Safety harness in tree stands, saved my son this morning

[testdepth]

I wear one going up and down the tree so I am always attached. I wear it because my wife and three kids depend on me. Cheap insurance to prevent a 20 or 30 foot fall to hard ground and ending up paralyzed or dead. If daddy had only put on that $50.00 harness he would still be here.

 

[loadnplenty]

According to DNR Facebook page one of the tree stand accidents they worked was not due to hunter negligence or lack of care. The tree stand failed. They did not say if it was wood or metal though.

 

[Camohead]

Everyone that uses a personal fall arrest system (harness), and everyone that climbs to any elevation should, needs to familiarize yourself with the term "suspension trauma".

You also need to determine and plan how you are going to get down once you have fallen and been 'saved' by your harness. You cannot dangle for more than a few minutes before you blackout and once you have blacked out you only have a few minutes before you die.

I am in no way trying to deter anyone from using a fall arrest system. I think you do not value your life or your loved ones if you do not, but you need to look at the next step.

 

[batoncolle]

I use a rock climbing harness and the HSS safety rope. Based on my personal testing of both a full body safety harness with the loop in the back and a rock climbing harness with a loop in the front, there is no way I would ever use a full body safety harness with a loop in the back. But I also hunt alone most of the time, and my wife may not be at home so I need to have the ability to recover myself and get down which I can do easily with a rock climbing harness. And personally my main concern is stand failure, not falling while climbing or falling asleep.