First off...welcome from Ohio here. I read about saddles for the first time last year and was appalled at the prices of the necessary equipment and kinda brushed it off. I rock climb and and have been rec tree climbing for several years and when exploring the options of more comfortable time spent up in the tree, researched bosuns chairs and then stumbled across saddles again. Being the MacGyver type and still appalled at the prices, I researched DIY stuff and sewed up a fancy sit drag of sorts to use in conjunction with one of my climbing harnesses. I'm a SRT climber and made a tether and lineman with stuff I had on hand and spent many hours prior to bow season enjoying the comfort. I made a DIY platform however just wasn't satisfied with the weight and functionality and sprung for a Predator XL since I had really no money into this new venture yet. Due to being late to the game as season was already in progress I hadn't received any shipping confirmation from Tetherd and started my season with my trusty Summit Viper. My second hunt, I was covered in deer at legal and had a deer at 15 yards. I carefully grabbed my xbow from the holder and got busted so I froze. The deer didn't figure me out and when it went back to browsing, I slowly raised the bow, put the crosshairs on it and let it rip. In looking back on that moment, I think I must have blacked out for a few seconds. In the haze I was now in, I quickly realized my thumb was throbbing badly and when I saw a bloodied glove, I knew I was in trouble. Panic was instantaneous but somehow I knew I had keep calm and get out of that tree ASAP before I passed out or bled out. Fortunately, I managed to get down using my hand pretty much as normal as the shock was keeping the real pain that was to come at bay. An ER visit, hand surgeon office visit and surgery all came within 24 hours and has done as much as can be done for the physical damage and today marks 2 weeks post surgery. I'm still struggling with a PTSD of sorts that made it really difficult cleaning and washing all the mess from my bow, stand and clothing but I've erased all of that negativity away and try to keep looking forward now. I received my Predator XL and actually just finished doing a DIY camo job on it. I'm still holding out hope I get to saddle hunt a few times before the season runs out. But I wanted to thank the community here for all the valuable tips, tricks and ideas I gained from the hours of reading I have done now and am sure it will help me tremendously when I finally get to go.