Dead Pine Removal

[Kathy_Holzer]

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WHAT do others people use for a break/tear away, lanyard, in those high risk situations?

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accessory biner clipped to my d ring. wished it was locking, but used it because i had it. not very professional but thought it might save my life if everything went south in a hurry. most professional would be to find a way to approach the situation that didn't require that degree of....ovaries.

(what is it about tree climbers that makes us willing to accept that kind of risk? for sure a plumber would not have contemplated great bodily harm in the name of getting the job done.)

the time or two i've used a break-away lanyard i just couldn't think of another way. maybe also could have passed on the job..

 

[Roger_Barnett]

Agreed, Sawyer. But, as I said, the tree was small. Doubt anything we lowered weighed over 100 lb....and most were tip tied, so little shock loading. Plus, the anchors were bombproof, or nearly so!

It was back in 2002. I have a few pics somewhere....

 

[shankenstein]

It's a little old fashioned and maybe not as fool proof as using a breakaway lanyard, but, what about leaving a longer staub where a limb was cut where it's necessary. I'll do this once in a while so that if something did i happen i could, theoretically, just flip the lanyard off. The problem with this (which has made think about break-away lanyards) is that it may not apply with certain species. Down here the aspens create the worst situations for a climber when they die and would most likely merit such a system. However, because of shade intolerance they'll prune off most of their limbs so there won't be anything to put a lanyard around except for the trunk.

But most dead conifers, forget about it, there's plenty to put your lanyard around.

K.I.S.S.

 

[Winch]

I recently put my Sierra Moreno ultralight together with this:

http://www.sherrilltree.com/Professional-Gear/Fall-Arrest-Harnesses/Fall-Arrest-Suspenders

and now have a fall-arrest saddle. I used this for a tight-line type removal on an upheaving pine.

I think it has similarities to your system, with some positive and negative aspects. One positive is that you are connected by your back - no rope in front of you, except your lanyard for positioning. One negative is that you need your groundman to control your belay. As long as you can communicate well with them, I don't see a problem. It actually worked rather well for me. I had a single line up over a taller pine behind the removal, then connected to my back. At the ground the line went through my grigri, which my groundman pulled on to let out line for my descent. It was great.

I didn't get any pictures, maybe next time.

 

[speelyei]

Hijack warning:
sorry Ron, haven't been back in a while. Yes, it was a suppressed MP5. It was one of the first full auto weapons I ever fired, and the first suppressed weapon I fired. It was a lot of fun, but not fun enough to offset the cost and hassle of ammunition, licensure, and purchase price.