[TowerTalk] Sad day - W9ZUC tower accident

[Markku Oksanen]

All
I remember a tower work video where the comments mention that OSHA allows for free climbing if so required by the job. Naturally the video is about free climbing at the tip of a 2000 foot tower.
As much as this is hobby for the most of us - tower work that is - there is nothing hobby-like about the need for quality of safety gear used since IF you rely on your harness+else, it better do the job when needed.  It seems hard to spend third of a new radio's cost on Nylon pieces every few many year only.  The little climbing I do is with "all ropes attached" and it is slow but one part of the story is that most of my time anyway is spent up there doing the work, the climb itself is not such a big % of the total time.  
One more aspect of this is routine, when I climb, which is seldom, I clearly don't have all the routine needed for 100% safe climb. Just like with driving a car, routine makes it safe if you don't at the same time relax your requirement for safety such as driving with one hand only.

MarkkuWW1C/OH2RA/OG2A

> From: w3yy at cox.net
> To: towertalk at contesting.com
> Date: Mon, 22 Sep 2014 20:42:24 -0400
> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Sad day - W9ZUC tower accident
> 
> Doug -
> 
> Anybody can free climb.  Nothing special or macho about that.  But it's not
> the safe approach.  It's like saying "I've been texting while driving and
> have never gotten into an accident"!
> 
> Ironically , this whole thread was started by the death of W9ZUC, who
> apparently was free climbing and might be alive today if he had some
> connection to his tower.  What better evidence do we need of the threats
> involved?
> 
> Regarding the BS about safety equipment getting in your way - learn how to
> use it.
> 
> If you want to free-climb, have fun, but I wish you wouldn't promote this
> dangerous approach for climbing to others.  
> 
> Bob 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: TowerTalk [mailto:towertalk-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of Doug
> Renwick
> Sent: Friday, September 19, 2014 11:16 PM
> To: Tower Talk
> Subject: [TowerTalk] Sad day - W9ZUC tower accident
> 
> I have been climbing, free climbing, for 40 years.  I never kept track; I
> probably have easily made at least 1000 climbs or more as a ham operator in
> that period.
> 
> If you can't free climb, you shouldn't climb at all.  Read what I said.
> However you climb, if you can't free climb, you shouldn't be climbing.  I am
> not suggesting that you should free climb (that is a personal choice) ... I
> am saying that if you are incapable of free climbing, stay on the ground.
> 
> Doug
> 
> I wasn't born in Saskatchewan, but I got here as soon as I could.
> 
> 
> ---
> This email is free from viruses and malware because avast! Antivirus
> protection is active.
> http://www.avast.com
> 
> _______________________________________________
> 
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> TowerTalk mailing list
> TowerTalk at contesting.com
> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk
> 
> _______________________________________________
> 
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> TowerTalk mailing list
> TowerTalk at contesting.com
> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk