[TowerTalk] Tower Climbing Safety

[Bill Coleman]

On 2/12/02 10:48 AM, K7LXC@aol.com at K7LXC@aol.com wrote:

>    You mean fall arrest lanyard (as opposed to a positioning lanyard)? Any 
>suitable (and legal) lanyard is fine - your chances of actually having to 
>take advantage of it is really small. But having the shock absorbing feature 
>may give you more peace of mind since you'll be taking less forces and 
>stresses. 

Steve didn't describe it, but a fall arrest lanyard has a portion of its 
length that is "gathered" in many folds. This is where the shock 
absorbing portion is. The instructions on my lanyard mention that this 
portion should be connected to the harness, not the tower.

If you look at modern seat belts, you'll note they have a double fold, 
usually near the fastening mechanism. This fold allows the seat belt to 
give way under high loads without letting go. 

The shock absorbing lanyard works the same way. If you fall hard enough 
to invoke it, some of the gathers come undone, disappating the force of 
the fall. 

>    If you're asking the question - you must be thinking about the pros and 
>cons. I'd go with whatever you feel comfortable with. It's sorta like a fall 
>arrest harness - once you've used one you won't go back to a waist-only 
>safety belt.

I wouldn't think of climbing without one.



Bill Coleman, AA4LR, PP-ASEL        Mail: aa4lr@arrl.net
Quote: "Not within a thousand years will man ever fly!"
            -- Wilbur Wright, 1901


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