Stopped climbing with a rope I tied off to the trunk and switched to a running bowline on a 60 foot red oak in Tulsa
For 3 seasons I would just wrap my climb line around the trunk and tie a figure 8, which always left me fighting the rope on the way down. About 6 weeks ago a guy named Dale on a removal crew showed me a running bowline and I have not gone back since. The knot cinches tight on the way up but loosens with one tug from the ground, and it saved me a good 10 minutes of untangling on every tree. Anyone else make that switch, or do you still tie off straight to the trunk?
Dale sounds like a solid guy for showing you that. I made the same switch about 2 years ago after watching a guy named Rick on a job in Ohio do it, and yeah, the time saved on the way down is no joke. Fighting a figure 8 off the trunk when you are tired at the end of the day is the worst, the running bowline just pops loose with one pull. Been using it on every tree since and I still wonder why nobody told me sooner.