Why do groundmen like or hate you?

[jomoco]

I'll start off with my habit of taking down trees in chipper ready portions that one man can handle, without needing to cut it again with brush, trunk wood is a different matter.

My chipper truck drivers all love me because I have an assortment of hitches on the front of my 4x4 tooltruck that allows me to push their chippers up convoluted driveways that would be a nightmare to backup with a chipper.
They also love me when stuck in the mud in their trucks, because I throw them a pulley and choker that allows me to usually yank them out with 24K lbs of pull from the back of my tooltruck's 12K lb electric winch.

It's the considerations you give to a good groundman that make a better team/crew.

If your groundies aren't glad to see you?

jomoco

 

[Blakesmaster]

I'll start off with my habit of taking down trees in chipper ready portions that one man can handle, without needing to cut it again with brush, trunk wood is a different matter.



jomoco

My groundies don't mind me but IMO it's quicker, easier and safer to cut the stuff up on the ground which is why I take the tree apart as big as it can be done. My bro, when climbing, thinks more like you and tends to whittle it down more than necessary, this makes it easy but really boring on the ground and the jobs seem to take longer.

 

[ckliff]

I'm with Blakemaster on this one, but I also gotta add...

my groundies love me most...

















on PAYDAY!

 

[BlackenedTimber]

I have generally gotten along well with my groundies.

When I was full-time in the biz, alot of my little sister's friends wanted jobs. I would tell them that they had to show up saturday morning, and work a half day for free. If they still wanted a job on monday, then we could talk. I ended up getting alot of free (if incompetent...) labor and removing many annoying people from my life in one fell swoop. Exactly 2 of perhaps dozens of my sister's friends found permanent positions on my crews.

Also, if I bid a job for 8 hours, and got it done in 6 cause everybody brought their "A" game and didn't mess around, I would pay the guys for 8 hours and send them home early. I also used to buy alot of lunches too, on days where we had the luxury of completing one job before lunch and starting another after lunch. Plus, keep the cooler full of water and gatorades for the guys to guzzle on the hot days.

As far as piecing out a tree, I take whatever I think will get the job done safely and efficiently. If I take a big leader out, and they have to buck it up on the ground, then that's just part of being a groundie. I generally prefer to take larger pieces using 3/4" ropes and let the majority of the cutting be done on the ground.

I also like to schedule enough labor to get the job done without everyone killing themselves humping blockwood and feeding the chipper. Sometimes an extra man on the ground is worth the money if it makes the job go easier and quicker, and keeps people's tempers from flairing up.

T

 

[jomoco]

I was amazed by the animosity between goundies and climbers at a few of the larger companies I've subbed to over the years.

Especially when the climbing is done entirely before the cleanup even starts on logging crews!

A good climber can generally keep the wood pile separated from the brush pile.

Piling the trunk wood on top of the brush and walking away is one of the fastest ways I know of tickin off most groundmen, except those of course with tracked bobcats!

jomoco

 

[treesquirrel]

I only have one groundie. He and I are like brothers when on the job. We have gotten to the point we even think alike.

I'm a small scale operation, I do work with another tree company from time to time and have occasionally climbed for a few others but my ground man is always there unless he has something going on to keep him away.

 

[derwoodii]

Luke 6:31 says it all
Do to others as you would have them do to you.

Had a climber would just confetti up the limbs, he didn't' last long.
Had a climber who would deck all log wood on to the brush, as above gone soon.
Luv the climbers who work the tree as jomoco does, makes the job all good for all involved.
To serve up the crew lunch n drinks and let'm home asap, more bosses like Blackenedt please.

 

[lego1970]

I don't do things to make a groundsman life harder, but at the same time if I'm in air my conservation of energy is much more important then the guy on the ground. When I'm down and done with my job, I'll go and help the groundsman with their job. My main concern when I'm in the tree is to get it down safely and quickly, and if I'm working the ground my job is to make sure the climber needs are taken care of first, then dragging and chipping brush second.

 

[ropensaddle]

My groundies love me because after putting a ton of brush and log's on top in a terrible mess they are thinking oh no were going to have to clean up now. I then roll in with the grapple truck and its done in a half hour lol.

They hate me when I ask them to pull the rope and I say is that all you got lol.

 

[lumberjack333]

I also used to buy alot of lunches too, on days where we had the luxury of completing one job before lunch and starting another after lunch. Plus, keep the cooler full of water and gatorades for the guys to guzzle on the hot days.

Agreed, free food and lots of electrolytes make for a happy and usually productive crew.

 

[Hddnis]

My groundmen have always liked me as far as I know. I'd even go so far as to say that some of the younger ones worshipped me. lol

I would do what I could to make life easier for them. I also made sure that they understood that without them the tree didn't come down, same as if I wasn't there.

We are a team, we work hard, and get a hard job done safely.



Mr. HE

 

[Blakesmaster]

Agreed, free food and lots of electrolytes make for a happy and usually productive crew.

I always buy a couple jugs of water in the morning and lunch is on the company no questions asked. I like my crew happy not hungry. I pay, basically by the day, and I pay damn well. Usually at least 200 bucks a day for a groundie which leaves me with a slew of numbers I can call for help any day that I deem an extra ground guy beneficial. I've worked with guys that pay me to wreck the tree in a big mess and then hire 4 or five yahoos at ten bucks an hour to clean up the mess. If I worked ground I'd hate him.