LAST UPDATED: May 1st, 2015
Written by Bowhunting.com contributor Chad Stillman.
With the dog days off summer upon us I find myself day dreaming about sitting high above a green soybean field, in less than 3 months, pursuing the elusive whitetail. I prepare throughout the year by shooting my bow regularly, setting up and checking trail cameras, and overall fine tuning my “game plan.” Most importantly I check my equipment. My gear, my stands, etc. all must be in perfect working order. If I get in the tree and there is a problem, the whole hunt can be a wash. The most crucial piece of hunting equipment is my safety harness. The last 10 years I’ve never even considered climbing a tree without a safety harness. I use it while setting up my stands, during the hunting season and at the end when I take everything down. However, I am astounded at the amount of hunters I know that still do not wearing a safety harness. Without this piece of essential equipment, the day could quickly turn into a nightmare.
Today’s treestand safety harness is lightweight, quiet and easy to use, thus eliminating most of the excuses for not owning one.
Something as simple as climbing up to assemble or disassemble your tree stand can quickly turn fatal. Last November during the peak of the rut I heard a lot of noise from high atop a beautiful oak tree. The noise went on for some time. My curiosity got the best of me. I decided to climb down to make the 200-yard walk to the next ridge. It was no wildlife encounter. It was Josh & Ben, 2 brothers that also hunt the same property as I do. The brothers are 13 and 17 years old. They both have an enthusiastic outlook on bowhunting whitetails, but little education and direction in the field. Much to my surprise the 17 year old was about 25’ up hanging a stand with no safety harness on. I quickly interceded and helped them finish hanging the stand. I also gave them a kind earful about being safe in the tree. I guess it is the father and police officer in me. I explained the importance of a safety harnesses and strongly encouraged them to buy one before they climbed a tree again.
The encounter with Josh and Ben really got me wondering about the number of people that are still not using a safety harness. I began to ask around, to other hunters I know, if they used a safety harnesses. I was shocked to learn that only about 5 out of the 10 hunters I spoke with wear one.
Hanging a treestand is so much easier when you can use both hands. A lineman’s belt will keep you safe and make the job more enjoyable.
Never Should Have Happened
More disturbing was just this past season, a family friend was climbing up his tree stand to recover equipment and fell 25 feet from the tree. From my understanding he was “just running in quick” to grab some stuff. He lay for hours on the ground, severely injured. Upon his rescue he was taken by helicopter to the nearest hospital, a 30 minute flight but a 3 hour drive for his family members. He was in intensive care for 17 days, and hospitalized for 40 additional days. This was no vacation. This was life changing event for him as well as his family. Things could have turned out worse….had he died that day. Although, the whole accident could have been avoided had he purchased and taken 1 minute of his time to put on a safety harness. Just like a car seatbelt, a safety harness is for our safety, and must be a habit that we all get accustomed to.
Consider how long it may take someone to find you (when you fall) if you’re hunting alone and NOT wearing a safety harness.
Get With The Times
Like most things in life safety harnesses have gotten better with age. The days of wrestling around your truck in the morning getting tangled in your harness are gone. If you can put on a jacket, you can put on your safety harness, no excuses! I’ve heard hunters complain, “they’re too bulky”, wrong answer, “they are loud”, try again, “what are the chances I’ll fall from a tree”, um I’ll take those odds to Vegas if you’re willing to bet.
Nascar drivers used to wear open face helmets with goggles. Football players wore leather helmets with no facemasks. Hockey players used to wear no helmets at all. Point being… times have changed! Essential safety gear for sports has changed and bowhunting is no different. Bowhunting is our sport, and safety harnesses are essential gear to maintaining a safe hunt. If we don’t get home safe what’s the point of going out?
Improve Your Chances
As whitetail bowhunters we can all think of times when deer have showed up in the absolute last spot we’d expect it. We often find ourselves performing dangerous maneuvers, on a small platform, in order to get a better view or to take the shot. I can completely trust this piece of equipment, my safety harness, with my life; literally by leaning slightly off my stand with only the strap from my safety harness keeping me tethered to the tree. You never know the next time the buck of a lifetime may only present himself in a way that causes you to get creative in the stand. Be sure you are secured to that tree!
My Choice
My personal favorite safety harnesses are those made by Hunter Safety System. Their harnesses are quiet, user friendly, light, affordable, and customer service is awesome. I trust HSS with my life 60-80 days a year. HSS knows their product. The safety harnesses is all they do. They also have a product called the lifeline. The lifeline is a game changer. It allows hunters to be completely tethered to the tree from the moment their feet leave the ground. The lifeline attaches to the top of the tree and is tied off at the bottom. The hunter simply clips on to the prussic knot, climbs the ladder or sticks and moves the prussic knot up as they go. Once you use this product you’ll never want to climb a tree without it. Accidents happen largely on the way up or down the tree. Other products, such as the lineman’s belt, are essential to hanging stands safely. I used it for the first time about 2 years ago. I was so impressed at how easy it was to use. The lineman’s belt allows the hunter to use two hands while suspended from the tree.
It only takes a minute…literally. With today’s advanced models, a treestand safety harness should be in every bowhunters gear bag.
Why Not
I can’t think of any good reason or excuse, why you haven’t purchased a safety harness. If you can, please let me know. If you haven’t considered purchasing a safety harness and or lifeline of some sort, please consider it. Make it as essential as your bow on your equipment list. We all have loved ones that are more important then any hunt. Lets all make a collaborative effort to get home safely. Be safe and wear a harness. If you know someone not wearing a harness because they can’t afford it, consider helping them out, give them your old harness, and pick yourself up a new HSS harness…..you won’t regret it.
Editor’s note: For more information about staying safe while in the stand and all the equipment necessary to do so, visit http://www.huntersafetysystem.com/.
