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Saddle confidence and bridge help

M

muzzyman88

Member
Joined
Jan 5, 2021
Messages
44
Hi all. I am about to embark on saddle hunting because its really going to make my life easier in the mountains of PA. I went the one stick route, with a OOAL Big Bob and Cruzr saddle. I've been practicing quite a bit lately and I am amazed how safe I feel in this thing. Repelling is also a ton of fun and so easy to bail out of the tree at the end of the day.

That being said. I still, at times, look at the bridge and get freaked out. I don't know how to explain it, but it just weirds me out looking at the knots, etc connecting the bridge to the saddle. The Cruzr uses an amsteel bridge, which I know is strong enough to lift a dump truck off the ground, but my head sees those knots and the prussic adjustment and I can't help but fear it will fail... lol.

So my questions are. Has this ever failed on anyone? Help put my mind at ease!
 
Don't think about it. While practicing, you're paying attention to your movements and everything else which builds confidence but also causes you to over-analyze things. Once your attention goes elsewhere, such as looking for deer, you'll find that your body posture relaxes and you don't even think about the "what-if's".

Last year during one particularly windy day, the tree I was in was bucking a good 12" from center and I had zero issues since I could shift myself to stay centered as opposed to going for a ride like a traditional tree stand.
 
Knots have been a part of climbing since the beginning remember that. I have the same saddle and enjoy it very much. I trust a knot more so than a mechanical device such as an ascender. However, I do use a Ropeman 1 for my tether and have never had any problems with it. Something I did in the beginning to help put my mind at ease was to take the tag end of my tether and tie it to my saddle waist belt. That way if my bridge, bridge loops or prussic knot on my tether failed I was going to still be connected to the tree. Hope this helps and trust me you’ll get used to it after you give it sometime. Good luck!
 
@muzzyman88 I would suggest you get some ground level practice in to build your confidence in your equipment, and knot tying skills. Trusting a 6mm Prussic cord to keep you safe in any eventuality is a bit of a leap if you're not familiar with what that cord is capable of. Set up a foot or two off the ground and bounce, twist, jump, etc. until you're comfortable enough in your gear. Just don't get so comfortable you get complacent - "you should be mistrustful of the whole enchilada" after all.
 
muzzyman88 said:
Hi all. I am about to embark on saddle hunting because its really going to make my life easier in the mountains of PA. I went the one stick route, with a OOAL Big Bob and Cruzr saddle. I've been practicing quite a bit lately and I am amazed how safe I feel in this thing. Repelling is also a ton of fun and so easy to bail out of the tree at the end of the day.

That being said. I still, at times, look at the bridge and get freaked out. I don't know how to explain it, but it just weirds me out looking at the knots, etc connecting the bridge to the saddle. The Cruzr uses an amsteel bridge, which I know is strong enough to lift a dump truck off the ground, but my head sees those knots and the prussic adjustment and I can't help but fear it will fail... lol.

So my questions are. Has this ever failed on anyone? Help put my mind at ease!
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Muzzyman, i am also a PA guy and been on the ropes for 14 years. There is a lot to learn but one thing ya don't need to worry about is your ropes or saddle or Amsteel breaking. U should know your knots though. And you should never be on a lineman's belt and think you're tied in. U can message me your location if ya like and i am happy to give ya demo if you're on the eastern or north central part of the state. I arrange an annual PA event on the PA Saddle Hunter's Facebook page also. JRB Tree Climbing is my FB group and utube channel, but its all about rope climbing. I personally have no use for sticks but happy to share my ideas and experience. Its all about being safe and then u can really enjoy the hunt. Cheers.

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk
 
Going in to my second season in a saddle and I can relate to everything you just said! For myself, redundancy has been key. I use a ropeman or other triangular shaped mechanical and always have a back up prussik. I use my prussik below my ATC as a break and hands free enabler. I do plan to switch to a Michoacán for easier tending on the way up.
 
1canvas said:
I have been thinking of a saddle but hanging from the ropes like that with no back up scares me.
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I hear ya. I was there but I'm slowly and surely gaining confidence in all of these things. Once you start researching and understanding how strong the ropes, carabiners, saddles, etc are, you really begin to understand that the way we're using them is "childs play" compared to the intended us of this stuff. That is NOT to say you should be complacent and not check gear or understand knots, etc. But most of the items we're using were built for mountain and rock climbing, much much higher than we are going into a tree and enduring more forces than we'll ever put on them.

It took me a couple of weeks to really start getting comfortable with my saddle and starting to trust everything. I check, and double check my ropes, knots, carabiners, saddle, etc. I learned how the knots are tied and how secure they are. Once you get over that intial fear of the unknown, its really an awesome way to hunt out of a tree.
 
This probably won't be the most calming comment, but the thing that makes me nervous isn't the knots it's the trees.

How many times have you rode through the woods to see an otherwise seemingly healthy tree that recently hit the ground, or rode through a neighborhood and seen tree workers knocking down what looks like a healthy tree but is rotting from the core out?

On a decent hill, gravity with a slight breeze is enough to pull some trees down.

However IMO, you are safer in a saddle than a tree stand, and I have and use both. At the end of the day, once you leave the forest floor there are inherent risks.

I guess the point is stuff can happen. I don't think it will be the knots or ropes, unless you bought the wrong rope or tied the wrong knot. Take your time and triple question every move and I think you will be fine.
 
I have always looked at downed trees and thought to myself,” I would have set up in that “, it’s scary.
 
I have avoided many a tree cause I didn’t trust it……but I trust my gear.
 
I'm with most other people here. I trust my gear way more than I trust myself.

If I'm falling 30' out of a tree, its because I did something dumb like unclipped my line for a dumbass adjustment and missed clipping it back in, or something of that nature. I'm so paranoid I actually have color coded carabiners- I never unclip the red unless I verify I have a second line holding me. The only thing thats ever made my pooper pucker is the day I heard a tearing sound coming from something. I was stretching and putting extra weight on my lines with a bit of a twist and there was a grindey creak maybe like a cartoon stretch coming from something. Stopped that real ****ing quick, but I can't say I noticed anything out of the ordinary on any inspection of my gear. Bridge does have some slight fraying, but everyone I've ever talked to about it or shown it in person/pictures says it's pretty normal looking.

Realistically though, my system is overkill and useless, but I get a small satisfaction when I look at my bridge and see that red clip, and then to my saddle and check for my linesman (red and black) before unclipping my tether. Saddle has red and black for a linesman, I've never had to loop past a branch so I don't have a great color-coded routine there, but I always try to keep colors opposed if I have to use two lines.
 
I am struggling with this as well but I’m hoping that I will get used to it. While I am not normally afraid of heights; that tree looks a lot different from 25-30ft up than it does from the ground .

I use the JRB method for climbing and feel completely safe when tied into my ascender knots but the transition to the tether is where my heart starts pounding.

As someone suggested earlier, I am just trying to get comfortable with the gear and the process at lower elevations before climbing to hunting height again.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Drix22 said:
Must be the lineman's version of transitioning to platform.
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Still not particularly familiar with the terminology as I’m new to the saddle hunting process but I don’t use a lineman’s belt if that’s what the lineman’s transition is referring to.

I think my issue is that the tether supplied by latitude is an open loop tether and I don’t trust it’s security.

I know JRB made a video of different tether systems so I’m going to do a little digging on that end while gaining confidence in the actual saddle and other components at lower altitudes.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Another suggestion is to really learn about those knots you rely on. Use other ropes to practice tying them. Learn the principles behind how they work. Learn about how to safely test them. Once you really understand them, you can inspect the knots on your gear before, during and after every climb. Having that skill set will help your confidence, instead of blindly putting your faith in a bundle of ropes that someone else configured. And for what it’s worth, look to see if there are any certified climbing instructors in your area.
 
Jammintree said:
Another suggestion is to really learn about those knots you rely on. Use other ropes to practice tying them. Learn the principles behind how they work. Learn about how to safely test them. Once you really understand them, you can inspect the knots on your gear before, during and after every climb. Having that skill set will help your confidence, instead of blindly putting your faith in a bundle of ropes that someone else configured. And for what it’s worth, look to see if there are any certified climbing instructors in your area.
Click to expand...

I really like this. Learning Knots are a big part of the Fun factor, but I still keep it simple. I practice tying a lot more knots than I use. I also like to employ 2 hard rules. Never tie knots in the field and check everything at ground level.
 
My curiosity is actually around rope safety - Such as Knots over sewn tethers, and prusiks. Is a knotted tether/prusik safer than a sewn? I have a HSS Tree line that is a 12mm rope but everything is knotted and the tags are crimped together. I’d think knots win but could be wrong!?

Also one thing I still feel Shakey about, would be the TriAd bridge that H2 makes. It’s such a small and thin line I just feel like all 230lb of me leaning isn’t going to keep me hanging! Even though I hang from it at ground level just fine. Geez, I’m in the “learning to trust my equipment” phase I guess!
 
I don't like heights. Only thing I've ever been able to so heights with is a summit climber, but aside from box stands and ladder stands that how I started. Oddly enough I never even think about by my saddle and ropes. It's the setting my sticks and getting to the point where I'm hooked to my bridge and on my platform that bothers me!!
 
Im just husky said:
My curiosity is actually around rope safety - Such as Knots over sewn tethers, and prusiks. Is a knotted tether/prusik safer than a sewn? I have a HSS Tree line that is a 12mm rope but everything is knotted and the tags are crimped together. I’d think knots win but could be wrong!?

Also one thing I still feel Shakey about, would be the TriAd bridge that H2 makes. It’s such a small and thin line I just feel like all 230lb of me leaning isn’t going to keep me hanging! Even though I hang from it at ground level just fine. Geez, I’m in the “learning to trust my equipment” phase I guess!
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Why yes, yes you are ! I still do on a really hard leanover move. I straighten up and think I can’t believe it held me with all the pressure……yet the rope never even broke a sweat and is asking you to put your friends on it too!
 
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