Don't be stupid!

[KentuckyTJ]

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!

[gringol]

No joke at all.  That is a good looking harness, TJ.  Just make sure you use it!  

[Bernie B.]

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

[Huntingnut]

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.

[Rob W.]

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

[buckeye_hunter]

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......

[ron w]

I guess I don't understand why anyone would not wear a harness while hunting from a tree.....     It's not like it's "New" technology. At my age one of the reasons I hunt from the ground!!

[wapiti792]

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.

[lt-m-grow]

Originally posted by ron w:
I guess I don't understand why anyone would not wear a harness while hunting from a tree.....        It's not like it's "New" technology.

x2.  Every time I read one of these I think of that.

[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?

[hayslope]

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.

[iohkus]

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.

[Big Ed]

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

[LONGSTYKES]

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.

[Greg Clark]

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.

[huntnmuleys]

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...

[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!

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.

[Keith Langford]

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

[landman]

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.