Ladders, you skeered?
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LVSteve
Member
I'm not the best on ladders, but I cannot say I have an actual fear of heights. My father used to chide me for getting close to the edge of washes and the like when we were in the desert. I found that bizarre from a guy who climbed Chain Home towers, all 365' of them, when he was in the RAF. I can only assume that I was more sure footed on loose stuff then he was.
Frank46
US Veteran
Back when I worked for a living, one fuel oil barge had a 36 foot extension ladder tied off to the rail. About 3/4 of the way up the tug that was to tow it away came alongside and pushed the barge hard up against the dock. So instead of the ladder being at an angle it was now straight up and down. My operator who was watching the whole show said he never saw me go up a ladder so fast. Once up on deck I had a few choice words with the tug captain. After the paper work was completed went back to my office when the tug dispatcher called.He wanted to report about the crazy guy who chewed out the tug captain. Told him it was me. And then calmly explained what happened. If the ladder wasn't tied off, I wouldn't be sitting here typing this. When I first started barges that held 20,000 barrels of oil were common. Over the years they were phased out and newer and larger 100,000 barrel barges and some as large as 125,000 bbls. Frank
jimmib
US Veteran
I was never afraid of heights but always made sure I was safe...I worked on many ladders of all lengths and worked on the shore cranes on the water front in Seattle....I decided to do some side work climbing radio towers to hang antennas as a side job....I was 75 ft. in the air on a 3 sided tower one day and looked above me and two of the bolt heads were broken off....that was the last tower I climbed
My house is a 105 year old 2 story farm house. Still have old screens that have to be changed from the outside. I have an extension ladder and do it myself with somebody at the base of the ladder steadying it.
When Missus Fan is there she is terrified I'm gonna plunge to my death.
Shoot, that don't skeer me at all.
All I'm really afraid of is the IRS and Missus Fan. She's 53. I don't think I have to explain what happens in a Woman's life at that age to you guys who have been there...and lived through it.
THAT'S scary!
Jim
When Missus Fan is there she is terrified I'm gonna plunge to my death.
Shoot, that don't skeer me at all.
All I'm really afraid of is the IRS and Missus Fan. She's 53. I don't think I have to explain what happens in a Woman's life at that age to you guys who have been there...and lived through it.
THAT'S scary!
Jim
As a retired process operator in a chemical plant/refinery I've climbed and infinite number of distillation columns. In my youth on a quiet Satrday or Sunday daylight shift we used to race up and down the caged ladder of a 220' ECH column.
During shut downs we had to climb these columns wearing a Scott Air Pac to de-inventory, open and decontaminte them and associated piping.
I ain't a skeert a no ladder.
During shut downs we had to climb these columns wearing a Scott Air Pac to de-inventory, open and decontaminte them and associated piping.
I ain't a skeert a no ladder.
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I was a Telco man for 38 years. Climbing poles was nothing, even 90 ft. ones. But ladders always were my fear. I had a 28 ft. extension ladder in the air when a gust of wind took me & it almost into the next county. I let it go & destroyed a $200 Hemco ladder.Boss wasn't too happy with me.
J. R. WEEMS
Member
DId plenty in my day but these days A step ladder is about my limit-- 
And some people....
And some people work on beams of skyscrapers.
I wasn't scared to climb until I got vertigo. Now I don't even like to stand up in a chair to change a light bulb.
And some people work on beams of skyscrapers.
I wasn't scared to climb until I got vertigo. Now I don't even like to stand up in a chair to change a light bulb.
They never bothered me at all. I used to zoom up and down any ladder, do roofing work, worked on a couple tree crews when I was younger. Did some foolish set-ups with planking and ladders to assist reaching odd spots to get work done.
Makeshift scaffolding type for shingling jobs and painting. You're young, gotta get it done,,and what could possibly happen anyway. If it starts to go,,just jump.
Climbed to the top of our PD/FD radio transmit tower at a facility we were just about to leave and be transfered to a new place.
150ft (so I was told). I got a little steep the last few stages,, and narrow. A small 3x3 platform at the top with a simple single bar railing. It swayed when you held on to the railing and gave it a little 'push' w/your body weight. Seems like a good idea till you did that. Back down,,that was harder to do. Got a little Elvis knee on the way down.
Later I thought about maybe how good those welded joints were on the steel ladder and platform,ect. The thing had been there since before WW2, nice view though from what you could see at 3 in the morning.
Never had an accident or injury,,,till early 2000's. First one was head first off a story and a half house in the winter.
Not really the ladders fault of course, but stupid to be up there to clear some ice.
I toboganed head first off the roof and landed that way on the frozen ground. Knocked myself out for a while. Broke my right arm and wrist and some facial bones. I had that rt hand & arm out up in front of my face to cushion the fall. About a 20ft fall. Amazing I didn't break my neck. No time to grab onto the gutter to save yourself as you slide by as featured in movies and cartoons.
A year and a half later, all healed up that spring, I decided to take a long but not overly large diameter limb out of a maple tree at the very limit of a 24ft extension ladder. ,,'Piece 'a cake'..
That limb kicked back and knocked the aluminum ladder away from under me like it didn't exist and down I went w/chain saw in hand.
Left arm & wrist broken that time and I couldn't walk. No feeling from the hips down.
I freared the worst. But x-rays and scans showed there but no spinal damage and I slowly regained motor ability w/ screaming pain. A steel plate w/screws holds the wrist together.
I asked the surgeron to make sure the screw heads were qualified,,he just looked at me with a strange look.
I'm not allowed to use a ladder too much anymore.
Makeshift scaffolding type for shingling jobs and painting. You're young, gotta get it done,,and what could possibly happen anyway. If it starts to go,,just jump.
Climbed to the top of our PD/FD radio transmit tower at a facility we were just about to leave and be transfered to a new place.
150ft (so I was told). I got a little steep the last few stages,, and narrow. A small 3x3 platform at the top with a simple single bar railing. It swayed when you held on to the railing and gave it a little 'push' w/your body weight. Seems like a good idea till you did that. Back down,,that was harder to do. Got a little Elvis knee on the way down.
Later I thought about maybe how good those welded joints were on the steel ladder and platform,ect. The thing had been there since before WW2, nice view though from what you could see at 3 in the morning.
Never had an accident or injury,,,till early 2000's. First one was head first off a story and a half house in the winter.
Not really the ladders fault of course, but stupid to be up there to clear some ice.
I toboganed head first off the roof and landed that way on the frozen ground. Knocked myself out for a while. Broke my right arm and wrist and some facial bones. I had that rt hand & arm out up in front of my face to cushion the fall. About a 20ft fall. Amazing I didn't break my neck. No time to grab onto the gutter to save yourself as you slide by as featured in movies and cartoons.
A year and a half later, all healed up that spring, I decided to take a long but not overly large diameter limb out of a maple tree at the very limit of a 24ft extension ladder. ,,'Piece 'a cake'..
That limb kicked back and knocked the aluminum ladder away from under me like it didn't exist and down I went w/chain saw in hand.
Left arm & wrist broken that time and I couldn't walk. No feeling from the hips down.
I freared the worst. But x-rays and scans showed there but no spinal damage and I slowly regained motor ability w/ screaming pain. A steel plate w/screws holds the wrist together.
I asked the surgeron to make sure the screw heads were qualified,,he just looked at me with a strange look.
I'm not allowed to use a ladder too much anymore.
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I never had a problem with heights, usta do a lot of rock climbing both top rope and multi-pitch.
Now with my neuropathy, I can go up a ladder with relative ease it's coming back down that's the hard part.
Now with my neuropathy, I can go up a ladder with relative ease it's coming back down that's the hard part.
carpriver
US Veteran
I am not afraid of heights, but I am afraid of landing. As for ladders I own a couple three, I don't climb on then unless it is so necessary and I can't find someone else that is dumber than me to get up on the ladder. I don't mind the falling so much but the landing is a bit more than I can handle.
My phobia regarding heights has steadily worsened over the years. Takes longer to assure the ladder's solidly on the ground than it does to do the job. Had to get up on the garage roof late last year. That's the last time that'll happen.
OilTrader
Member
Ladders? HA! At my age I don't climb up on anything taller than a bar stool.
gtk
Member
heights used to not bother me. i used to climb our silo and slide around the outer edge...
when deer hunting, i used to just shimmy up a tree to hunt.. I didn't need a stand..
all my carelessness finally caught up with me when I was about 28. i can really tell when the weather is about to take a drastic change now-a-days..
when deer hunting, i used to just shimmy up a tree to hunt.. I didn't need a stand..
all my carelessness finally caught up with me when I was about 28. i can really tell when the weather is about to take a drastic change now-a-days..
I hate heigths. The farther up I get on a ladder the more worthless I am. I hate it when the top of the ladder is anywhere close to my waistline. It's not just ladders either. I hate high diving boards, I hate rollercoasters. I absolutely despise the sensation of falling. I wouldn't be a worker on a wind turbine for a million bucks a day. I like drag racing a motorcycle at 140 MPH or so. I like horizontal Gs. I'm tall and light framed, and I'm just awkward if I get a little off balance, I won't even put up outdoor Christmas lights anymore.
Comrad
Member
No problem as long as the ladder is in good shape and appropriate for the job.
I've been in the paint business for 40 years. Used to climb to the top of a 40' extension ladder and hang off the edge of it to get the last brushfull of paint in the spot nobody else would even try to get. About 20 years ago I was on the roof of an eleven story apartment highrise. Had to look over the side to try to find where a leak was coming from. Something happened in my mind and now I won't even let go of the stairail that took me up there. I don't even like balconies. I leave all the climbing to the young whippersnappers now just as the oldtimers did when I was one.
