Windfall Whips and Widowmakers, the Hazard's of Working in the Woods.

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Well, two stick trees I decided not to cut and let fall by themselves by the road did exactly as I expected (rare I know).
They fell sideways (good) and shattered into lots of pieces. Only 20-30 footers. But the shrapnel still would have hurt.
Instead , used patience and was far away when it happened.
With the Dead Ash, doing nothing is sometimes the best route.

There are a few trees I need down, will use my 200' bull rope to keep my distance and pull them.
keeps them off the adjoining properties and will make them happy to see these go.
Dropping branches has made them shorter and easier to work down.
I have some huge poplars to work behind if needed.
Good escape routes, but wet, so I might go back there when a bit drier.
 
Our ash haven't taken a hit from EAB yet but it's inevitable. We're also on standby to lose maples to SOD. All these exotic pathogens are going to change the landscape forever, and it's weird to see it happening. Meanwhile the USFS Dorena research folks in Oregon are still working on blister-rust resistant white pine, and we're planting I think 8th generation resistant seedlings now and they're doing well. There may be hope? Not sure. Science is doing its thing.
 
Something I haven't seen mentioned yet is not the woods and trees but the very people you may work with. They may not be as well versed or on their toes and anticipating.

On windrow jobs I've had the farmer show up halfway thru with dozers and excavators to do cleanup and cause all sorts of problems. I've almost been hit by trees they decided to push over without warning, nearly pinned by rolling logs they haphazardly stack or toss aside, watched jerry rigged pull cords fashioned from undersized chain snap and take out equipment windows, witnessed horrendously improper cutting techniques that have led to near disaster, and more.

It isn't so much complete neglect for safety as it is the 'time is money' thought process and doing everything at 100mph for 12+ hours a day mentality and risk adversity. AKA; "Just get it done." As a farmer myself I get it, but there is a time when that mentality has to be shelved, and tree work is one of them. People wonder why I prefer to work alone, and the above is the very reason.

Its not always the trees that get you. Sometimes its your coworkers. So you have to know your own personal speed, limits, and acceptable risk, and when to call it because its when you push the boundaries on those that you get in trouble.
 
It isn't all falling, except for falling on one's butt.

This is wonderful advice. While going off to pick out and mark tail trees, heard the hooktender tell one of the crew to keep on doing what they were doing, but if he had any questions about something, Don't Do It--wait till he returned. This is the same guy who talked about how one must embrace the weather as we hiked up to the top of a ridge, again to pick out tail trees, on a dark and stormy day. Very stormy.

Why were we hiking uphill for tail trees? It was a unit with downhill yarding, everybody's favorite thing to do.


I had a foreman who loved to say that. He always said it with such conviction as well. "You've got to EMBRACE the weather!!" He's not wrong. Just like cutting in the rain, after a while of staring into it, you don't even notice the drops pelting your eyeballs any more. I'm periodically reminded now that I haven't cut logs in almost 6 years, my eyes are back to being bugged by rain drops smacking them.
 
Reading these posts has conjured up some fun memories.
I still have a divet in the front of my right quad from a limb that lodged up during falling. It stayed lodged for maybe 2 months, then one windless morning, it decided to fall right on top of my leg as I was stepping up over a piece of wood. Could've walked through undisturbed timber instead but I have a habit of walking logs & tops.
Wood that's ripped off during the fall & then catapulted can travel further than one would think. I got clocked pretty good by a poplar branch that was torn off & thrown back towards the stump. The interesting part is that I had time not only to leave the stump & it's dangerous proximity, I had time to stop & turn around to look at my handywork & my next victim while getting out & almost lighting a smoke before getting hit. I think I was around 30 some feet diagonally behind the stump at the time. Those poplars weren't that tall either, so the branch that broke the other branch sure had some spring to it.
I've been roughed up by three different skidder operators. One almost drug a nice log over me when he went on ahead before I had actually gotten off said log. He was an old timer, he should've known better.. I was pretty upset until I realized how upset he was about his carelessness. I think he was on the tail end of a few weeks long milwaukee/schnapps bender...
The other incident consisted of the end of the day, a 20' tall evergreen snag of some sort, & a turn being reeled in from below the road. The snag got wacked & I was just close enough to get the top of it to the lid. Knocked me down but no damage. I was on the move, aware of my surroundings and all, trying to get out of the way. Only I was counting on my partner to be aware of his as well. Bad idea. I don't know why he didn't see the snag, but apparently he didn't.
The third consisted of the same as the 1st except with a green operator. He got hung up around a tree, so I cut the offending branches & then fell down in the brush. He assumed that I was clear & went on. Ended up having my thumbnail uprooted(the part under the skin) on one corner by a bit on my chain, but I could've totally been kneaded by oak tree tops.
I've experienced in numerous strips, people.. Ones who I had no idea were going to be there. Literally all of them were walking into the lay of the tree I was cutting. The scariest of which involving a law enforcement officer of some sort. Dude literally just marched right up over a small embankment & directly into lay. It was definitely not a mistake, either. He knew what was going on, he just figured his authority (ego) would work on a falling tree like it does people. There's just no other explanation. I was in the back of that tree, it was VERY VERY close.
Talk about upsetting. The idiot said he was checking a pond near by or some apple trees by it or something (below the embankment). That was terrifying!!!
I will always know where my behind the tree hiding spots are, if not for escaping my own mess, for dodging the boulders that the dozer cuts loose from time to time.. I almost got flattened by a big yoga ball sized unit. Had it been traveling a foot to the right, I would've. Instead it smacked the red oak I was in the back of. Did the bar in completely & broke the chain brake shield. I was oblivious until impact..
As for looking while running saws, up isn't the only place. A small 6-7"dbh, 30some' tall Hickory that I had bowed over with a larger tree almost removed my head after it kicked off of the stump instead of laying down like I thought it would. I'd cut plenty of similarly situated whips before, only that one was different. Somehow the Hickory was bound up at the top, or locked into the larger tree's bark with it's abrasive Hickory bark. Whatever the case was, I didn't see the problem & it shot the butt off of the stump & into my left temple as it resumed its linear state. In hindsight, the face went in funny. It didn't close up quite as much as it should've with the force it was under.. Apparently I went flying tens of feet up into the air. At least I landed in the skid road.. chainsaw about 20 feet from me.
Crashing another stem onto the mess would've been the best idea.
Sometimes there are brand new occurrences that one does not expect. I've had two trees leave the stump in a sidestepping fashion. As if someone hit the side of the tree with a 20 ton hammer. I mean in a split second, too. Both were cut up, one was small, the other a respectable white oak. The smaller tree had a dead locust against it. (Screw cutting dead locust with a production chain) didn't figure it was exerting enough pressure to woosh the tree right off of the stump, but it did somehow. That tree was so fast & violent tat it took my saw & sat on the bar. That was before good camera phones & before I carried one in the woods, but a picture would've been nice. The bigger tree was just as fast, but I don't know what caused it. Had to've been a similar sideways force from somewhere above. Only difference is that the big one fell after it's big trick. I could've probably been killed by the larger one as there was enough room from stump to the deck for my lower half to have gotten smushed. I need to add that both trees didn't go anywhere after being completely cut up (enough wood left to control into face).
I liked to practice what many consider to be a big no-no, which is cutting from the downhill side of a stem. Out east timber, with a 32" wrap outfit, it's a lot less work than cutting everything 3" above the deck from the uphill side. IMO
I also get a kick out of sawing swing dutchmans on the compression side, too. I could sidehill a stand of poplars without tapping a wedge & no stumps more than a few inches high on the high side. Stuff like that is what got the loggers we cut for asking why my I wasn't the boss man hahaha. I didn't know the mill owner like,my boss at the time did....
Anyways, that questionable methodry likely saved me from peril as I wasn't around the upper half of the stump where it went.
Something as small as keeping a few feet of distance between your feet & the stump may be what saves your bacon one day.
I know that my preference for a longer guide bar has kept me from danger.
I'll speak on one last point of importance before ending.
Fatigue.....
It can make you VERY stupid.
I'll never forget the time I looked at the next victim, a small stem that had its top busted out about halfway up, but not completely detached or touching the deck.
I then walked mere feet up to cutting range, & promptly forgot all about it! In the span of like 1.5 freaking seconds my brain discarded critical info. It was one of those days where you couldn't cool off. Just prior to the incident I had taken a few minutes to just sit & let the sweat pour off of my chin, trying to catch my breath, epically tired & probably in the throws of early heat exhaustion. The sleep is one thing but the heat really can do the job on a guy.
So I proceeded to put a face in, & then boom, saw rips out of my hands and there's the top of a chestnut oak inches in front of my feet. It was the size of a stick of pulpwod ready for the truck. It would've mamed me for life or worse.
Thanks to the 32" bar I was far enough away..
Anyways, everything I've mentioned involving just myself, could've been avoided by me either looking up & or around, more.
I keep thinking of more fun & interesting events, but this is enough for now. I did some wild stuff in the woods of OR before I was old enough to work in the woods. I've also done one or two wild things to save my chainsaw.. Don't do that......
Thank you man upstairs! & thank you ADHD, probably. It seems that some of the safest people I've worked with/for are those who you sometimes wonder if they don't drink waay too much coffee. The weather loving foreman being one of them!
Be safe & question everything.
 
Something I haven't seen mentioned yet is not the woods and trees but the very people you may work with. They may not be as well versed or on their toes and anticipating.

On windrow jobs I've had the farmer show up halfway thru with dozers and excavators to do cleanup and cause all sorts of problems. I've almost been hit by trees they decided to push over without warning, nearly pinned by rolling logs they haphazardly stack or toss aside, watched jerry rigged pull cords fashioned from undersized chain snap and take out equipment windows, witnessed horrendously improper cutting techniques that have led to near disaster, and more.

It isn't so much complete neglect for safety as it is the 'time is money' thought process and doing everything at 100mph for 12+ hours a day mentality and risk adversity. AKA; "Just get it done." As a farmer myself I get it, but there is a time when that mentality has to be shelved, and tree work is one of them. People wonder why I prefer to work alone, and the above is the very reason.

Its not always the trees that get you. Sometimes its your coworkers. So you have to know your own personal speed, limits, and acceptable risk, and when to call it because its when you push the boundaries on those that you get in trouble.
Great point!👍
Just the other day a couple of my neighbor's were out tipping standing dead fir firewood. Both inexperienced both well within two tree lengths from one another. More like one tree length apart. Well, one got his snag on the ground while the other was STIHL working on getting his on the ground. The other started working up his downed snag. The other walked away from a crippled tree set up to fall because he didn't have a wedge. He explained to the other it was crippled and he was going to go get a wedge. The guy working up his snag said he wasn't worried it and not too concerned. Right about then the snag committed on its own. The top third of the tree length crossed and struck the top third of the downed tree length. Luckily neither had their backs turned and were clear of the tops. I got the same story from both men and they both admit they screwed up. I told both of them. "D** right you screwed up! In more ways then you even realize. You guys obviously have very little experience." They didn't like hearing me say that, but they knew they had no argument!

Edit: I wasn't at all trying to be arrogant twords my friends and neighbors. I was just trying to make a point that it could have gone very badly for either one or both of them and they should have known better! About all of their screw up could have easily been avoided. I mean a lot of it really is common sense!

Cut safe, stay sharp and be aware!👍
 
I just posted. I'm gonna have to read your novel here in a bit! 🤣
Don't mind the bad spelling, I've got a new phone that goes around changing and or misspelling words after you write them.
Caught it trying to spell proceed with 1 "e"...
If you turn that stuff off, it's just about as bad as just typing random letters.
 
Great point!👍
Just the other day a couple of my neighbor's were out tipping standing dead fir firewood. Both inexperienced both well within two tree lengths from one another. More like one tree length apart. Well, one got his snag on the ground while the other was STIHL working on getting his on the ground. The other started working up his downed snag. The other walked away from a crippled tree set up to fall because he didn't have a wedge. He explained to the other it was crippled and he was going to go get a wedge. The guy working up his snag said he wasn't worried it and not too concerned. Right about then the snag committed on his own. The top third of the tree length crossed and struck the top third of the downed tree length. Luckily neither had their backs turned and were clear of the tops. I got the same story from both men and the both admit the screwed up. I told both of them. "D** right you screwed up! In more ways then you even realize. You guys obviously have very little experience." They didn't like hearing me say that, but they knew they had no argument!

A friend shared a video with me about a year ago where a homeowner got squashed by the tree he was attempting to fall. I mean, he ran blindly when it went, & he couldn't have done a better job at finding the absolute sweet spot of velocity & mass to get swatted like a big. Not a big tree either. Doubt if he made it. Had no interest in looking into it..
 
Hey Kid, Great write up. It reminds me of some of the close calls I've had over the years. It would take hours for me to write as much as you did.
Thanks, for the great stories.

Hey thanks!
A long time ago, some psychologist said that I had a "written expression disability", & of course, the obligatory ADHD...
I've never considered myself to be a master of syntax, but I just don't know how such postulations can be made from studying a young child that would rather be outside riding his bike..
I think they just wanted to see those drug company stocks make their call contracts go ITM...
What's the use of being a doctor or a politician etc when you can't influence the outfits that you own securities in? Even if it's a scheduled narcotic, aka speed, and its for kids!
 
Reading these posts has conjured up some fun memories.
I still have a divet in the front of my right quad from a limb that lodged up during falling. It stayed lodged for maybe 2 months, then one windless morning, it decided to fall right on top of my leg as I was stepping up over a piece of wood. Could've walked through undisturbed timber instead but I have a habit of walking logs & tops.
Wood that's ripped off during the fall & then catapulted can travel further than one would think. I got clocked pretty good by a poplar branch that was torn off & thrown back towards the stump. The interesting part is that I had time not only to leave the stump & it's dangerous proximity, I had time to stop & turn around to look at my handywork & my next victim while getting out & almost lighting a smoke before getting hit. I think I was around 30 some feet diagonally behind the stump at the time. Those poplars weren't that tall either, so the branch that broke the other branch sure had some spring to it.
I've been roughed up by three different skidder operators. One almost drug a nice log over me when he went on ahead before I had actually gotten off said log. He was an old timer, he should've known better.. I was pretty upset until I realized how upset he was about his carelessness. I think he was on the tail end of a few weeks long milwaukee/schnapps bender...
The other incident consisted of the end of the day, a 20' tall evergreen snag of some sort, & a turn being reeled in from below the road. The snag got wacked & I was just close enough to get the top of it to the lid. Knocked me down but no damage. I was on the move, aware of my surroundings and all, trying to get out of the way. Only I was counting on my partner to be aware of his as well. Bad idea. I don't know why he didn't see the snag, but apparently he didn't.
The third consisted of the same as the 1st except with a green operator. He got hung up around a tree, so I cut the offending branches & then fell down in the brush. He assumed that I was clear & went on. Ended up having my thumbnail uprooted(the part under the skin) on one corner by a bit on my chain, but I could've totally been kneaded by oak tree tops.
I've experienced in numerous strips, people.. Ones who I had no idea were going to be there. Literally all of them were walking into the lay of the tree I was cutting. The scariest of which involving a law enforcement officer of some sort. Dude literally just marched right up over a small embankment & directly into lay. It was definitely not a mistake, either. He knew what was going on, he just figured his authority (ego) would work on a falling tree like it does people. There's just no other explanation. I was in the back of that tree, it was VERY VERY close.
Talk about upsetting. The idiot said he was checking a pond near by or some apple trees by it or something (below the embankment). That was terrifying!!!
I will always know where my behind the tree hiding spots are, if not for escaping my own mess, for dodging the boulders that the dozer cuts loose from time to time.. I almost got flattened by a big yoga ball sized unit. Had it been traveling a foot to the right, I would've. Instead it smacked the red oak I was in the back of. Did the bar in completely & broke the chain brake shield. I was oblivious until impact..
As for looking while running saws, up isn't the only place. A small 6-7"dbh, 30some' tall Hickory that I had bowed over with a larger tree almost removed my head after it kicked off of the stump instead of laying down like I thought it would. I'd cut plenty of similarly situated whips before, only that one was different. Somehow the Hickory was bound up at the top, or locked into the larger tree's bark with it's abrasive Hickory bark. Whatever the case was, I didn't see the problem & it shot the butt off of the stump & into my left temple as it resumed its linear state. In hindsight, the face went in funny. It didn't close up quite as much as it should've with the force it was under.. Apparently I went flying tens of feet up into the air. At least I landed in the skid road.. chainsaw about 20 feet from me.
Crashing another stem onto the mess would've been the best idea.
Sometimes there are brand new occurrences that one does not expect. I've had two trees leave the stump in a sidestepping fashion. As if someone hit the side of the tree with a 20 ton hammer. I mean in a split second, too. Both were cut up, one was small, the other a respectable white oak. The smaller tree had a dead locust against it. (Screw cutting dead locust with a production chain) didn't figure it was exerting enough pressure to woosh the tree right off of the stump, but it did somehow. That tree was so fast & violent tat it took my saw & sat on the bar. That was before good camera phones & before I carried one in the woods, but a picture would've been nice. The bigger tree was just as fast, but I don't know what caused it. Had to've been a similar sideways force from somewhere above. Only difference is that the big one fell after it's big trick. I could've probably been killed by the larger one as there was enough room from stump to the deck for my lower half to have gotten smushed. I need to add that both trees didn't go anywhere after being completely cut up (enough wood left to control into face).
I liked to practice what many consider to be a big no-no, which is cutting from the downhill side of a stem. Out east timber, with a 32" wrap outfit, it's a lot less work than cutting everything 3" above the deck from the uphill side. IMO
I also get a kick out of sawing swing dutchmans on the compression side, too. I could sidehill a stand of poplars without tapping a wedge & no stumps more than a few inches high on the high side. Stuff like that is what got the loggers we cut for asking why my I wasn't the boss man hahaha. I didn't know the mill owner like,my boss at the time did....
Anyways, that questionable methodry likely saved me from peril as I wasn't around the upper half of the stump where it went.
Something as small as keeping a few feet of distance between your feet & the stump may be what saves your bacon one day.
I know that my preference for a longer guide bar has kept me from danger.
I'll speak on one last point of importance before ending.
Fatigue.....
It can make you VERY stupid.
I'll never forget the time I looked at the next victim, a small stem that had its top busted out about halfway up, but not completely detached or touching the deck.
I then walked mere feet up to cutting range, & promptly forgot all about it! In the span of like 1.5 freaking seconds my brain discarded critical info. It was one of those days where you couldn't cool off. Just prior to the incident I had taken a few minutes to just sit & let the sweat pour off of my chin, trying to catch my breath, epically tired & probably in the throws of early heat exhaustion. The sleep is one thing but the heat really can do the job on a guy.
So I proceeded to put a face in, & then boom, saw rips out of my hands and there's the top of a chestnut oak inches in front of my feet. It was the size of a stick of pulpwod ready for the truck. It would've mamed me for life or worse.
Thanks to the 32" bar I was far enough away..
Anyways, everything I've mentioned involving just myself, could've been avoided by me either looking up & or around, more.
I keep thinking of more fun & interesting events, but this is enough for now. I did some wild stuff in the woods of OR before I was old enough to work in the woods. I've also done one or two wild things to save my chainsaw.. Don't do that......
Thank you man upstairs! & thank you ADHD, probably. It seems that some of the safest people I've worked with/for are those who you sometimes wonder if they don't drink waay too much coffee. The weather loving foreman being one of them!
Be safe & question everything.
Awsome write up. I read it three times! Thanks fir taking the time to write it. Great post. Good on ya!👍

Cut safe, stay sharp and be aware!
 
Reading these posts has conjured up some fun memories.
I still have a divet in the front of my right quad from a limb that lodged up during falling. It stayed lodged for maybe 2 months, then one windless morning, it decided to fall right on top of my leg as I was stepping up over a piece of wood. Could've walked through undisturbed timber instead but I have a habit of walking logs & tops.
Wood that's ripped off during the fall & then catapulted can travel further than one would think. I got clocked pretty good by a poplar branch that was torn off & thrown back towards the stump. The interesting part is that I had time not only to leave the stump & it's dangerous proximity, I had time to stop & turn around to look at my handywork & my next victim while getting out & almost lighting a smoke before getting hit. I think I was around 30 some feet diagonally behind the stump at the time. Those poplars weren't that tall either, so the branch that broke the other branch sure had some spring to it.
I've been roughed up by three different skidder operators. One almost drug a nice log over me when he went on ahead before I had actually gotten off said log. He was an old timer, he should've known better.. I was pretty upset until I realized how upset he was about his carelessness. I think he was on the tail end of a few weeks long milwaukee/schnapps bender...
The other incident consisted of the end of the day, a 20' tall evergreen snag of some sort, & a turn being reeled in from below the road. The snag got wacked & I was just close enough to get the top of it to the lid. Knocked me down but no damage. I was on the move, aware of my surroundings and all, trying to get out of the way. Only I was counting on my partner to be aware of his as well. Bad idea. I don't know why he didn't see the snag, but apparently he didn't.
The third consisted of the same as the 1st except with a green operator. He got hung up around a tree, so I cut the offending branches & then fell down in the brush. He assumed that I was clear & went on. Ended up having my thumbnail uprooted(the part under the skin) on one corner by a bit on my chain, but I could've totally been kneaded by oak tree tops.
I've experienced in numerous strips, people.. Ones who I had no idea were going to be there. Literally all of them were walking into the lay of the tree I was cutting. The scariest of which involving a law enforcement officer of some sort. Dude literally just marched right up over a small embankment & directly into lay. It was definitely not a mistake, either. He knew what was going on, he just figured his authority (ego) would work on a falling tree like it does people. There's just no other explanation. I was in the back of that tree, it was VERY VERY close.
Talk about upsetting. The idiot said he was checking a pond near by or some apple trees by it or something (below the embankment). That was terrifying!!!
I will always know where my behind the tree hiding spots are, if not for escaping my own mess, for dodging the boulders that the dozer cuts loose from time to time.. I almost got flattened by a big yoga ball sized unit. Had it been traveling a foot to the right, I would've. Instead it smacked the red oak I was in the back of. Did the bar in completely & broke the chain brake shield. I was oblivious until impact..
As for looking while running saws, up isn't the only place. A small 6-7"dbh, 30some' tall Hickory that I had bowed over with a larger tree almost removed my head after it kicked off of the stump instead of laying down like I thought it would. I'd cut plenty of similarly situated whips before, only that one was different. Somehow the Hickory was bound up at the top, or locked into the larger tree's bark with it's abrasive Hickory bark. Whatever the case was, I didn't see the problem & it shot the butt off of the stump & into my left temple as it resumed its linear state. In hindsight, the face went in funny. It didn't close up quite as much as it should've with the force it was under.. Apparently I went flying tens of feet up into the air. At least I landed in the skid road.. chainsaw about 20 feet from me.
Crashing another stem onto the mess would've been the best idea.
Sometimes there are brand new occurrences that one does not expect. I've had two trees leave the stump in a sidestepping fashion. As if someone hit the side of the tree with a 20 ton hammer. I mean in a split second, too. Both were cut up, one was small, the other a respectable white oak. The smaller tree had a dead locust against it. (Screw cutting dead locust with a production chain) didn't figure it was exerting enough pressure to woosh the tree right off of the stump, but it did somehow. That tree was so fast & violent tat it took my saw & sat on the bar. That was before good camera phones & before I carried one in the woods, but a picture would've been nice. The bigger tree was just as fast, but I don't know what caused it. Had to've been a similar sideways force from somewhere above. Only difference is that the big one fell after it's big trick. I could've probably been killed by the larger one as there was enough room from stump to the deck for my lower half to have gotten smushed. I need to add that both trees didn't go anywhere after being completely cut up (enough wood left to control into face).
I liked to practice what many consider to be a big no-no, which is cutting from the downhill side of a stem. Out east timber, with a 32" wrap outfit, it's a lot less work than cutting everything 3" above the deck from the uphill side. IMO
I also get a kick out of sawing swing dutchmans on the compression side, too. I could sidehill a stand of poplars without tapping a wedge & no stumps more than a few inches high on the high side. Stuff like that is what got the loggers we cut for asking why my I wasn't the boss man hahaha. I didn't know the mill owner like,my boss at the time did....
Anyways, that questionable methodry likely saved me from peril as I wasn't around the upper half of the stump where it went.
Something as small as keeping a few feet of distance between your feet & the stump may be what saves your bacon one day.
I know that my preference for a longer guide bar has kept me from danger.
I'll speak on one last point of importance before ending.
Fatigue.....
It can make you VERY stupid.
I'll never forget the time I looked at the next victim, a small stem that had its top busted out about halfway up, but not completely detached or touching the deck.
I then walked mere feet up to cutting range, & promptly forgot all about it! In the span of like 1.5 freaking seconds my brain discarded critical info. It was one of those days where you couldn't cool off. Just prior to the incident I had taken a few minutes to just sit & let the sweat pour off of my chin, trying to catch my breath, epically tired & probably in the throws of early heat exhaustion. The sleep is one thing but the heat really can do the job on a guy.
So I proceeded to put a face in, & then boom, saw rips out of my hands and there's the top of a chestnut oak inches in front of my feet. It was the size of a stick of pulpwod ready for the truck. It would've mamed me for life or worse.
Thanks to the 32" bar I was far enough away..
Anyways, everything I've mentioned involving just myself, could've been avoided by me either looking up & or around, more.
I keep thinking of more fun & interesting events, but this is enough for now. I did some wild stuff in the woods of OR before I was old enough to work in the woods. I've also done one or two wild things to save my chainsaw.. Don't do that......
Thank you man upstairs! & thank you ADHD, probably. It seems that some of the safest people I've worked with/for are those who you sometimes wonder if they don't drink waay too much coffee. The weather loving foreman being one of them!
Be safe & question everything.
Are you sure there are no cat genes in your family? I think you have had your eight lives and you only have one left, so be extra careful!
 
I've only bled in the woods.
No broken bones.
Things with wheels now, now there's where the fun can get serious.
Especially motorcycles.
Ever hear of a Maisonneuve fracture? Now that's a real fun time. When I initially tried to dust off & ignore the pain after crashing a brakeless xr650 into a tree, my leg shortened an inch or so as the ankle "tenan" slid right between the busted fib & tib! Unsatisfied with the first attempt, I tried to walk again & the old leg just smushed like a sausage. Cold sweat type sensations if you know what I mean. Very weird feeling of stepping down through your own meat..
It was the type of deal where they couldn't put me in a cast because of the swelling. Just hanging out for weeks upon weeks with a broken leg in the equivalent of a thick sock
. . The best part was the pills. They gave me a weeks worth of 5mg hydrocodone. & refused a refill on the guise of me living by myself & being a possible fall risk. Like I said, I went weeks & weeks with a fully broken leg, no pain killers. Evil doctors...
On the bright side, I haven't rolled that ankle since. It would mess me up way too often.
I also managed to heal my skiing related left knee injury during that down time. I used to be able to run super tight bindings... For almost a year that left knee would hyper extend or something, just at random. stepping up onto something increased the possibility. Pow electricity!
I think the Maiaonneuve had me out of commission for almost 5 months. Had to get a knee scooter. That thing kicked my ass. Stupid unstable ****ing thing. As I was motoring into the dining room with my microwaved manicotti one day, I managed to fall in such a way that my good foot was impaled by a pencil eraser sized steering stop
It wouldn't come out either. I struggled for a good moment before rage took care of things & it finally let go of me.
The two pins holding my bones together got stuck due to my eduberant bone growth. Here's the surgeon Progressively using more & more gusto until finally he slipped & reached unanesthetized meat with his screwdriver.
I almost jumped off of the table. Since then up until last November I had been granny's caretaker so I've not had the opportunity to live in the fast lane much at all...
Well, there was that time when I broke my right shoulder completely off of the skeleton.
Apparently it's quite a feat to clean break a scapula clean off.Had to break a few ribs off, front & back for enough energy to reach & break the scapula. That's what the doctor said at least. The repair on that deal did utilized some nice hardware. Stronger than before or my money back! Just kidding. My doc did indeed claim that my new bionic clavicle would be stronger, though.. the scapula luckily went right back where it belongs without any titanium.
 
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