Got talked into a climbing saddle with a leg pad about 10 years back

I was dead set against it at first. Looked like overkill for a guy who grew up working with just a belt and spurs. My old gear had gotten the job done since the late 90s, felt like a waste of money. But my foreman Jim kept pushing it after he saw me wincing on a big red oak removal near Austin. Finally caved after two months of him bugging me. First day with the new saddle I noticed way less pressure on my hips after a full day of removals. Still not sure I'd recommend it to everyone, but it did make a difference on those long canopy jobs. Anyone else switch setups later in their career and actually stick with it?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_robin18d ago

Oh man, I feel you on that. I held out for YEARS on my old leather saddle, thought the new ones were just fancy crap for rookies. Then I took a spill on a wet limb and realized my old setup was actually putting too much strain on my lower back when I had to adjust my position quick. Switched to a lightweight climbing saddle with leg pads maybe five years back after a buddy broke his hip from a hard landing. The initial adjustment period was rough, but honestly the extra support on prolonged removals and when I'm hanging for cleanup is night and day. It's not for every tree or every job, but for the big residential oaks we get here it's been a solid upgrade.

nelson.wren18d ago

Took me three full weeks to stop feeling like I was strapped into some medieval torture device when I made the switch. Now I can't imagine going back to that old pancake saddle.

olivia_white9318d ago

Haven't you noticed that's how pretty much everything goes these days? You fight against something new for years, think it's just a gimmick, then one thing goes wrong and suddenly you're like, oh wait, maybe they actually thought this through. It's like my grandma refusing to use a smartphone until she couldn't find a payphone anywhere, then she got one and now she's on Facebook more than I am. Same with tools and gear and even how we cook - we get stuck in our ways because change feels like admitting the old way wasn't perfect, but sometimes you just gotta break a hip or run out of payphones to see the point.