Working Climber DVD Series One

gf beranek

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This is a compilation of clips that come out of the Series One Working Climber video. It's 4 hours of just what you see and hear. Minus the music. Again, You Tube video quality really sucks.

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Yeah Jerry, let me know when this will all be available. I think I just got out of part of a lecture next Monday. The students will see this one for sure.
 
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Here's a more comprehensive description of the titles and topics presented, and discussed in Series One.


Working Climber DVD Series One, Access and Movement Through The Tree.

Disk one: "The Throwline" One hour long. Types of line and weights used. Methods of knotting the throwline and weight. Styles of throwing; underhand, cradle, boomerang, hammer throw. Methods of storage; hand coiling, collapsible cube, bucket, line mug. Considerations in crotch selection from the ground. Methods of attaching and pulling in the climbline. Setting and retrieving a friction saver, several different ways. Setting a remote anchor TIP(tie-in point). Electrical hazards associated with setting lines in trees. Hazards associated with pulling out a stuck weight. And a few alternative devices used for setting lines are demonstrated. The Big Shot, bow and arrow, crossbow, retriever trainer and 45-70 line gun.

Disk two: Title 1, "Entering The Tree" 37 minutes long. Starts with old school double line setups. Which include the tautline hitch and Blake's hitch utilizing the tail of the climbline for both attachment and the friction hitch. Advances to the split tail system and the marked advantages. The French Prusik, aka machard, with minding pulley and citing the certain advantages. It's the cats meow. Adapting the Pantin and rope grabs into a double line system. Demonstrations of to set the Lock Jack, Uniscender, Spider Jack and Gri Gri onto the climbline. For use as a friction hitch replacement, advantages and disadvantages each device. Finally finishing up with the foot lock method of entering the tree and exiting. In all climbing systems demonstrated I show how to tie the basic knots used in each. Though the strength of the presentation is focused on systems and techniques, and not all the possible knots that could be used.

Disk two: Title 2, "Spur and Flip Line Climbing" 35 minutes. Tools and techniques used in the traditional old school method of hooking it up the tree. Broke down in many related topics. The spurs themselves, nomenclature of the parts. Importance of the right boots for spur climbing. Sharpening the spurs. Bark conditions conducive to the technique, and not. Flip line, lanyard, construction and methods of adjusting length. Climbing small stems up to very big. Double lanyard techniques. Many practical examples of spur and flip line technique are demonstrated.

Disk two: Title 3, "SRT" (single rope technique) 34 minutes. Discussions of the tools and methods used by most recreational climbers today. I don't go into all the gadgetry that's available and used. It's just too much and constantly changing. But I do present and demo a half a dozen or so of the more common srt systems used for single line ascent and descending. Frog system, Pump system, Sit system, Rope walker system and the RAD system. The discussions and demos are enough for anyone to get a good grasp of the idea behind SRT. After which one could mull over which direction to take and refine or tweak a system for themselves.

Disk three: "Using the Climbline" 87 minutes in length. This title is broken down into many topics and discussion. Some lengthy and some not. TIP selection in the tree (much different than when setting from the ground) Working tie-in point considerations. Advancing the climbline overhead. Crotch selection, tight crotches, sucker tops, spindly tops, ascending limbs, drooping limbs. Different ways to set the friction saver in the tree, and the many advantages of the adjustable friction saver. Several different ways to set and retrieve a climbline REDIRECT. Theory of line angles and weight supporting factors for getting out and working on limbs. Several methods of setting ropes afar and traversing, for horizontal movement. And last "Exiting the tree"

Working Climber DVD Series One, Access and Movement Through The Tree, is not meant for the accomplished tree climber who has already established their methods or styles of climbing. For them the presentations in Series One may seem elementary and redundant.

Series One is meant for the newbie and novice who desires to learn and pick up the tricks that the accomplished climber uses daily without always having to think about it. It's only four hours in length, yet contains many years of knowledge passed on to me from others in the business. And too, many self taught tricks learned through serendipitous discovery and school of hard knocks. Truly a trove of knowledge to aid the young upcoming climbers in the practical ways and means of access and movement through the tree. Which is a vital element towards the advancement of a competent and safe Working Climber.
 
Let me know when this is ready Gerry. I'd like to have them for sale at Wesspur. Some of that video beats the pants off of the Arbormaster Training videos.
 
And I mentioned it before, but I'd also like to buy 2-3 copies of this set. I deal with young climbers all the time that aren't 'connected' enough to find stuff like this online. I want to take it directly to the young climbers who are risking death or severe injury for $150 per day with no benefits and almost no experience. Exposing them to this kind of information can take years off the learning curve and put them on a better path early in their climbing career.
 
I hope your dedication pays off Jerry. If that clip is an indication it will become an invaluable resource.
The comprehensive nature of the titles and there contents will make it applicable to all climbers, irrespective of experiance and ability. I hope you are prepared to ship to the UK :)
 
Jerry, you should consider applying for a grant from the national endowment for the arts. I'm not sure what the criteria is for "art", but I think the effort put in and uniqueness of your projects, is deserving of recognition beyond just the tree worker/tree lover community.

It's a good lump of change, I believe pretty much no strings attached, while the bureaucrats argue about more or less funding for that endowment program, but what you are doing is a great contribution, without a doubt. (A friend of mine, a photographer, received one of those grants, and there was the down payment for his house!)

It might take some "re-packaging" to meet their requirements, but perhaps look into it, if I might take the liberty of suggesting.

Here's their website:
http://www.nea.gov/

Jay
 
Jerry, you should narrate childrens books.

You have a calm, settling tone to your voice.

Great stuff.
 
ur "fundamentals" are still how most "tree discussions" are resolved around here. many thanks sir
 
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