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Close Calls In 2013

Started by Autocar, December 29, 2013, 10:57:52 AM

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Autocar

As I look back into the 2013 logging season I remember three close calls, I cut a big white oak but before I tell the story its been a habit of mine to pray for a safe day and never forget to thank the man up stairs as I drive home that evening. I cut a big white oak and the was a limb that was 12 inches thick with triple branches probably twenty feet long all three of them. It tipped over and I was backing up to watch what was going on this big branch caught a hickory tree and this ground was pretty sandy.  I figured darn its going to drag the hickory over with it but instaed she bowed over then the large limb snapped of and came twirling back at me and there wasn't anywhere to go. I hit the ground and covered my head and the main limb landed on the very tip of the butt and thats what saved my skin the second close call was a Ash leaning heavy and it was tight up against a small white oak so I knotched the tree bored though to get my hing and started to swing the saw out and the lean was so heavy she snapped off and grabbed my hooded sweater I wrapped my arm around the white oak and hung on while it ripped my sleve off twisting and jumping up in the air hitting the small tree. The third was another dead ash job cut a large ash the leaves were on and she tipped over and I still don't know where it came from but there was a peace of dead limb four feet long and four or five inches thick came past me like a rocket ship. I don't want to sound like a preacher but I truly believe Gods in the woods every day with me.
Bill

thecfarm

The only close call I had was sleding Christmas day along side the road at 35mph and almost running into the snow backen.
And by the way Autocar,someone is helping you out in the woods.
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

Alcranb

Late winter I had a couple of hours left to work so I figured I'd cut up the remainder of a few trees for firewood. Having only a short time to work I wasn't going to gear up but for some reason I put on my chaps and helmet and went to town. Not five minutes into it I felt a decent thud to my helmet and got driven into the ground. I felt a searing pain in my left ankle but other than that I was ok. Fortunately I was only a half mile or so from my truck and literally dragged myself there. Bad sprain but that was it. A couple of weeks later I went back and tried to figure things out. To this day, and I've replayed it over a bunch of times!, I have no idea where that hanger came from. Better yet was a month or so later while cutting wood I removed my helmet to wipe the sweat off my forehead. While my helmet was up in the air I saw daylight. I thought what the heck???? Sure enough 2 cracks where that branch clocked me.
Autocar, I'm with you on not sounding like a preacher but no doubt the Good Lord was there that day! Learned a couple of valuable lessons.
"Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do.  So throw off the bowlines.  Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.  (Mark Twain)

Firewoodjoe

Autocar I also had a limb of a large red oak break a limb on a standing oak behind me. Tore most of my clothes off (sweatshirt and t shirt) hard hat and threw the saw. Got dizzy and sat down for a few. Terrible bruses for weeks. And I still thank god.

plasticweld

I have had one real freaky close call that did not happen this year but 3 years ago. It did leave an impression on my even after 37 years of logging this one will always stick out.

I was building a road with my skidder,  short steep down hill, not enough of a slope to go get the dozer so figured I would just put the blade down and take off a couple of feet and make the bank a little less steep and smooth it all  out, something I have done hundreds of times. I had just pushed over a few trees so that I could push out the stumps wads. I had one small hard maple end up perpendicular to the road I was building  and the machine would not push it down the hill so I got off the machine to cut it out of the way. There was a tangle of other smaller trees also in the way I figured I would also cut some of these up. I put the blade down and put on the mirco lock and hopped off with my saw. There was a small maple that lay about chest high that ran along the edge of the road that kind of pinned me in between the machine and began cutting the hard maple to clear the road. As I bent down to cut I was sure that one of my friends had snuck up behind me and given me a push, kind of joking around. I got shoved hard somehow over the waist high tree and watched as the skidder rolled past me. I am not sure what happened, the machine was really rolling at a good clip and ended up at the bottom of the  hill. I stood up and could not believe the machine had hit me hard enough to knock me over the waist high tree. I stood on the hill looking down and could not believe that the machine had knocked me to the side of the road instead of just in front of; it seemed like an impossible feat.

This is the freaky part, I was so convinced that what had just happened was so improbable that I wondered for a minute if I was dead and looking down on accident that had just claimed my life. I was sure someone had pushed me. I have enough close calls over the years where a near miss does not even get an elevated heart rate out of me for a response. This was a first for me

CX3

I pray that God will show me a mistake before I make it.  I have to be thankful to Him constantly because I see things I never would have seen before. 
John 3:16
You Better Believe It!

Birchwood Logging

A few weeks ago my dad wrecked one of my log trucks he is 74 and worries me to death when he drives or uses a saw it was the good lord above watching over him he did not get hurt 

 
John Deere 700H with winch, John Deere 550A with winch, Cat 232 Skid Steer,Cat 262c Skid Steer, Wood Mizer Lt 40 super HD, Ford F-700 and F-600 log trucks, Ford F-450 dump truck

goose63

Ihad my close call in the fall of 2012 was cutting some lims a branch pushed the saw back felt a tingel in my leg a 6 inch hole at the of the pocket long schrach  on my leg am on a blood thiner dident take long to put the chaps on was alone that day would of bled to death day God was there that day :new_year:
goose
if you find your self in a deep hole stop digging
saw logs all day what do you get lots of lumber and a day older
thank you to all the vets

thecfarm

Birchwood Logging,I see the truck is still loaded. Did he drive it there?
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

beenthere

Quote from: Birchwood Logging on December 29, 2013, 03:29:12 PM
A few weeks ago my dad wrecked one of my log trucks he is 74 and worries me to death when he drives or uses a saw it was the good lord above watching over him he did not get hurt 

 
Tell us what happened? 
south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

Birchwood Logging

We was heading to mill early one morning before day light he was behind about 1/4 mile behind me I was in my blue log truck loaded I stopped at a narrow bridge to let 3 coal trucks pass he came up behind me and wasn't paying close attention and rear ended me in my truck it was very foggy out that morning to I'm just glad he wasn't hurt or killed. We had to have the truck towed it totaled it
John Deere 700H with winch, John Deere 550A with winch, Cat 232 Skid Steer,Cat 262c Skid Steer, Wood Mizer Lt 40 super HD, Ford F-700 and F-600 log trucks, Ford F-450 dump truck

thecfarm

That's too bad.  :(  Glad no one was hurt.
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

wannaergo

I had a couple close calls within a couple weeks. the first one, for some dumb reason I was working on a saturday, and I parked the harvester to cut a clump of 20+ inch aspens. long story short, one of the tops caught on the way down and sent the tree flying backwards and pinned me between the butt and the harvester head. luckily enough, I was able to wiggle free. but i called er a day after that one. then a week after the following monday, i was on the way to work, and I dont remember a whole lot, but I ended up smashing into a county sand truck going about 65. somehow or another i got away with just a broken femur, and only missed a couple weeks of work. (one of which was because i got married on the next saturday and was on my honeymoon for a week). I guess i've got friends upstairs, or i'd pry be dead.
2016 Ponsse ergo 8w
2014 Cat 564
Husky 385

Sonofman

I was cutting firewood at a friend's house back in July. He lives about a half mile up a steep mountainside, and his driveway is very narrow. I had to wait for him to leave for the day before driving up it, turning around at this house, and beginning my cutting. I had about all I wanted to put on my 8x16 tandem axel trailer when he called to tell me he was leaving where he was and coming home, was I through. I assured him I would be gone by the time he got there. I loaded the last of the wood, put all my gear in the back of the truck, pulled the chocks on the trailer. I neglected to consider the relative weight of the trailer vs the truck. In retrospect, I am surprised it did not take off right then. I got in the truck and before I could get the engine started, the rodeo began. It started sliding down the hill. There was not enough weight in the truck to give the tires enough traction to control the trailer. It went down a gravel section to a paved section where it is even steeper, but was covered with gravel from receint heavy rains. The only way it stopped is the trailer ran off  the right side of the driveway and bogged in the dirt and small trees there. By this time the truck was turned sideways and was slowing the trailer as it pushed the truck sideways on the pavement as well as the dirt bogging the trailer.

It got stopped with only some minor sheet metal damange to the old beat up truck, a hole in one tire on the truck, and a notch out of the aluminum rim that had the flat tire.

It took me a few minutes to stop shaking enough to text my friend to tell him to stop at the bottom of his drive.

  

  

 

My guardian angel was definately busy that afternoon.
Located due west of Due West.

sawguy21

 :o I bet that sent the needle on the puck-o-meter to a new level. You were definitely overloaded.
old age and treachery will always overcome youth and enthusiasm

CCC4

I relish the opportunity to "jump in" a thread...

I got my closest call this Summer in 19 1/2 years of logging (Is that close enough to 20 ???). To this day IDK what hit me...

       I was falling a large white oak (made 6 tie logs) on a narrow bench in steep ground. I made sure of my surroundings, cleared under brush, had fell (3) trees in front of me for a falling lane. I made my back cut, watched the tree go over, watched it hit the ground...WHAM!!!! I opened my eyes to leaves as my face was planted in the ground. I realized I was knocked out...a tingle on my tongue and a fuzzy buzz in the air, then I could hear my saw still running. The tunnel started opening up and I sat up seeing that I was NOT where I was standing originally, my helmet was down the mountain about 10 or 12 ft maybe...I had been knocked around 8 ft from the stump.

       Getting up, I walked over to my saw and shut it off and went to gather my hard hat. At some point there I closed my mouth and realized my jaw was offset by 1/2 my bite...meaning it was waaay to the right! I kind of freaked out inside for a second and grabbed my jaw...opened it wide open and yanked it to the left...with a loud crack it popped back over. Oddly enough I remained calm and I guess I just walked down the hill to where the LO was sitting watching me cut his timber. He had no idea what had happened. He always reminded me of how calm I was.
         
        To wrap this up I ended up with a bad neck sprain, chipped shoulder and a broken jaw...not to mention days of severe headaches. The ER Doctor said I was lucky, he said if what ever hit me had not swung and clipped my shoulder...the impact would have broke my neck.

         I took 4 days off from cutting and was back to work by the next Monday. Something about a 660 kicking back in a red oak while having a broken jaw is something truly amazing and unforgettable. Nearly 6 weeks of soups, Cream of Wheat, body building shakes and smoothies....awesome! LOL!

         Sorry so long.  :)

thecfarm

Sonofman,WOW!! No brakes on the trailer? I only really had one trailer. I use to haul a 40hp tractor about 10 miles,from my Dad's house to where I live now. Those brakes helped out a lot,and a standard helped out a lot too.
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

Higgins

Quote from: Autocar on December 29, 2013, 10:57:52 AM
...its been a habit of mine to pray for a safe day and never forget to thank the man up stairs as I drive home that evening.

These steps are on my daily checklist as well. I have been fortunate enough to return home to my family, despite the dangers and pitfalls inherent to our daily work. Truly, it is a blessing to spend each day doing what I love, by His grace.

Maine logger88

My closest call in 2013 is when I was starting a new lot and making my truck road off from a state road I had a dead soft maple I had to cut so I made my scarf and started my back cut pounded in a wedge finished my back cut knowing it was rotten I left two in of holding wood but apparently it wasn't enough and it went over backwards hit the power line luckily breaking in three places and not pulling the line down I then ran out threw the pieces out of the road and took a couple of minutes to calm down before finishing my road
79 TJ 225 81 JD 540B Husky and Jonsered saws

luvmexfood

Wannaergo. You are lucky. A broken femur if it ruptures the femoral artery can pretty much do you in. Hope it didn't interfere too much with your honeymoon activities. Congrads on the wedding.
Give me a new saw chain and I can find you a rock in a heartbeat.

Sonofman

Sawguy21, you called it. It broke the Puck-O-Meter.

cfarm, the trailer has brakes, but they were not hooked up yet, as this was a new to me truck and I wanted to get this wood down and split asap. I no longer use this truck, I have a full sized ford to pull it, and the trailer brakes are hooked up now.
Located due west of Due West.

Quebecnewf


Woodboogah

Got my 5/8" cable across my face yestertday.  That was not fun.  Trying to get it back in the drum I was twisting against the memory of the cable and couldnt hold it any longer while  I was pushing and just like that, right across the face.  I am thankful  I taped up the end before hand.  Probably would have ripped me open.   Stay safe everyone
Keenan Logging & Tree Care, LLC

Corley5

  I got a good deal on an exercise machine at an auction the end of June, while taking it apart to move it home a piece fell and hit the side of my face breaking a bone between my eye and ear.  It pinched the muscle that operates the jaw.  I had surgery to correct it a couple days later.  I'll always have a dent in my face  :)  It could have been much worse.  It could have struck my temple, broke my jaw or eye socket or took out my eye.  That was my close call for 2013.  I'm staying home for the rest of the ear  ;) :D ;D
Burnt Gunpowder is the Smell Of Freedom

CCC4

Quote from: Quebecnewf on December 31, 2013, 08:39:39 AM
http://m.youtube.com/results?q=fun%20in%20the%20woods%20or%20how%20not%20to%20cut%20a%20tree
My close call from a few years back
Quebecnewf

I think you are the winner of this thread!  :) Dang it man! I'm very glad that you were able to get out of the way...geeez o! So how long did it take you to gather yourself after that?

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