[TowerTalk] Tower base dimensions - why?

[Cqtestk4xs at aol.com]

One more thing to consider.....the push on the tower from the wind trying  to 
overturn the tower, trying to put it on its side.  The higher the tower  the 
more leverage on the base from the wind.  The bigger and deeper the  tower the 
more resistance to the overturning momentum from the wind.  This,  of course, 
is probably not very important if the tower is guyed, since the Rohn  
catalogue only specifies a four foot hole for Rohn 55 at 200 feet.
 
I'm not an engineer, so the above is in layman's terms. I'll let  you know if 
a big base is important next week if Ivan hits the West coast of  FL.
 
Bill K4XS