June132013
Flying to Cairns tomorrow morning for the Far North Queensland Tree Climbing Competition. Got my gear sorted. I have been training lots, but the past few weeks not so much because of bad weather. I’ve only been climbing for about 7 or 8 months, but i’m probably as ready as i am likely to be, if you take my meaning. A little nervous excitement already, people say you are super nervous but I had my head so together for my last sporting event (Mauy Thai fight) that I’ve never been too worried about this. A mate from my old gym has an MMA fight on the same day, so what have I got to worry about? I worked with my mentor and good mate Ross today, in parting he told me “I expect an 8th place or better from you.” haha. There will be 15-30 competitors, my mate David has been climbing 10 years and competing for 5 years, so I assume I’ll be the most in-experienced competitor there but I don’t anticipate I’ll be the most inept. The events are; 1: Work climb 2: Aerial Rescue 3: Secured Footlock 4: Belayed Speed Climb 5: Throwline It’s all pretty hectic stuff but this is what I do now.

Flying to Cairns tomorrow morning for the Far North Queensland Tree Climbing Competition.

Got my gear sorted.

I have been training lots, but the past few weeks not so much because of bad weather.

I’ve only been climbing for about 7 or 8 months, but i’m probably as ready as i am likely to be, if you take my meaning.

A little nervous excitement already, people say you are super nervous but I had my head so together for my last sporting event (Mauy Thai fight) that I’ve never been too worried about this. A mate from my old gym has an MMA fight on the same day, so what have I got to worry about?

I worked with my mentor and good mate Ross today, in parting he told me “I expect an 8th place or better from you.” haha.

There will be 15-30 competitors, my mate David has been climbing 10 years and competing for 5 years, so I assume I’ll be the most in-experienced competitor there but I don’t anticipate I’ll be the most inept.

The events are;

1: Work climb

2: Aerial Rescue

3: Secured Footlock

4: Belayed Speed Climb

5: Throwline

It’s all pretty hectic stuff but this is what I do now.
June12013

old mate’s from the gym winning fights right now hahah yeahhhhhhhhh!

5PM
There is a time. In that time I am engaged. I’m one with my system and i can’t live without it. Literally. I can only find this moment in certain trees. I need the right high point, the right rope angle possibilities and and canopy spread. But as I progress there are more of them. The window opens. This is freedom. This is peace. There are a few arborists around and even fewer active climbers. Many of them are much better than me. But even so, some of the time I am on site there is not many people who can do what I do. Even among climbers it’s a niche. I work alongside and learn from guys who are in the  top few climbers in the country and even the world. I have a long way to go but I will get there. In my harness I am me. The client can’t do it, the ground support staff can’t do it and it’s getting close to the point where my senior arborists won’t be able to do it. I’m fanatical about my gear tech and climbing systems and safety/rescue options. In the above picture I’m climbing a 67m (220ft) Eucalyptus grandis.  Please note that I am not wearing a helmet only because the car broke down and a friend and I hitch hiked 5 lifts and walked many hours to arrive on site about 11pm, and the helmet didn’t make the cut of necessary food/water/gear to be carried. The tallest tree in Queensland has been measured at 73m. I have been climbing for about 7 months. I am sure that one day I will stand in front of a group of climbers and teach climbing systems and techniques.

There is a time. In that time I am engaged. I’m one with my system and i can’t live without it.

Literally.

I can only find this moment in certain trees. I need the right high point, the right rope angle possibilities and and canopy spread. But as I progress there are more of them. The window opens.

This is freedom. This is peace.

There are a few arborists around and even fewer active climbers. Many of them are much better than me. But even so, some of the time I am on site there is not many people who can do what I do. Even among climbers it’s a niche. I work alongside and learn from guys who are in the  top few climbers in the country and even the world.

I have a long way to go but I will get there.

In my harness I am me.

The client can’t do it, the ground support staff can’t do it and it’s getting close to the point where my senior arborists won’t be able to do it.

I’m fanatical about my gear tech and climbing systems and safety/rescue options.

In the above picture I’m climbing a 67m (220ft) Eucalyptus grandis. 

Please note that I am not wearing a helmet only because the car broke down and a friend and I hitch hiked 5 lifts and walked many hours to arrive on site about 11pm, and the helmet didn’t make the cut of necessary food/water/gear to be carried.

The tallest tree in Queensland has been measured at 73m.

I have been climbing for about 7 months.

I am sure that one day I will stand in front of a group of climbers and teach climbing systems and techniques.
May202013
“If you are not afraid of dying, there is nothing you cannot achieve.”

Lao Tsu

I think this when I am practicing climbing by myself at night.
8PM

I’m so unimpressed by almost everyone.

7PM

hexacolors:

yeah because me hating men for abusing my sisters and screaming at me from their cars is the same as them saying they hate women and girls and abusing them and screaming at them from their cars

oh yep, hate half the people in world hey? Let me know how that works out for you.

(via bitemebeautiful)

7PM

‘Climbing and Dreaming’

Not my vid.
May192013

This is what it looks like when one of the best climbers in the world practices for the work climb event in a tree climbing championship…
7PM

Rescue training

Today I ended up accidentally at the end of the subcommittee meeting for the Queensland Arboriculture Association Aborcamp.

Was pretty interesting. If this kind of shit keeps happening to me, by the end of the year I will know every arborist in the state lmao.

I did aerial rescue training with Ross today. He’s such a fucking wizard.

It ended up taking me 9 minutes to do the fucking rescue, which is shitful because there is a 5 minute time limit i think. I can shave off a few minutes by doing the first part of the speech and the assessment faster. Oh yeah, I need to write a speech for it. Bit hectic.

So much fun though. Competition is in a month.

May182013

Again. Faster.

practicing a work climb reminds me of many other sports.

I’m at the tops of the tree, try to sprint and swing to all the stations and exit the tree quickly. try to do it smooth.

Smooth is fast.

at the end I check my stopwatch and say

“Good. Again. Faster”

May152013

COMPETING

Just wrote a training plan for the climbing comp which is one month from today!

May142013

Training

Feels good to be back on my grind.

Training for climbing comps only, no GPP or weight lifting.

There are 5 events in a tree climbing comp and the points scoring system is complex, hundreds of points all up.

The normal time to start competing is after about 2 years of working as a climber. It’s been about 6 months for me. I want to compete next month.

I bought a headtorch to put on my helmet today, so I can climb in the dark. I just had a great 3 hours session.

I’m meeting some other climbers this weekend to try to sort out a plan for the most difficult event; aerial rescue.

I’m keen to try training techniques that other people might not be using, like practicing the speed climb in a weighted vest and adding weight to  my footlock (rope climb) practice. I’m sure the top climber have thought of this stuff but most guys probably aren’t even training everyday so I doubt they would go to the effort. After a tough day of climbing all day at work the last thing people want is more climbing haha.

I don’t mind though, I’ll do 2-4 hours a day 5-6 days a week until I’m awesome at it.

climbing arboriculture training 

April292013

my life rules

gonna start lifting again, so i’ll have something i can post on here that tumblr people can relate to

dunno if i’ll post here though, eh.

April212013

ive never felt an absence from a friend moving away until now.

how the fuck will i ever replace a frighteningly smart blonde fake titted burlesque dancer who bartends in strip clubs?

I have plenty of smart friends, blonde friends, friends with bolt ons, friends who do burlesque, friends who work in strip clubs (on both sides of the bar/pole) and even a couple of friends who can break a dancefloor with me.

but aint nobody who can multi-task that ridiculous octfector and maintain a platonic relationship with me.

fuck you for ruining everyone forever

i love you bro

April42013

Aerial Rescue

Today at work Ross, Nick and I were deadwooding a 30m (100ft) iron bark (Eucalyptus cebra).

Nick and I were on the ground and Ross was about 40% of the way up the tree, and we were talking about maybe doing some aerial rescue practice, maybe after lunch.

All of a sudden Nick yells “GO! Timer has started!” and I look up and Ross is hanging in his harness like a rag doll moaning theatrically.

I had to kit up and get into the tree, sort out systems (complicated, think ropes, pulleys, friction cord, carabiners etc everywhere all tangled up haha) all while maintaining an almost constant commentary: “Ok let’s get emergency services on the phone, someone arranged to flag them down from the street, please advise ambulance service that Ross has been climbing the tree for approximately 3 hours, 28 year old male with a chainsaw cut to his arm, he’s bleeding heavily and there is a high chance that he will have orthostatic shock. I’m performing an aerial rescue and I’ll need the ambulance officers to remain clear of the site until I advice them that it’s safe to some in” etc.

Talking and footlocking (climbing two strands of 13mm rope) at the same time is pretty difficult.

When I actually got up into the tree and started sorting out systems it all started to go to shit as Ross and Nick were both interjecting ideas about what is safe, what is competition legal, what’s a better way to do this or that etc…

But afterwards Nick said I had got into the tree (above Ross, where I can swing across to a position above him to install a redirect) in less than two and a half minutes, which I’m told is quite good.

Going to be practicing it as much as I can over the next 6 months anyway, it’s one of the events in the competition.

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