That rope throw trick from a lineman changed my whole climbing setup

Was up in a big red oak last Tuesday, fighting with my throw line for 20 minutes cause the crotch was tight and hard to hit. This old utility lineman walks by, sees me struggling, and shows me this one handed sideways flick instead of the usual overhead toss. Hit the crotch first try after that. He said something like "you're fighting the arc, not the rope." Been using it for a week now and my setup time is cut in half. Anyone else got weird little tips from non-tree guys?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_lucas8d ago

Man that sideways flick is pure gold. I picked up a similar trick from a buddy who used to work on an oil rig he called it the pendulum drop. You basically swing the throwbag side to side like a pendulum before letting it fly and it arcs way nicer than any overhead toss. Another thing that saved me hours is tying a small knot just above the throwbag to stop it from slipping through tight crotches. Makes a huge difference when youre in a dense tree and every second counts. Also try switching to a lighter throwbag on those skinny branches itll float through gaps way easier than a heavy one. Little tweaks like that add up fast when youre tired and fighting the rope.

the_hayden8d ago

Bet you looked like a total goober doing that windup before you got the hang of it lmao.

wesley6398d ago

That pendulum drop thing is no joke. I had a buddy who was a lineman out in Oregon, he showed me a similar move but he called it the "fisherman's flick" because he used to cast fishing lines from the shore before climbing. He'd twirl the bag in a circle like a windup and let it go at just the right moment. Took me a solid week to get it down without smacking myself in the shins. The knot trick you mentioned is gold too, I use a simple figure-eight stop knot above mine and it's saved me from losing bags in limb-snags more times than I can count.