About 20 years ago I installed a ninety foot crank-up tower. Around
that time you didn't hear much about them and I had no idea they
were not (crank-downs). The fact of NOT climbing a crank-up when
fully extended held up only by cables made perfectly good sense to
me, but you climb them cranked down. Right? That's why I spent the
extra money for one. For the convenience.
Few days before the CQWW cw on a cold -20 morning I cranked this
tower down. Same story as G4IFB only different results. All
sections nested. The cable went slack. I spun a few cranks to snug
up the cable. I went up the tower. Once I reached the top a section
dropped. It wasn't fully down. This pinned my arm. For unknown
reasons I had a hammer in my belt. I used the hammer to pry my arm
out and promptly pitched backwards off the tower.
As I was heading for the ground at 32 feet per second think of
this:
1. I assumed the situation was safe and it wasn't. I assumed the
sections had nested and they didn't. I assumed the cable was
tight and it would keep the tower rigid and it did not.
2. I was working along with no one else home.
3. It was 20 below zero and the ground below me was frozen solid as
concrete.
4. Somewhere above me falling at the same speed was the hammer.
There has never been a day go by that I don't think about that
morning. Today I never assume anything, never work in bad weather
and most of all never ever work on the towers alone.
73 Rich KL7RA KL7RA@icefog.gcgo.nasa.gov
p.s.
Right foot smashed. Left heel crushed. Broken back. Broken wrist
(from falling section). Frozen to the ground for four hours (no one
around remember?) Hammer missed.
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