Cant believe im asking this...

[RobRainford]

i only use ladders for hedges, even then only if necessary, i much prefer to climb around on top if i can! ladders are no good against trees because the tree tends to be slippy and the moment a ladder twists or slips slightly thats me done!

[Steve_C]

Being nervous will keep you safe and make you check your kit/knots/anchor points ect.. When I started I read through the HSE case studies regarding accidents associated with tree work. Lots of scary stories but I did not find one where the cause was climbing kit failure when used as it was deasigned!

[Dilz]

lol you want to see me on a ladder mate I crap meself

truth!

[Rob D]

I had this problem a lot when I first started. I'd been used to climbing tall ladders and hedge trimming (ironically I couldn't do that now!).

 

I was always used to being able to hang onto something. Going to using a harness it felt really strange to just trust it and the friction cord.... Nervous Nerris is what I was nicknamed by my instructor!

 

Keep going and I find strong mental positive repetition is the way to go i.e. the rope is strong enough, the friction hitch is fine, that branch has been there for 20 years, I have enough toilet paper in the truck etc... (last one only joking!)

 

 

 

 

[Mark Bolam]

I had a morbid fear of heights when I was about 17.

 

I'm a bit of a shortarse, and the bouncers in the Bigg market kept stopping me going into bars with my mates.

[Gray]

The best thing is look at a felled 100ft pop and see how small it actualy is, when you think you've reached your limit height wise take a breath look up and think just another six ft, you'l notice the tree gets easier to climb the further you go, keep doing that . also those huge branches above your head that look so impossible and far away, when you're at the top they become so easy in your head ,and then you begin to make a route through the tree[thats the all conquering key]. try takedowns on semi mature trees where theres nothing underneath , or if you go up a pole, get to the top and shake it,a lot , use two fliplines and two ropes at first. to sumarise be safe but try and scare yourself.

[Danavan]

Start on small stuff I guess, fruit trees maybe. That mite help you trust your equipment a bit more.

 

It's all about pushing your boundary's. The next time you mite find it better.

 

Alternatively, throw yourself in at the deep end & go find yourself a big tree You dont like the look of & climb it.

 

Best of luck on your adventures in the world of arb:thumbup1:

 

We all have our doubts I think, it's just a question of that push imo.

[Tom D]

heights don't bother me much, I used to get disco leg when I started but that was more when felling tops out and dropping big limbs. heights alone have never been a problem. Not that I haven't been beaten, last year I had to remove a hanger from a lime, it was tall and positioned on a banking so the branch I had to walk was about 90' from the ground, I just couldn't walk all the way out on it, it was wet and slippy and angled downwards, I couldn't bum shuffle out as I needed to be standing to reach the hanger. I got it down in the end by one handing the topper and removing the branch it was hung on.

 

i think acclimatisation is important, i free climbed some big trees as a kid, 60 - 70 footers right to the top, higher than I would go now probably! but then I only weighed 6 stone then. find a nice clean tall tree and climb it (with another climber there as well). if you are scared spend some time up there get used to the feeling, then when you are back on the job it won't seem as bad. The highest I have climbed is 180' i wasn't scared but it was a shock when I saw someone on the ground and realised just how high that is, 15 storeys at least. really glad i did it, I doubt i'll ever work on a tree that big.

[Poacher]

You need to embrase the fear. That fear is adrenaline and you are persieving it in a negative form, turn that to a positive and enjoy the rush. The only time you know you are truely alive is when you are closest to death. Step into the breach eyes wide open and grab life by the horns.

Toodle pip.

[Gray]

pop's in high wind are the best, pop's rule. or a good twang when topping out esoecialy when the hobs grabs it."sexual"