what a way to go, 71 yrs old

[xander9727]

Relax..........There is a reason this happened. Properly maintained and inspected ropes DO NOT just snap! Even if a rope has lost 90% of its strength it still must support 500+ lbs. Unless of course it wasn't a rope designed for tree work. In any case it is important to find out why these things happened to prevent them in the future. If the guy was a hack that climbed on Home Depot yellow poly rope then the uninformed that read this may stop doing so. Those that know better will rest easy knowing they aren't in danger of this particular type of failure. I've made bone head mistakes and I'll admit them. Hopefully some will recognize them before they make the same mistakes. If he cut him self out of the tree then I would bring his experience and training into question. If he worked for a prominent company or was trained by ACRT or Arbormaster then I would say maybe he was losing his mind. If he was trained by himself doing 15 climbing jobs a year I would acertain that he was probably outside of his skill set and that is why it happened. For me his death is a done deal........we cannot go back and change that........however, we can learn from it. Several posters seem to be trying to do that and others are whining about the fact the guy died. If he died due to an unforseen or unpredictable fault then I feel for him. If he died because of poor choices I will have a hard time being sympathetic to him but I will feel for his family.

 

[Marky Mark]

Talked to my buddy Russ from Red Wood Tree, he was a good climber and not a hack by any means. Great guy to know. He may have had a heart attack while up there and cut the rope. They haven't gotten a full report yet.

 

[notahacker]

I'll never understand why people seem to think if someone had an accident they must not know what they are doing. When I've shared my near misses, it seems I've recieved more flack then sympathy. Though I was not looking for the latter, just sharing my mistakes.

I agree 100%:sword: Good Point!

 

[gitrdun_climbr]

I've said it before and I'll say it again: if the climber fell from a rope 'snapping' or a branch 'snapping', the professional climber recognizes how it happened right away: the climber didn't adequately secure him/herself into the tree.

With two separate attachment points, you open a whole added window of safety. I tend to climb on two lines for both positioning AND safety. When I move one I clip into my flipline until I get tied back in again. Takes a little longer .. but I can have a rope or a branch snap and still go home for a good supper that night.

Statistics show climbers fall most often when repositioning (advancing a climbing line or moving a lanyard). Pay special attention to your surroundings and equipment during these times.

safe climbing!

 

[pantheraba]

I tend to climb on two lines for both positioning AND safety. When I move one I clip into my flipline until I get tied back in again. Takes a little longer .. but I can have a rope or a branch snap and still go home for a good supper that night.

Statistics show climbers fall most often when repositioning (advancing a climbing line or moving a lanyard). Pay special attention to your surroundings and equipment during these times.

Same here, I have 2 lines set more often than not. I try to have 2 safety attachment points whenever possible.

I glanced down at the Eye/Eye split tail holding my lanyard the other day and that 5/16" just didn't look very stout. I have learned to trust it but I am still wary of it.

 

[gitrdun_climbr]

double crotching for fall protection

undoubtedly proficiency with the throwline is key for the climber. for me, the better i got with it the faster i could set both rigging and climbing lines while aloft. also made me less lazy about setting an extra line to climb on if i had any doubts about the initial attachment point (or even if I didn't). just as i only occasionally find the need to briefly one-hand my saw, i only occasionally find the need to work in the tree off a single attachment point.

be ever observant, climbers AND groundsman