Tower rigging USED to be a very safe job, because everyone was SO well trained. Only since cell towers started sprouting up everywhere, did companies send up anyone with a pulse to climb towers.
I never worked as a sub on tower work, but did a lot of it in my younger days because I actually enjoyed it. Like they said in the video, "it could be a real rush"... And I'm still here after passing out at 80FT in 1989 because I was always hooked-on. After that episode, I only climbed three other times, then gave it up for good. It wasn't fun anymore. I still have my gear though.
OSHA allows the climber to ride the bolster chair but not to free climb. Today's rules are that you are always tied off in at least one place at all times and can only climb if there are two people climbing - one climber attaches the ropes to the tower, the other releases the second set. In the midwest where there are many tall towers, the tower actually has an elevator to take you most of the way to the top of the tower.
Tall ships don't have elevators inside their masts. They're sagging and rolling all times. Crew, still, climb any rigging, furl the topsails, fix and repair everything. How comes? Oliver
Well, yeah. But not anymore. This is 2023 and the captain will make you walk planks and stuff for violating safety rules. Note the black strapping wrapped around the yardarm in front of each man in the pic; https://taskandpurpose.com/news/uss-constitution-navy-training/
If you're not Connected, you're not protected, that is the number one rule in Tower safety That means using the right full body harness and attaching to proper Anchorage points. In 2023 there's no free climbing, if any contractors employee gets caught, they will not be climbing any Towers in the future$$$$$. The controlling employer will cancel their contract. That's an very old video/ Bluegrass cellular, Blackberry, Nextel and others are not in business any longer. 73 from, The K0UO " Rhombic Antenna Farm" miles of wire in the Air & On the AIR daily
I am NEVER going to climb towers without training or safety equipment! And I have a fear of heights so that docent help one bit if I want an Yagi tower or anything like that
I was sailing alone on the Pacific going to Hawaii when I got knocked down in a sudden squall. The stays'l halyard snap shackle shook apart and the sail came down (thankfully) and the halyard end went up to its pulley close to the top of the the 55 foot mast. No mast steps. I used prusik knots wrapped around the main and jib halyards as sliding steps and taped a carabiner open as a hook I tethered to a makeshift harness and hooked the open carabiner over the cars holding the main sail to the mast as a backup in case the prusiks failed. I climbed the mast while the boat was underway under self-steering as it was steadier with wind pressure on the sails. Still, I flailed around like a bell clapper and was completely wiped out and bruised by the time I got down - but I had my stays'l back and I took it easy the next day. I used to be an avid rock climber and did some well chosen free solos so I can see the thrill people might get working on towers. I started out terrified of heights but got to where I could fall asleep hundreds of feet up a wall, held in by only a couple of pieces of protection jammed in cracks, so the thrill does eventually wear off. And one of our sayings was, "Gravity never rests." You cannot make a mistake.
