Secure, omnidirectional quick release hitch

[Rooted.Tree.Solutions]

@John RB it does take some finesse to set the hitch. What happens if I’m lazy and don’t set it all the way? Is it inclined to fail or roll out in any way?

I love your ingenuity and I love to have options. As an arborist, I know that there is always more than 1 way to accomplish my task each day. I think this hitch is fantastic and will find its place in the world. I also appreciate your careful and thoughtful approach to its release to the public. I’m sure it’s difficult to have to hear negative feedback, but it will only make your hitch better as you continue to work out the details. Thanks for sharing and letting us be a part of its development.

 

[John RB]

@John RB it does take some finesse to set the hitch. What happens if I’m lazy and don’t set it all the way? Is it inclined to fail or roll out in any way?

I love your ingenuity and I love to have options. As an arborist, I know that there is always more than 1 way to accomplish my task each day. I think this hitch is fantastic and will find its place in the world. I also appreciate your careful and thoughtful approach to its release to the public. I’m sure it’s difficult to have to hear negative feedback, but it will only make your hitch better as you continue to work out the details. Thanks for sharing and letting us be a part of its development.

Higher Ground and others who have responded:

The reason I am on an Arborist forum asking for opinions is because that when it comes to safely getting in a tree, or info on a hitch that might not be in the book, I have great respect for the experts here as the best source of info. Nobody has been rude and nobody's been negative. They have been constructive and direct. That's expected and warranted. That's how the smart climbers get to retirement with all their original bones intact. I get it. "Dead men tell no tales." For 12 of the last 13 years, i have been fine just doing my own thing: rope climbing safely as an avid hunter. But Saddle Hunting is exploding... there are now more members in Saddle Hunter Nation than Tips and Tricks (Facebook groups), the "wild west" of their disciplines. Here's the scary thing: if you're not wearing a helmet as an arborist, you're in the minority and expect to be harassed for your own safety. If a hunter wears a helmet, he or she is one in a thousand, maybe less. It's hard for me to read these posts and medivac stories and not shake my head. And so, my general focus has been on TRYING to channel a safety theme in there. For example, every DRT climber I know can't sustain a failure of the friction hitch. In my system, the friction hitch is backed up. The bridge is backed up. My life depends on no caribeaner. No mechanical devices. I am all about safety.

And so regarding the hitch, I don't want it used unsafely. I am trying to pursue the proper path. I delayed publication until after hunting season just because i know how viral the stone knot and fiddlestick went. I also don't want to withhold info, and right now, I am, simply because i want to get more testing done, to answer questions like the one you raised. But there are "finish options" for the hitch which cause it to jam under load. I won't be the person who says what the hitch should be used for. But i will do my best to present all the info in due course. And the appropriate applications will emerge.

I have only tested the properly dressed hitch. I have been impressed with how sloppy i can dress it and how loosely i can set it and have it hold. But have no data to present.

Thanks for tying and trying. When you set it, pull the load line hard towards you. And push and pull the loop sideways. Otherwise the bottom strand wont get taught.

 

[Jehinten]

Higher Ground and others who have responded:

The reason I am on an Arborist forum asking for opinions is because that when it comes to safely getting in a tree, or info on a hitch that might not be in the book, I have great respect for the experts here as the best source of info. Nobody has been rude and nobody's been negative. They have been constructive and direct. That's expected and warranted. That's how the smart climbers get to retirement with all their original bones intact. I get it. "Dead men tell no tales." For 12 of the last 13 years, i have been fine just doing my own thing: rope climbing safely as an avid hunter. But Saddle Hunting is exploding... there are now more members in Saddle Hunter Nation than Tips and Tricks (Facebook groups), the "wild west" of their disciplines. Here's the scary thing: if you're not wearing a helmet as an arborist, you're in the minority and expect to be harassed for your own safety. If a hunter wears a helmet, he or she is one in a thousand, maybe less. It's hard for me to read these posts and medivac stories and not shake my head. And so, my general focus has been on TRYING to channel a safety theme in there. For example, every DRT climber I know can't sustain a failure of the friction hitch. In my system, the friction hitch is backed up. The bridge is backed up. My life depends on no caribeaner. No mechanical devices. I am all about safety.

And so regarding the hitch, I don't want it used unsafely. I am trying to pursue the proper path. I delayed publication until after hunting season just because i know how viral the stone knot and fiddlestick went. I also don't want to withhold info, and right now, I am, simply because i want to get more testing done, to answer questions like the one you raised. But there are "finish options" for the hitch which cause it to jam under load. I won't be the person who says what the hitch should be used for. But i will do my best to present all the info in due course. And the appropriate applications will emerge.

I have only tested the properly dressed hitch. I have been impressed with how sloppy i can dress it and how loosely i can set it and have it hold. But have no data to present.

Thanks for tying and trying. When you set it, pull the load line hard towards you. And push and pull the loop sideways. Otherwise the bottom strand wont get taught.

Just curiosity here, you've mentioned saddle hunters several times, why an exploding hitch for this purpose? If a safe, reliable canopy anchor for inexperienced climbers is needed, why not a more simplistic setup? Bare bones, easy to retrieve would be a spliced rope with a delta link or ring in the splice with retrieval cordage. Could be set up in a little kit for sale for saddle hunters.

Knots would be easy and cheaper than a splice, but it introduces operator error with inexperienced climbers.

I commend you for looking out for others safety, just curious why this approach to this particular problem? I'm sure this hitch will have other uses, I'm just not sure that I'd recommend it to a new climber.

 

[John RB]

Just curiosity here, you've mentioned saddle hunters several times, why an exploding hitch for this purpose? If a safe, reliable canopy anchor for inexperienced climbers is needed, why not a more simplistic setup? Bare bones, easy to retrieve would be a spliced rope with a delta link or ring in the splice with retrieval cordage. Could be set up in a little kit for sale for saddle hunters.

Knots would be easy and cheaper than a splice, but it introduces operator error with inexperienced climbers.

I commend you for looking out for others safety, just curious why this approach to this particular problem? I'm sure this hitch will have other uses, I'm just not sure that I'd recommend it to a new climber.

I created the hitch not realizing all the things it might be used for. But its potential as a retrieveable anchor was recognized by the first few who saw it. I can't speak for those who choose to use quick release over a conventional anchor. I just know it's happening and so this MIGHT be a safer option.

This thread was not created in order to try to sell it to anybody here.

I can think of plenty of non life safety applications it's good for as well. When tied near the end of a rope, by feeding the tag end through the drawloop, you have a stable hitch which is locked from quick release and pulls on the end don't hurt it. Quite stable. I have ABOK and i have tied and tried a lot. I don't know anything with this mix of extreme strength, stability, non jamming, omnidirectional, lockable, and where i can control the jamming under load without affecting the strength or ease of release. Then again i might be biased. If it has a home, it will find its place after time and testing.

If you look back, I did not create this thread in order to try to suggest that anyone use it. This thread was created to find out if anything like it exists and start a conversation, and get connected. And from this thread some good things are happening. And I thank you all.