Saved By My Harness!!!

[vintage-bears]

I love my harness. I feel safer when I'm wearing it.
I'm glad to hear your safe and thanks for sharing such an important story for ALL tree hunters.

.........Philip

[njloco]

Glad to hear all that !

My wife's friend's husband wasn't that fortunate, or should I say smart, but he was REAL LUCKY, he fell about 19' and is still alive to talk about it. He did have to be put back together some though, but still alive.

[Tim]

Holy Cow David!  

I worry about that all the time.  I think we put way too much faith in some of these stands.  So glad you're alright.

And you thought your job was dangerous!

Take carry buddy.   Tim

[Autumnarcher]

What brand and type of stand was it?
Glad to hear youre ok.

[Pepper]

Whew, I am glad you are alright, thanks for the heads up.
Via con Dios

[Hawkeye]

I'm thankful to hear your story- and that you were wise enough to do what you could for your own safety- AND that it worked!

My late father always used to say "Too soon old, too late smart!"

I'm glad you proved him wrong on this one, David!

[Shawn Leonard]

David, I am glad you are ok my friend!! I am one who is admittedly stupid and do not wear mine very often. I have a good SOP and it will be sewed into one of my undergarments in the next few days. Things like this maje me think, which is good! Thankyou my friend for a reminder! This from someone who fell 22ft. one time!! I know, I know! You know the tree and the stand I am talking about. I was about to step into the stand, which by the way had a harness left in it all the time and a screw step broke at the threads, dislocated both my shoulders. I have to start wearing it, just stubborn and stupid I guess. I will start, I promise! Shawn

[tippit]

David,
Mighty glad you're OK.  But if you weren't able to get to you climbing sticks, this self belaying system (GriGri2) would have eased you  down your life line to the bottom of your tree.  Simply attach it to you top loop of the SOP harness with a carabiner.  You can't believe how easy & one handed the Petzl GriGri2 allows you to descend down your tree.  I'll stop preaching but here is a link...Jeff

  http://tradgang.com/noncgi/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=110494#000000  

     

     

     

[Shawn Leonard]

Jeff, how much do you figure to rig 56 stand sites with that set-up? Say cost per one and multiply or maybe a bit cheaper if I buy in quantity. Shawn

[Huntrdfk]

Please use it Shawn, no matter how safe/strong you or the stand are.

Greg, I use an SOP harness, and had the prussic knot on the tether about a foot or so above my head.  I always put the prussic knot on the side of the stand that my climbing sticks are on, with the hope that if I ever do fall I will end up near the sticks. When I stood up I heard a pop, the stand flipped out to the left and down I went. The tether did break away, and I ended up right next to my sticks. I do have a scrape on my side from hitting the tree, but am otherwise fine. I have heard and read of suspension trauma, and though I wasn't hanging long at all, I certainly felt the pressure in my legs. I do wonder what would have happened if I had fell off of the left side away from my sticks, and ended up with the stand in between me and the sticks. It certainly would have been much more difficult to get to the sticks.

I can tell you I won't be found in a treet without a harness on.

Tim, like you I have often thought the same things. I mean, I hunted on Thanksgiving with a close friend, in one of his stands, that has been in the tree for five years. I was certainly thinking that morning.  Maybe tonight was a wakeup call for me, and hopefully all that read this. (same make and model as the one I was in tonight).

David

[Huntrdfk]

Don't worry about preaching Jeff, that is an awesome idea.

Shawn......I do remember, and don't think I didn't think about it.

David

[tippit]

The GriGri2 costs $95 but most climbing stores like EMS, REI, etc will have a 20% off sale.  The life line I use is 30 feet of 11mm static (non-stretch) climbing rope @ under a dollar a foot.  The GriGri2 accepts 8.5 t0 11mm rope.  That's all you need plus a locking biner.  

My primary stand I leave a life line attached above the stand and I'll have and extra rope if I need to climb any other stand.  But you can do all the stands you want with just one rope.  It takes a few more minutes to climb and descend as you have to take slack out as you go up and keep giving slack on the way down.

[KentuckyTJ]

Wow, close call. Good protection no doubt. My brother had a platform cable snap on him a few years ago.

[Bonebuster]

Thanks for posting this...glad to hear it is just a scrape to speak of.  

[Fletcher]

David, so glad to know that you are OK.  Thanks for posting and sharing this with us.  It will encourage others to wear the harness.  Yes, they are inconvient, but nothing compared to what can happen without one.  I've started equipping my stands with long ropes and Prusic hitches and am carrying a suspension relief line.  I like Tippit's descender rig.

Shawn, the harness mfg's recommend not wearing it underneath your outer layers.  Something about needing to be able to get to it in a hanging situation.  Having it sewn in would also mess with the versatility of what you wear in the stand and might have you not wearing it.

[NoCams]

Sure would like to know as others have asked, " What brand stand ? " and how old were they ? Had they been left on the tree for years ?

We are hunting out of more hang on stands now but take them down at the end of each season. We also take down any screw in steps after two seasons. After using the woodpecker and bolt system may never use screw in steps again.

[Huntrdfk]

The stand was a Gorilla Silverback Lite, about five years old. There have been a couple of years that it spent the entire year in the woods, and a couple that it spent the off season in my shed. It was one of the most comfortable stands I own, in fact I own three other Gorilla stands, albeit newer models.

David

[drewsbow]

Glad to hear you are ok David , Thanks for the reminder    Drew

[BowHuntingFool]

Glad you are OK....!!!!

After a buddy was inspecting his stand earlier this season, a Gorilla climber, he found 3 welds that were tearing! Not good!

[Birdbow]

Very Glad for your foresight and attention to safety. Of all the "atta boys" I've seen posted here, this deserves the biggest ATTA BOY!! Best regards, Todd