at work
 
Jem4417 said:
...who popped out of the womb with a saw in their hand...
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You waited to pop out? Start that saw up and cut your way out! Gotta grab the bull by the horns...

Really, you shouldn't take too much of what I post seriously. Lighten up, have some fun and relax. You're not bringing your "A Game" if you're stressing about the job and forum comments about health and fitness. Years of stress will kill you dead on your way out of that fitness gym's door. You want to climb past age 50 you need to include that in your lifestyle, too. A beer with your buds. A blind date with a well-endowed circus midget. Anything that makes you forget what you do for a living and where you left your car keys. And, trust me, at my age getting out of bed and making it to the bathroom without injuring myself requires more effort than you probably spend getting 70 feet up a tree.

Now, look at this picture of a bunny, and relax.

bunny-01.webp
 
We are taking about working in big trees, and I'm not sure what that means to you, but to me that means over 160 ft, and over 5 ft at the butt. You can eat all the fresh veggies and grass fed, free range eggs you want, but if your nervous system ain't firing on all cylinders, your fucked. It is a simple fact that some of us are predisposed to be more comfortable in dangerous situations than others. Life experiences such as violence, trauma, and chronic danger can also rewire how your nervous system operates. We can't all wreak 190 ft Firs, anymore than we can all be Golden Glove Boxers, NFL quarterbacks, PHD's, or Porn Stars!
 
JeffGu said:
You waited to pop out? Start that saw up and cut your way out! Gotta grab the bull by the horns...

Really, you shouldn't take too much of what I post seriously. Lighten up, have some fun and relax. You're not bringing your "A Game" if you're stressing about the job and forum comments about health and fitness. Years of stress will kill you dead on your way out of that fitness gym's door. You want to climb past age 50 you need to include that in your lifestyle, too. A beer with your buds. A blind date with a well-endowed circus midget. Anything that makes you forget what you do for a living and where you left your car keys. And, trust me, at my age getting out of bed and making it to the bathroom without injuring myself requires more effort than you probably spend getting 70 feet up a tree.

Now, look at this picture of a bunny, and relax.

View attachment 47288
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You got a thing for "well-endowed circus midgets" too. I swear, we must be brotha's from anotha mutha!
 
Jem4417 said:
If you say your never scared your lieing.
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I gave up being scared over 35 years ago, and truth be told, I never had much to begin with. Excited, and my nervous system firing on all cylinders yes. Scared? Nope!
How the heck you gonna be of any use, if your scared?
 
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I like the basic concept of that post.

In addition to that any feelings another human can have you should be able to cause your self to have or have more of. Plus once you can figure out how to cause it, you could also cause there to be less of it.
 
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