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Re: [TowerTalk] Climbing

To: w7psk@yahoo.com, towertalk@contesting.com
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Climbing
From: Mike via TowerTalk <towertalk@contesting.com>
Reply-to: W2GR@aol.com
Date: Tue, 30 Sep 2014 17:58:25 -0400
List-post: <towertalk@contesting.com">mailto:towertalk@contesting.com>
 
Phew!...I just free climbed my tower,,,
 
I took a ladder to the roof of my house and grabbed the ladder to my Sky  
Needle ,,,free climbed 10 feet to the crows nest and installed a new flag on 
the  mast/flag raising setup I have on it between my Pro-67 and 6m 
beam...flag looks  cool up at 85 feet with a solar flag light shining on it at 
night 
on my small  city lot...but,,I flip a switch and up the tower goes..
 
But...that 10 foot fall could kill me just as quick as a 100 foot fall if I 
 hit right or bounced...off the roof to the ground...or if I was already 
dead on  the way down...
 
That being said...I have never climbed a 100 foot tower to do work and do  
not plan to..(I have to 40' W/out harness)...but I do know when the powers 
that  be decided where I work that you need harnessed and tied off at 
anything over 6  feet.. ladders ..machinery ..bridge cranes etc. that being 
tied 
off became more  dangerous then not,,,but you can't tell the clowns in the 
safety dept. that  because they read somewhere that it was safe...and they are 
the ones that have  never been a heels height AGL...tripping over 
lanyards...re hooking to places  you can't reach and even climbing up to hook 
the main 
hook while fumbling with  the second...the head safety dolt even bought us 
those fall breaking lanyards  for when we work on an arc furnace...that when 
they were full out if  falling were longer than the distance to the 
floor...definitely a safety  engineer that's totally educated beyond his 
intelligence!..
 
I know Iron workers,,construction workers,,,roofers etc,,,that all curse  
the new safety laws in NY when it comes to being tied off.....I believe it 
comes  down to personal preference ..and in tower climbing when not employed 
by a  company that forces you to be harnessed..and ins. premiums are paid 
up...do what  you feel safest doing...not what others tell you to do...I ride 
Harleys...and in  NY I wear a helmet because the laws say I have to (they 
know whats best for  me)..but when I hit the PA line...off it comes....I have 
known of MC deaths here  that were caused by the use of a helmet...you never 
hear of those!...
 
I guess what I am saying...you can all argue here about what is the best  
thing to do...but I am gonna do whats best for me..what ever it is...(if  
possible)...as "they" say...s**t happens...when its your time to check 
out...its  time to go...
 
On a different note...might anyone be interested in my spare Telrex  
rotator?...I bought it as a spare a few years ago for the Sky Needle..I rebuilt 
 
mine with all new bearings..seals etc. and it should last me till I fall off 
my  tower...and bounce...so I no longer need the spare...I would rather have 
the $$  to put into some upgrades to the shack...pics and price avail. upon 
 request.
 
73,
 
Mike W2GR
------------------

 
In a message dated 9/30/2014 9:51:34 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  
towertalk@contesting.com writes:

I used  to climb when I was younger.  I have decided after reading all 
this,that  if I ever decided to go full tower and could afford it, it
will be a  tiltover :)   Cheers.

Scotty W7PSK



On Monday,  September 29, 2014 11:48 PM, Roger (K8RI) on TT  
<K8RI-on-TowerTalk@tm.net> wrote:



On 9/29/2014 11:10 PM,  Jim Thomson wrote:

Jim makes some excellence points:

The point  to remember is that at best, "Climbing is dangerous". That 
many, or most  of us have climbed for years without injury does not make 
it  safe.

Safety gear can not protect a climber from injury from every  possible 
mistake. The primary goal of fall arrest gear is to save your  life 
and/or minimize injury, not to completely eliminate injury!

If  a climber falls, even wearing the best of available equipment, they 
are  likely to get injured. "Fall arrest still brings you to an abrupt 
stop  that is going to hurt even if you don't hit the tower with body 
parts., or  take a bite out of a cross brace removing a few teeth in the 
process.  Unlike many with the views of fall arrest, the fall to the end 
usually  still offers very little time to react. It does slow the fall, 
but by how  much varies and there may be very little time to react.

Falling  backwards can cause serious injury. Depending on the anchor 
point and  muscle development it might break a climber's back, although 
I'd  personally think a broken neck would be more likely.

Never, ever think  all that gear is going to keep you from getting hurt. 
It may, but if it  does, that's pure luck. Plan for the worst and hope 
for the  best.

New climbers! NEVER FORGET "Tower climbing is one of the most  dangerous 
jobs around. Before you start, you need to be in good physical  shape. 
Like illness, a body in good physical shape and good health,  resists 
injury better than an out of shape, unhealthy body and recovers  much 
faster. Weight training, even toning is a good idea. Moreso for the  week 
end climber than the guy who spends hours a day "up there". I was  riding 
bike @ 20 MPH for 10 miles when over 60 and 2 years AFTER having a  heart 
attack.. Over weight means you should reconsider climbing or at  least 
use caution.

Never climb alone. Always have a "Go-Fer" on the  ground. Preferably one 
who can climb. It's tempting to make a short climb,  but many unexpected 
things can happen. Strokes and heart attacks do not  always give 
warnings. I've had both and I exercised regularly and tried to  watch 
what I eat. Turns out I have A-Fib caused by a "slightly" enlarged  
Atrial chamber So slight it was not recognized for several years. Two  
strokes and a heart attack with no warning symptoms.

After the  first stroke my arteries were clean. 3 or 4 years later the 
main artery  that feeds the heart muscle was over 98% blocked. (They call 
that the  widow maker) Why the rapid change? Who knows? It turns out I'm 
allergic to  Statins (anti cholesterol drugs) A reaction to them is 
painful and that's  putting it mildly.

The point is, no matter how good you feel and how  good a shape you are 
in, you never know what will happen from moment to  moment.

For those getting ready to climb while still young and  immortal, resist 
the urge and seek instruction.

Like flying,  climbing is very unforgiving of mistakes.

73

Roger  (K8RI)

> Date: Mon, 29 Sep 2014 10:45:55 -0400
> From:  "Wilson" <infomet@embarqmail.com>
> To: "towertalk"  <towertalk@contesting.com>
> Subject: [TowerTalk]  Climbing
>
> Isn?t this topic about done?
>
> But a  new question:  I?ve never climbed much and never used a harness at 
all,  but I have one now and will use it.
> But isn?t the dorsal attachment of  the fall arrest lanyard asking for 
trouble?
> It seems to me that the  usual lanyards are too long and that with the 
dorsal attachment they are very  likely to snap tight and slam one?s face into 
the tower when the big stop  occurs at the end of the fall?
> It looks like a ventral attachment  would be much less likely to produce 
secondary pain/injury, especially if one  wore a helmet?
>
> Really, our towers and high work are pretty  benign, as far as stress and 
danger go.  The Russian kid did fine, but  they weren?t even under sail!
> For perspective, ask how many of us  could survive this:  
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUhKBZb7A7c\
>  And for some instructive detail and depth, this is worth some time:   
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7Q_SfMvSMw
> OSHA would have put the  sailing ships out of business, if their 
economics had not!
>
> If  I ever have a tall tower, it will have the safety cable system, which 
I think  is far superior to all that hooking and unhooking!
> But I?m likely too  old and lazy...
>
> 73,
> Wilson
>  W4BOH
>
> ##  yes, you will get  your face and body  slammed into the tower.   What 
freaks me out are those corner  climbing steel pegs you see on bigger 
towers.
> You fall..and you get  slammed into the tower....and a steel peg could 
easily end up in your face or  eye..or both.
>
> ## No excuse for not installing the ..375 inch 7  strand ehs  galvanized 
steel cable from top to bottom of any tower.   Piece of cake to install.
> Just like a guy wire hanging down the side  of a tower.  Use several 
cable clamps or 2-3  nicropress  crimps  or  a pre-form dead end to terminate
> the .275 inch  cable.  usual deal is to use  the usual huge shackle or 1 
inch  bolt  at the top.... or 2 for redundancy.  I have yet to see any of  
those safety cable assy’s
> made from SS.    Then a simple  turnbuckle and spring at the base to keep 
a bit of tension on the .375 inch  cable.
>
> ## That simple safety cable system can easily be  installed  on any 
tower, guyed or freestanding.... and even a  rotating  tower.    The problem is 
when
> tic rings are  used.  Even then the safety cable can be installed  
between tic  rings....starting and stopping at each ring.   2 lanyards used   
to 
get over the ring,
> then use the safety device to lock back into the  next  .375 inch safety 
cable.
>
> ## Our local pro installer  has used both the safety cable system and 
also the  Trylon safety rail  system on  various commercial towers. He tells me 
he like
> the  tylon rail system better.  The rail system is also used on stuff 
like  concrete water towers etc, etc.
>
> ##  The cost of a simple  safety cable system is peanuts.   You wont 
shear a 1 inch bolt any  time soon, nor a .375 inch cable.    1 inch bolts are 
rated  at
> 20 k pounds...and ,375 inch cable is rated at 15,400  lbs.
>
> ##   You don’t want to be on top of a trylon  tower or any other tower 
that uses angle steel for diagonal bracing..... in  the rain.   They are like 
greased lightning,
> and extremely  dangerous.
>
> ##  You don’t want to be up a tower when u get  stung in the face or 
hands.... or cut urself, or get ur fingers pinched,  smacked by a piece of 
steel, or boom, etc.
> Ever install a 120 lb tic  ring..in pieces... no fun.
>
> ## Commercial towers around here  all use safety cables.... so should 
you.  WCB makes em install em.... no  free climbing allowed.  Huge  fines, 
folks terminated,
>  etc.   Now if hams want to cheap out..go for it.  One piece of  .375 
inch  ehs cable  running up the side of a tower cost  dick.   The device used 
to slide up and down the
> cable is a  few bucks..who cares.
>
> ##  The easiest way to get hams to  install the safety cable is simple.  
I wont climb up a fellow hams  tower  without one.   Get the safety cable 
installed..or get  somebody else to
> climb the tower.
>
> end of  story............... Jim   VE7RF
>
>
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>
>
>
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--  

73

Roger (K8RI)


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