Crazy Job

I worked for "skyhook inc" out of birch river, manitoba, canada doing maintenance on radio towers back in the late 60's--no harness's, just climb up stove bolts on a corner of tower--real needle towers we some times used a boswain's chair-all tools were tied to yourself---it's a young mans game--that's right you young woodpeckers---I too, was young once--GOOGLE SKYHOOK INC if curious--if not---I don't give a crap. I just googled--I guess they are in PA now as of 1995--hmmmm---interesting--I guess

freetown fred wrote:I worked for "skyhook inc" out of birch river, manitoba, canada doing maintenance on radio towers back in the late 60's--no harness's, just climb up stove bolts on a corner of tower--real needle towers we some times used a boswain's chair-all tools were tied to yourself---it's a young mans game--that's right you young woodpeckers---I too, was young once--GOOGLE SKYHOOK INC if curious--if not---I don't give a crap. I just googled--I guess they are in PA now as of 1995--hmmmm---interesting--I guess

Yeah but you have some Native American in you and that certainly helps when working on steel at heights.

That's what the problem was, I knew there was something wrong.

Funny fred, I fella i work with makes me climb and do the higher elevated work. He says us young shits bounce alot nicer than the old folk.

Truer words were never spoken my friend. Hell, I used to be a maniac high up. Ya know, it's pretty proven tried & true--God takes care of drunks & morons-- I was covered in both catagories for way to long AND, lived to tell the tale.

Ahhhhhh tower work.

Hard as hell to do when you are using both arms locked around the tower holding on for dear life as you look down...............
And that was only on our 100 ft. tall windmill tower. Idiot from R.I. who came to help work on it climbed to the top with me right behind him. After he got to the top, he started shaking it to see how far it would sway. I damn near splattered the guys on the ground with brown matter !!!!!!! And he says, boy you got yourself a good one here, it only sways a few feet.


Only took me about 10 months to trust my climbing belt. Of course then I got 1 that also had the ass strap so I could take some of the strain off my aching calves and ankles.

Yep you're right Fred, definitely a young man's game. But it was fun at the time. We had a standing/sitting plate at the 80' mark. That was where we had the conversion plate from the old to the new section. I especially liked the end of the day getting a few brews tossed in the bucket bag before climbing down.



Damn Fred, what haven't you done ??????


Rick

When I got back from the Nam, I hopped on my old Panhead & did this whole United States, Canada, Costa Rica, etc. for about 5 yrs. I worked till I had enough money to head down the road. I met some outstanding people in my travels--kinda like here on the FORUM but, havin your face in the wind I was real fortunate that my Dad, who died at 65, was quite the farmer, craftsman, Native American & took me with him no matter what he was doing & in spite of myself---I learned

Hang on for dear life? Not these crazy Russian teens on a bridge, they are doing high fives standing at the end of a tower crane...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYKXUVnN7Fc

Ahhhh, to be young & bullet proof again If you haven't experienced fear, you don't know fear. Nice view Plus braggin rights. Cool post NS

freetown fred wrote:Ahhhh, to be young & bullet proof again If you haven't experienced fear, you don't know fear. Nice view Plus braggin rights. Cool post NS

If you don't do anything scarey. How do you know you are alive?

Only the young are unfamilier with fear Dave, but needless to say, they learn as we all do as we get older--still doin some of the stuff you did as a kid?

freetown fred wrote:Only the young are unfamilier with fear Dave, but needless to say, they learn as we all do as we get older--still doin some of the stuff you did as a kid?

Nowhere near as much as I would like to. I always like to weight the risks to the rewards and between having a 5yr old daughter and new business. The risks no longer out weighed the rewards. Isn't that what normally happens?

See that, you're gettin older & wiser It happens in spite of ourselfs. Well, to most of us anyway.

Closest I've got to that was climbing the local water tower with a group of buddies when I was 14. Going by memory, I thought it was a couple hundred feet high ... but I looked it up recently - just shy of 600! No way in hell I'd climb that thing now. Always been afraid of heights, but it seems to get worse as I get older. I was an industrial roofer for 3 years too. The things we do for a buck!