Hey chad, glad to see what an operator looks for in a climber, that was more interesting to me than what i look for in an operator.
But to answer your question (may be a little long winded):
I go out with a crane every day, been doing this for several years now, also spent a year and a half working different cranes crews across the country. I have a few things i like to see-most is just personal preference.
I will choose a woman op over a male every day of the week. In the list of the top five ops i've worked with, three of the slots belong to women. Women seem to get more in sync with a climber, quicker. I've also worked with ops that basically look at us like meat on a string, the women seem to care a little more.
I hate a jerky op. I work with chains so expect a knock or two from the hooks. If i'm getting beat up or am having to "catch" the slings on every return, words will be said. Speed isn't as important to me as smoothness.
I love an op that will do even the little things the right way every time. It's one of the things i like about my everyday op-there are shortcuts we could probably get away with, but he will do things the right way every time, even if i'm champing at the bit. I do appreciate this, shows me he'll do the important things right too.
This is a tricky one, i like a confidant op. There's a line between a scaredy op and a fearless one. Neither are a ton of fun. I like an op that if i ask him, he'll give me a yes or no, and not because he has no fear and will say yes to anything or is scared and will say no to anything. One that knows and is confident.
Which kind of leads into an op that knows his machine. If i ask a question, i better not get an "i don't know." I may not know for sure but expect him to know when it comes to his machine. Which can also cover i like an op that knows his chart without having to look before he makes every move. I'll try to bone up on the charts of cranes i'll be working the next day, and i know the chart of my everyday backwards and forwards. But i've run across a couple cranes that have an odd spot in the chart, i like the op to know these.
I also like an op that's not afraid to say no. I know you guys get told that the climber is the boss on the job, but to be honest, i have a tendency to skate closer to the edge than i should. I like an op that will tell me no.
I hate chatty kathy ops. Communication is good, but i'll do most of the communicating i need to with about a dozen words. The radio is not a phone, i'm not there to gossip with you, and i really don't need to hear about your wife's yeast infection while setting slings. Also, if i'm in view of the op, i don't expect to have to talk the chains back to my hand every time, i kind of expect you to be able to get them to me when i'm in view.
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