I got married at aged 20, we rented a house that had an open fire, and estate I rent from had a lot of dead elms, as a boy I had always gone with my dad to cut down dead or unwanted trees for the fire wood, so I bought a secondhand husky 266 with 20 inch bar and started felling at the weekend and cutting up for fire wood.
Then got £500 gas bill so fitted wood burner with back boiler and upped production. At the time i was working in a foundry, but slipped a disc in my neck while grinding the snots of castings, while of ill I must of been walking bad with my head up and slipped a disc in my back. After 2 months on the sick I got sacked, I'd not worked there long enough to take them to tribunal.
So started working as a window cleaner, I like being outside, but found it boring and repetitive. I saw job advert for grounds man, but it said you needed your NPTC, I rang and said I had no ticket, but I had my own saw and was very keen. I started on £30 a day with my own saw self-employed. I worked with a very good climber and thought i'd love to do that. I sold my push bike for £200 and bought some second hand climbing gear. I climbed at work whenever I could and went out at the weekend and dismantled dead elms. After getting a bit more experience I went and got assessed for tickets 20,21 and 22.
The two climbers where I was working left to setup on their own, so I left with them, didn't work out.
Started subbing to a couple of firms,one was a long established firm that felled for timber,the boss was a great guy who taught me more than any one before or since. Needed more climbing as both firms would keep me going full time, but not always climbing, so did a days trial for fountain forestry ,as it was called then, they said they'd give me as many days as i wanted.
All went well for a while working for the 3 firms,then the taxman changed the rules on labour only rubies and fountain decided they were not having any subies at all. I went to the taxman and got a letter to say I was OK, but they said there were no exceptions and they wanted me to go employed, so I borrowed some money, bought a chipper and subbed to them as a small two man crew and advertised for domestic work.
I've never looked back, when the rain is running down the back of my neck I just think back to my days in the foundry and remember how lucky I am.