Yesterday our neighbor had her trees trimmed. The workers were quite a busy bunch. I watched them for awhile and quickly realized these were no ordinary tree trimmers. They could shimmy up a 30-foot rope in seconds and rappel off tree branches like they were descending a mountain.
They trusted their ropes as they stood on weathered branches that I’m afraid will come crashing down on me in a stiff wind.
The Wisconsin Arborist Association has a tree climbing championship every year. This tree service has several employees that compete, and this year one of their employees won the entire competition and will move on to compete in Rhode Island at the International Society of Arboriculture Annual Conference and Trade Show. I’m guessing it’s this guy:
This is not a job for the faint of heart. Can you imagine climbing a tree with a chainsaw dangling from your belt? I would probably saw off my leg before I even got up into the tree.
They were so fun to watch that I think I might like to attend next year’s tree climbing championship.