Covid got me climben

[BoomBitch222]

So after months at my new company, Ive only gotten three very small climbs in until this week. One of our main climbers is off because he was around someone that has covid and in his absence, Ive gotten to use his saddle the past two days (mine is still held up, delivery is looking like the middle of Jan.).

Four climbs in the past two days and these were actually fun I was just comfortable enough with the equipment and techniques to not be anxious about messing up and today I was almost hanging upside down to reach a small branch I needed to remove (we were just pruning oaks), using my buck strap as a positioning lanyard, just totally comfortable in my saddle and getting around pretty quickly. Now I can start to see why you guys love this. Ill get in as many climbs as I can before homeboy is back and someone asked if I could post a video of me climbing so maybe Ill even get over my aversion to asking people to film me and get a clip lol

My posts look like a 5 yr olds drawings compared to what you guys post and discuss but I cant help being super excited to finally feel like Im getting somewhere

 

[Jonny]

Heck yeah, go get some air time!
Is buckstrap kind of a generic term for lanyard or are you using an actual buckstrap that doesn’t have an adjuster of some kind right at the hip?

 

[Merle Nelson]

Passion for a thing is beautiful. Saw it in a little puppy today....all of life was a wonder to him. I came just to visit him, not to bid on the trees annoying his dad.

I often think how great my profession is. I'm around a lot of artists where I live - the beauty of trees is my art form. (Well that and raking up fanatically well.) I watch wing suit flyers on youtube and think I would never do that. But I get my adventure in every day...and get paid well for it.

Only compare you to you.

 

[BoomBitch222]

Heck yeah, go get some air time!
Is buckstrap kind of a generic term for lanyard or are you using an actual buckstrap that doesn’t have an adjuster of some kind right at the hip?

I suppose its a lanyard, with a prussik (prussic?) on one side.

 

[BoomBitch222]

Passion for a thing is beautiful. Saw it in a little puppy today....all of life was a wonder to him. I came just to visit him, not to bid on the trees annoying his dad.

I often think how great my profession is. I'm around a lot of artists where I live - the beauty of trees is my art form. (Well that and raking up fanatically well.) I watch wing suit flyers on youtube and think I would never do that. But I get my adventure in every day...and get paid well for it.

Only compare you to you.

Unfortunately my social anxiety leaves me constantly comparing myself to my peers, its not something I have much control over lol

But passion is a great thing and very much needed for this line of work because as fun as some of it is, theres a lot of brutal hard work. Puppies help a lot too, petting a dog is always the best part of any given workday for me We have a policy that prohibits us from petting customers dogs but its the one rule I threw right in the trash- Im petting the fluffies and good luck trying to stop me

 

[Jonny]

Definitely a perk of the job, so long as the HO is cleaning up before we start working in the backyard.
I can totally see why they’d make a rule like that. Dog bites can be expensive, but it’s generally not too hard to learn to read a dog’s body language and know if they should get the ear scritches or not.

 

[flushcut]

Who knows maybe the guy coming back won't be climbing anymore. Keep it up!

 

[RogerM]

just wait until you get your own saddle that nobody else can use and you dial it in to that "perfect" fit... gets even better. Keep sharing your progress, Thanks for doing it.

 

[Basswood]

Good for you. Patience is key, I too had to wait awhile at my full time job to get more climbing in but it’s worth the wait if you are with a good team that is ready to teach.

 

[BoomBitch222]

Who knows maybe the guy coming back won't be climbing anymore. Keep it up!

Nah, hes one of our best climbers but Im glad I got some in

 

[BoomBitch222]

Definitely a perk of the job, so long as the HO is cleaning up before we start working in the backyard.
I can totally see why they’d make a rule like that. Dog bites can be expensive, but it’s generally not too hard to learn to read a dog’s body language and know if they should get the ear scritches or not.

‘Xactly. I cant understand people at all but dogs I get lol I know when its safe to offer a dog some lovins.

 

[Mark Chisholm]

My posts look like a 5 yr olds drawings compared to what you guys post and discuss but I cant help being super excited to finally feel like Im getting somewhere

Don't feel that way! We've all been there and some here still are or even hope to be. And we can all relate to that feeling. Keep going and sharing.

 

[flushcut]

Nah, hes one of our best climbers but Im glad I got some in

Right on but don't roll over and play dead. As a tree service owner I look for people who are motivated and WANT to do the work, WANT to learn. That's you so go get sum!

 

[rope-a-dope]

Dont let them forget the butt sweat you left in that saddle!
Good tips for getting the climb:
First to get your gear to the tree. If gear is lacking, first to set a line. If your gear is at the tree and you are ready to go, very likely no one will stop you!
Bring the confidence in the form of a big shiny coin. Heads or tails for the tree! Also rock paper scissors works. (For tree work I might propose a translation to rope, saw and chipper.)
Practice your throwline toss. It is a skill that doesn't require lots of time or investment to work on, but it is one of the tougher and slower to master parts of climbing and crucial to getting in the tree.
And talk through the climbing with the other climbers. Whether you or someone else, an "in-game analysis" or play-by-play commentary can be really helpful learning what to do and why.

Your updates are a joy, the enthusiasm is contagious (too soon?).

 

[Burrapeg]

‘Xactly. I cant understand people at all but dogs I get lol I know when its safe to offer a dog some lovins.

I have been a cat person most of my life and dogs can tell! I have been attacked by every breed, even normally harmless fluffy lap dogs. Invariably the owner says, 'Oh he has never done that before, he is SO sweet'. Even had a chihuahua do a number on my ankle that took seven stitches. They are the piranha of the dog world.

 

[Merle Nelson]

Ha, funny.

I like dogs for certain traits and cats for others.

 

[oldoakman]

My son is a cat whisperer. He should really be a vet tech in a cat's only vets office. I tolerate cats, dogs are another issue, the bigger they are the better.