Guys treestand safety is no joke. I've never worn a harness in my life but after getting a delirious call from a buddy last fall that had just fallen 25' and driving frantically to the farm and seeing him all busted up then watching him fly away in the STAT flight helicopter, I just ordered one of these.
http://www.gorillatreestands.com/g20-safety-harness-new-for-2012
My buddy is a 36 year old guy in great physical shape. Just after he stepped into his stand a ratchet strap gave way and dumped him out. If it weren't for the multiple limbs he hit on the way down I know he would no longer be with us. Now is the time to order them for the upcoming seasons. Don't wait!
No joke at all. That is a good looking harness, TJ. Just make sure you use it! :thumbsup:
Wearing a safety harness is the only way to go. I used just a safety belt for forty years, then decided that's maybe not the best situation. I don't have the time to get broken up. Great post!
Bernie Bjorklund
NC Iowa/SW Wisconsin
Don't get in a tree without one! There is no excuse not to have a harness on. They are comfortable and unobtrusive for the most part.
I have an older model Gorilla I love. I'm thinkin about doing more ground hunting this year though. Had fun on the ground last year.
Rob
I fell about 6-7 feet last year when setting up my climbing sticks. It was flat on my back in soft leaves and dirt. I got lucky, don't follow my example......
I guess I don't understand why anyone would not wear a harness while hunting from a tree..... :dunno: It's not like it's "New" technology. At my age one of the reasons I hunt from the ground!!
Well my fall last year nearly killed me. I hope your bud is better and has that "will" again. After now 4 surgeries (one more to go) I am at least hunting. All of my hang-ons get new rachets and I have a ton more ladder stands. I also have a rope with a pruss hitch that keeps me in the game instead of falling 27 ft/sec. Latch up boys and girls. I had a stand break before I could hook up and I nearly joined the campfire upstairs.
QuoteOriginally posted by ron w:
I guess I don't understand why anyone would not wear a harness while hunting from a tree..... :dunno: It's not like it's "New" technology.
x2. Every time I read one of these I think of that.
I like how that one doesn't have a waist belt - looks less restrictive than the vests. Do you feel it on the draw?
I bought one of the great Gorilla harnesses last year. It seems a bit much after the puny harnesses I've used in the past, but you sure get that feeling that IF you would fall, you wouldn't have to worry about the harness.
I have fallen from a tree before, many, many moons ago. I thank God, every time I think about it, that I wasn't seriously hurt. At my age I restrict my hunts to the ground. I don't think I would survive the same fall as back then ..........use those harnesses (not belts).
I hope your friend's condition is not serious.
Don't take you life for granted! Get a good harness anduse it. I was dumped a couple of years ago in Maine and I believe a harness is why I am still here!
Thanks for opening everyone's awareness Tom!!!
Big Ed
Already have one, always use when more than my height off the ground. I don't bounce well at my age. TJ is absolutely right, always be safe.
Man!!! Hope he is alright.
Don't ever get in a treestand without a safety harness. Not worth the risk.
Last season I invested in a Rescue One since I hunt alone most of the time and many times no one knows exactly where I am hunting (might know farm or public land but not exact tree). It is a very nice safety vest with the added self rescue feature.
hope your friend is alright...
couple years back i was hanging a hang on stand and the top strap had a come apart. i caught the tree so didnt fall but i didnt have a harness on as i was just putting the stand up, and getting on it to test it out. please be safe guys! the harness is worth its weight in gold many times over...
Great reminder TJ. I think you know the story of my fall 6 years ago. The most frightening thing was wondering if I would be around to watch my kids grow up, just after I hit the ground!
Please be careful out there!
I always used a harness from my tree stand. I get pretty stiff and clumsy and the dangerous part is when I a turning to climb down. I liked to keep the harness clipped until I was securly on the ladder. The last three years I put my ladder stand on public land and never used the harness once. It seems that the some of the boys think that to claim a spot there needs to be a tree stand. So I set up the ladder stand and use it to tie my portable blind to. The blinds I set up without the tree stand get torn down, the one by the tree stand gets left alone. One deadly 'safety' device to never ever use is the double strap system that came with some earlier climbing tree stands. If something can go wrong and the stand dumps you off, I would put my bets that the ground would be better than getting strangled while hanging on that strap. The harness is the only way to go when off the the ground.
Folk's heres a little bit more advise. I fell 30' from my treestand because my safety rope broke. It was 1984 and I was 24 years old, and a finely tuned athletic machine. It was my first season using any type of safety device, it was a cinch rope that tightened around your waist and attached to the tree. I was standing up one evening in my stand and was leaning back away from the tree"" using the belt to support me" next thing I know I'm waking up on the ground, covered in blood. the rope had broke,it shouldn't have but I also should not have been using it to support myself, I was lucky,partly to my physical shape, I only tore my groin muscles,compressed 2 vertabrae in my back and my tooth went through my gum.Point is dont just wear it, USE IT properly, oh and the biggest reason I am still here was the Good LORD. Be safe and God bless
I've only had one tree stand incident and it ended with me falling about 14' straight down. I landed on my feet and it felt like my hips were shoved up my sides. I was lucky and limped off with a whole new respect for what can happen without warning. I kept hunting tree stands after that but now, at 62, I've changed my ways.
Last year I bought a Marc Anthony ghillie and started using it, hunting from the ground. That suit has put me on top of more deer than any tree stand I've ever used. I could have killed several deer last season but most of them weren't shooters. None the less, those animals were practically in my lap, i.e. 10 feet away.
The beauty of that suit is that instead of being stuck in a tree you have the required ability to move around and blend in anywhere. Deer will look straight at you and they're clueless. I can hardly wait for the 2012 season to start. I'll never crawl into a tree again if I have that Ghillie with me.
Tom.....I set my harness up so I have to have it with me to hunt. I zip tie my license to the back and I sew on a pair of pruning sheers to the right side of the belt. Both of these items I need when I hunt, plus the harness holds back my clothing from my bow string.
I found in the past that if your in a rush or running late you won't put it on that night and it only takes one night without to fall. Set it up so you can't leave home without it!
I have that model. Hunted with it last year.
The best part was attaching your safety strap in such a way that you could "lean" out from the tree to get different shot angles.
All good advice here. Please remember that many falls happen while climbing up and down and while stepping onto and off of your stand platform. It's a little slower and more hassle, but tie off all the way up and down. It might save your life.
Another thing to remember is a harness is not good forever. If you take a fall in it mount it on the trophy wall and get a new one. Many have an expiration date.
Don't trust your equipment until you inspect it.
My wife was climbing down with her climbing stand when the platform came loose from the foot strap and fell about 5 feet down the tree she was about 15 feet up and she fell off the seat. Luckily she landed on the platform and was able to keep her balance and not fall to the ground. She came away with only a sprained ankle. She has a saftey harness now (State Reg) but hunts mostly from the ground
QuoteOriginally posted by LimBender:
I like how that one doesn't have a waist belt - looks less restrictive than the vests. Do you feel it on the draw?
Will, I actually ordered it yesterday. I'll have it in a few days. I'll gear up and take a few practice shots with it on and let you know in a pm.
Great stuff guys. Yeah I heard a statistic the other day that 84% of falls happen climbing in and out of the stand. I am going to try to keep mine tethered while doing so.
QuoteOriginally posted by A.S.:
Great reminder TJ. I think you know the story of my fall 6 years ago. The most frightening thing was wondering if I would be around to watch my kids grow up, just after I hit the ground!
Please be careful out there!
Yeah Allen, I am mainly doing it for my wife and daughter. If it weren't for them I'm sure I wouldn't even think about it.
Except for the first couple of times years ago I ALWAYS wore a safety belt. Maybe not perfect but it was better than nothing. Then one fall my buddy told me to hunt out of his stand as he had filled his tag already. Long story short, I stepped off the stand after dark and onto a stub of a dead branch that he had used as the last/first step. Of course it broke and luckily I had a death grip on the stand..............as I swung from the bottom of that stand by one hand. I now much prefer to fall 5'10" when I trip on a root and hunt primarily from the ground.
good point, Bear Heart. Harnesses are typically only good for about 5 years from the date of MANUFACTURE, so pay attention to those expiration dates. Also, inspect it before your use it for frayed edges etc, and treat it like your bow, don't throw it in the dirt or walk on it! Hopefully you never have to test your harness out, but if you do you need it to work.
Now if you add the Petzel GriGri 2 self belaying devise to the tether, you can lower yourself to the ground rather than just hang in the tree...tippit
http://tradgang.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=110494
Please explain how they go bad. I'm not grasping that one.
I've never fallen out of a tree stand & God willing I never will.
I always wear my Seat-o-Pants safety harness when I intend to hunt in a tree, I even once forgot my harness at home & got to my spot hung the stand but when I realized I didn't have it I left the stand there & hunted on the ground.
Anyone who has harnesses that are a few years old should test their abilities to hold you at a low distance from the ground to be sure that the harness is in good shape.
That harness looks like a sweet one & if the $$$ is in the budget I may get a new harness this year.
Started with the harness last year. I added some pouches from Wally World and very seldom need a pack now.
Too many people depend on me to come home...
QuoteOriginally posted by Shortlongbow:
It's a little slower and more hassle, but tie off all the way up and down. It might save your life.
That's how I fell. I was in the middle of strapping on a set of climbing sticks when I lost my grip and went straight back. While I was only 6 feet up at the time, that was enough to knock the wind outta me when I hit the ground flat on my back. Be smart....
Yes I am sorry about your friend, but like work "near Miss" reports, keep this unfortunate thing in front of us. I have had some falls and was extremly lucky, one was had harness on but wasnt using it to get up tree, duh. Lets learn and remember we do this for passion and enjoyment, no animal is worth your life or vast money in surgery and pain. By the way, Illinois just past a law this year, that if you hunt out of a treestand you must have a harness on.
I agree completely. I don't fly worth a damn and while I know something's going to get me someday, I'm really working on it not being my own stupidity.
BTW, any of you guys have a view on the "best" tree stand harness? I have an HSS, I have a friend who swears by Tree Spider and know some other guys who like Gorilla. Any advice?
Yep...had a close call 2 yrs ago while climbing down a tree. Good thing I had my HSS Harness on. I was very lucky. I never climbed trees with out one.
OR USE A GUIDOS WEB. Safest way to hunt from a tree period.
My buddies and I used to never use a safety belt and actually laughed at those who did. This was 20 years ago and looking at those old climbers we used back then sends shivers up my spine. We were stupid. I bought a Hunters Safety System harness this summer to replace my old belt. It was expensive but what is your life worth. My wife hunged my neck for making the purchase.
Ross
Yeah Ross, Did any of you guys ever have these old Baker stands? Hahaha oh man I have come sliding down a few trees in these things back in the day and I still didn't wear a harness. The inside of my forearms still have bark skid marks on them. Yes my name is TJ and I'm STUPID.
(http://i49.tinypic.com/69gz92.jpg)
Those Baker's were death traps but the best we had back in the day. I loved the way the hand climber would come loose and smack you in the head. I had the plywood base bust out of one. Lucky for me I was about 3ft off the ground.
Ross
Dang it. I was wanting to see if you wanted to buy mine. It even has the circa '86 camo paint upgrade. :laughing:
Hey, hang on to it. It's a collectors item. Somebody may want it for a vintage deer hunt.
We ran ropes course outings designed and outfitted by "Project Adventure" Full harnesses and climbing ropes are offered for sale to the general public. They offer a very nice seat harness used by customers on high ropes course for around $55 dollars. Their equipment is designed and approved for climbing. I tend to trust it more than something thrust on the market by tree stand salesmen.
did not read the entire thread, but get you a climbing rig, rope to the ground with a prussik (sp?) knot to tie hook into before you ever leave the ground -- make it even more safe to have an additional caribiner to snap into your tree stand before you unhook from the climbing rig.
Easy to learn how to set up and is very safe. Have had two friends injured from treestand falls, one broke his neck though it did not paralyze him luckily. He wore a halo for close to a yr though.
J
The question regarding the expiration date on fall arrest equipment has more to do with the stitching then the belts themselves. Insect repellent, tick repellent and UV sunlight will break down nylon stitching. Inspect your gear the night before. In the case of a fall your body weight is magnifyed many times depending on how far you travel before coming to the end of your rope. Have a plan on how you will climb back to your platform or climb down the tree. You cannot hang suspended for any amount of time, suspension trauma will kill you as fast as the fall itself. With a lot of us being past the 40 and 50 yard mark in life, backyard practice with some friends will reveal that we don't bend and move as well as we did 25 years ago. As always,safety first.
I wear a harness anytime my feet are not on the ground.