Power Kite Forum

Sweaty Palms & B@llz of Steel!

lad - 3-12-2010 at 07:35 AM

Think YOU'VE seen some air?

An instructional style POV video about Transmission Tower climbing (large bandwidth - but it's worth it!).

Palm sweat GUARANTEED!

PHREERIDER - 3-12-2010 at 07:55 AM

python harness...check!

bigkid - 3-12-2010 at 07:56 AM

I would have to think, doing down would be a little harder. Hard to type with wet fingers :o

labrat - 3-12-2010 at 09:40 AM

Was that video shaky? It seemed to sway from side to side. No, wait, it’s the whole room. I don’t feel so good. Ahh, the cure for dry chapped hands…

Here is the problem with the English language. I would call that video “sick”, but it’s in the “I’m gonna be” sense.

Are the people who do such things NUTS? Or, do I just perceive them to be that way.

Gotta share that video, why suffer alone.

BeamerBob - 3-12-2010 at 09:57 AM

Yes, sweaty palms. Check. I never really thought about what I'd do with ovaries, but I appear to have a pair now. And some other parts I'm accustomed to are MIA. At first, I though, ok, I could deal with this if I took my time, but when he went outside the structure, there is no way. And I might as well go up with a parachute because there is no way I could climb back down with those transitions. I've rappelled off of 165 foot sheer cliffs and that was nothing to compare with the tower.

acampbell - 3-12-2010 at 10:10 AM

I've flown gliders, done aerobatics and been upside-down in open #@%$#!pit airplanes and I could not even finish that video. Yeah the room was moving

bigkid - 3-12-2010 at 10:22 AM

Was a show a while back about guys who repair towers like this, and at the end of the show it reported one of the guys in the show fell off the tower, he was 22 years old.
My thought was to wear a parachute of some kind. Base jumping from that height would be just as ballzy.

bobalooie57 - 3-12-2010 at 10:23 AM

Same here! I thought I was gonna be sick!:megan: You must love your job to face that each day!

flyguy0101 - 3-12-2010 at 10:46 AM

Not for me..... But where is Silver eagle- this is what he does when he is not kiting

silvereaglekiter - 3-12-2010 at 02:28 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by flyguy0101
Not for me..... But where is Silver eagle- this is what he does when he is not kiting


:thumbup:Yep that's where Ive been LOL.

my personal best is 500 feet. I don't get much over 400 now days. I get HIGH for a living :spin:but not that high

mdntdncr - 3-12-2010 at 03:19 PM

I actually like heights, but WT*^%&^(*&^ about not being tied on?!

I couldn't finish either. I was getting sick, too, but it wasn't from the height.

rocfighter - 3-12-2010 at 04:59 PM

That was way to much for me. It didn't bother me watching the video but I know I would freeze-up as I got out of the elevator!!! Never mind standing on the top!!

frankiter - 3-12-2010 at 06:17 PM

Man, that gave me the willies. But strangely, I couldn't take my eyes off it.

lad - 3-12-2010 at 06:48 PM

I can't see why they couldn't have a semi-permanent, hook up cable going from the very top down to the full 100 ft by the elevator (guess it'd need a little bungee give...and you better have a lid on!).

But reaching the 1,700' top and simply STANDING on a...what?...2.5' sq. platform?...and THEN getting around to hooking up....yikes! :puzzled:

PHREERIDER - 3-12-2010 at 07:16 PM

for a moment right at the top when the lead was hooking in for the repair. he was not hooked as he set his screw lock biner.

the open climb def a nut cutting moment. i did a hi ropes course in CA and it had open climb and you had to stand on the top end of a power pole...and jump to a trapeze about 10feet away. climb fast, focus and jump .

shehatesmyhobbies - 4-12-2010 at 07:02 AM

Watched it with my son, he is 7 He thought it was cool but said he would never do that without a parachute! We watched it all the way through and I was surprised how many times he actually let go unhooked!

43patrick - 5-12-2010 at 10:15 AM

Super scary. I have climbed 1500 - 2000 ft rocks in places like Yosemite and Colorado but that totally freaked me out. Plus the rope leash looked old and there were tons of sharp pieces of metal that could cut his line while hanging. I really did have sweaty palms be the end. My wife had to quit watching. scary.

WELDNGOD - 5-12-2010 at 03:03 PM

Now that's some focus ability. I wanna see what this guy does for FUN!:wee:

markite - 5-12-2010 at 03:38 PM

I sent the link to a buddy, who in turn sent it to a buddy who works building cell towers and he had an interesting reply to this video …

"I've watched this sometime ago it's not that hard to do he got a ride up to 1600ft he only climbs 167 feet. It's also about ten years old the guy climbing actually fell to his death about two years ago. He was helping a friend on a small tv tower puttting up a satellite dish at about 25 feet off the ground,and fell to his death. Makes you think thirty years working on towers up hundreds of feet only to fall off a small tower two weeks after he retired. OSHA changed their rules for climbing 5 years ago on tower climbing safety."

sad to hear that.

WELDNGOD - 5-12-2010 at 03:52 PM

That sux!

acampbell - 5-12-2010 at 04:00 PM

OK so I finally got through the whole video. This is morbid, but somehow learning that the guy had passed away later (rest his soul) made it easier to watch - he wasn't going to die on this vid.

Now what I want to know: How the &#ck did they put that thing up? Now that would make a great engineering documentary.

lad - 5-12-2010 at 04:06 PM

Sad, and ironic...almost makes me wonder if he figured he was an experienced pro and didn't need any safety concerns for such a small job.

BeamerBob - 5-12-2010 at 04:58 PM

I"m putting up Christmas decorations and get that tingly feeling just 20 feet up. That's sad that the guy died in such a "normal" situation after being safe while it was his career.

cheezycheese - 5-12-2010 at 11:52 PM

i'm with you Angus!! how the hell did they erect that thing... :duh:

magictat - 6-12-2010 at 12:54 AM

That's so cool!
Kinda blows you gotta drag this 30lb. bag on a leash though... Could you imagine on a gusting day?
I'd like to see if I could make it to the top without the elevator!!!

silvereaglekiter - 6-12-2010 at 06:29 AM

Gin-poles & winches is how we do it worlds toughest fixes has a couple of good tower episodes