Your biggest blunder?

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About '70 young and dumb slabbing off sections of a leaning pepperwood, good size, What the hell good is an undercut for anyway? Just saw it straight off, getter done. Upon hearing my gasp of breath when the trunk slabbed out and pinned me my partner on the other side of the tree says, "you better start putting undercuts in those things, Jer." Lesson learned. One of many.
 
I underbid a job once, a declining poplar over two garage and a couple of fences. Access to alley, but we didn't have a bucket at that time. My boss was there razzing me about the low cost and I was super frustrated. I started up the tree tied in, and as I was working the tree, the ol boss kept giving me the gears...so I sped up the pace. Well, wouldn't ya know that rushing and treework make bad dance partners. Put a hole through the garage roof, which I repaired. But we made no money on the job and that was the end of my perfect tree man score. Humbling though.
 
I was jacking over a 100' oak when the hinge broke and went 90* to the face. Luckily it was in the woods in my firewood spot but an eye opener for sure.
 
I've never had the opportunity to use a jack to tip a tree before. Although I've found plenty of other ways to screw up! :lol:
 
Had a tree set back hard on a slope and the top came down over a road. Fortunately nobody was driving on the road at the time. One did come by when I was cleaning it up and the driver got irked...and we got into it a bit, me being in a rude mood. Better to have just kept my mouth shut other than apologizing for his inconvenience. :roll:
 
Diesel only cost about $.50/gallon then. Stand and tank were probably worth more than the 250 gallons of diesel. Hay work paid about a $1.50/ hour most likely, so that was a big money maker.

When I started in Minot last year I warned Brian that I had 43 years of bad habits and a wealth of knowledge about things that did not work too well. He hired me anyway.
 
A customer once gave me their address to look at a tree, I went and priced it, he wasn't there.

It was a dead oak, next to a dumpster at the end of the parking lot. Called him when I finished, leaving info for payment. Called me back and said the tree is still standing. Well wouldn't ya know, next door, there was a dead oak, next to a dumpster, at the end of the parking lot. I pulled in the wrong driveway. Woops. Never talked to the dead tree owner, but I bet to this day they wonder were their dead tree went. :|:
 
Boss a awhile ago sent me out with a new guy to remove an heavily leaning oak. when I had him put it on the porta wrap for the top I neglected to tell him let it run some and didnt check the number of wraps he had put on it suffice to say I broke two ribs from being rattled around.
I have also had a spruce go backwards and lay up in the trees behind me, thankfully that one was logging with my mom in the woods. and only took about two logs of the profit side to get it back into the open.
 
cut of a face cut once on a small hemlock and it went over onto a excavator. Had to replace a $800.00 fuel tank. Luckily found one used for 300.
Also fell about 20 ft onto a sidewalk once. Knee is still a little screwy from that one.
 
I found out bone head mistakes can be not asking for help when you should.
I was felling a leaning blue oak. I was trying to steer it off a black oak that was in the lay of the lean. To my dismay, it hung right into the middle of some forked limbs. So I proceeded to walk it down.. Welllllllll The dang tree balanced out in the fork. I could reach the trunk so I cut about 2' off it and it teetered top down on the other side of the fork.. Cut a section of top off and it teetered back trunk down.. This went on, back and forth so that all the brush was gone and I just had about 12 or so feet of log in the fork... I figured I should be able to get it out of the fork by pulling the end down and working it out.. You are probably asking yourself by now why did I not just put a rope on it and head off all this Tom Foolerie... :/:
Ground was rather muddy and it was a steep grade back up to the truck. I had a guy named Scott that was also working with me that day that was up the hill I should of and could have gotten to help me.. But Nooooooooooo. I could do this... No need to slip and slide back up the hill to the truck :roll:
That 12 or so foot stick was nice solid and water filled oak... About 10-12 inch diameter depending on where you checked. I really have no idea what it weighed at the time.. couple hundred or so anyway I thought at the time. I knew I could not have picked it up off the ground if it were to ever get there.
Ohh it eventually got there though.....
I teetered and tottered.. Pushed and pulled.... Then my feet, covered with mud, slipped out from under me... I landed sort of cross legged in the duff and mud.. About that time is when the teeter totter decided to slide out of the crotch of the black oak.. It did a pile drive square down on my ankle. OHHHHHH MAN...! I felt something pop and heard it. I thought for sure I had just lost my foot and ankle! I hollered and Scott came running.. We got the log pulled off my ankle and foot... nuttin broke. Bad ass sprain but not broke... If the ground had not been so muddy, I would have not been so lucky. There was literally an in print in the mud from the butt and my ankle.. Put me out of work for a few....
Yes, I tried to work that day after the incident so Scott and I could get in a full day..:|:
Lasted about 1 more hour on that foot with a saw.... :roll::|:
 
I have the advantage of suffering from selective amnesia, although my work mates always seem to remember when I messed things up, even years ago.
 
Not so long ago I cut the top out of a tree. I was still tied in well above my cut.........

I guess I was just distracted. Not a small top either. I somehow, someway, managed in a split second to unsnap the carabiner from my saddle as the top hinged over. I dont know how I overlooked that. I dont.
 
Hahaha- I forgot about this thread.

Well, about a month ago I misread an address on a house to prune a large elm tree.....


I was only off by one house. We pruned the neighbor's tree. :|:
 
I'm a treeman and I admit it. I just can't help myself. It's been going on for 44 years. And that is why I finally caved in and decided to join this form to admit my addiction to others that may have the same problem to share. I am glad to finally find others that feel the same pain and try to achieve a better life in spite of it. There is hope that we can all recover from our addiction to trees. Save there be a better world for all.

Ha

Hey did I tell you about the time when I dropped a chunk.... oh no... here I go again.
 
No blood No Foul Right.
Big Sugar with two pull lines. One to 3/4 ton com along. the other to 3:1 pull system and two men.
Got the tree about 8' over centre and pounded in couple of wedges to make sure and nothing.
Cut the hinge out to much hitting a longitudinal crack. Basically two tree. I had no idea it was in there until after the cut and buckin up. Big ol bertha066 had alot a play in the rubber so pushed it to far into the hinge.
Tree fell across the street between two house, no damage there. But snapped two poles, primary, secondary and thirds plus a commucations cable got stretched to hell( the big thick kind).
One of the poles was directly behind me and got real close.
Lucky no one was hurt.
Hydro guys had everything up and runnin an hour after dark.
That ended my muni career.
Neighbours thought it was just deserts for the fiberglass or plastics company stinckin up there neighbourhood, closed them down for awhile.
Everbody got new radios, and digital stuffs because of the overload.
And the local arb got alot more City contracts from that accident.
And it got my @@@ in to private work and much happier.
Again No blood No Foul Right.
 
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