This video is 1 of 3 videos in a series. A more complete description is over on a LinkedIn discussion in their Trees Group that is at:
LinkedIn Redwood Climbing with Crossbow Linesetting video series
I know what you mean about my bad posture. My torso is so long I am majorly topheavy. It makes me flip upside down and the shoulder harness is the only thing keeping me from squirting out of the saddle like a hot dog eaten onehanded at the Super Bowl (Go Ravens !).
The laid back ascent style has been helped by adding a Pantin to help get my feet under the body. An example of the refinement is in the Black Fox video.
The Pompe makes for an ascending limp. The ascender with the foot stirrup has a cord attached to the Croll chest ascender, which runs thru 2 pulleys. This results in mechanical advantage that has a longer pull stroke with only 2/3 the upward progress. Good for hauling heavy gear.
The solid fiberglas arrow weighs 3 1/3 ounces. It has a rubber tip that doesn't add weight, and makes things safer. There is no recoil. It is what the rig was designed for. I cringe at seeing the shooting in the video with all that action and no eye protection. We do get wrapped up in the moment. Line management can be so consuming.
You may notice in the Cornell Tree Climbing Institute video the crossbow has compound wheels in the prod.
Cornell Video link
Faster arrow speed & easier to retract, but more mechanically complex.
I had one quit working in the field once, and had to pack it up & ship it in for service. Simpler may be a more elegant solution, according to Occam's Razor.
I have used the compound Barnett RC150, but the bow in the video is the Barnett Wildcat 150. 235 FPS (feet per second).
