The TreeMOTION tree climbing harness has so many adjustment options personalization can get a little daunting for a new owner.
Climbers visiting Treetools to purchase their new TreeMOTION have the opportunity to try various options and adjustments before they leave the store but website buyers don't get the same luxury.
Once the new harness is unpacked its often the advice from fellow climbers which takes precedence over the TreeMOTION User Manual. Sometimes peer advice is bang on, sometimes not! Even the TreeMOTION User Manual is a little light on adjustment information.
Prior to our discussion with Ethan Martin at the Wellington Regional TCC in Whanganui we had noticed an increasing number of climbers with ill-fitted TreeMOTIONs. This harness has so many options for personalization it seems a shame to suffer unnecessarily.
So, for those of you who cannot make it to Treetools for a personal fitting. The information contained in the PDF is 'unofficial', in that it does not come from Teufelberger or the Treemagineers.
Treetools has drawn this data from many discussions with climbers and TreeMOTION devotees and by observing the use of the harness in the workplace and at tree climbing competitions in New Zealand and Australia. This document is the basis for the process we use when explaining TreeMOTION adjustment to customers in the shop.
A correctly fitted harness should leave the user sitting in an upright position with loading more-or-less equalized between to leg and waist. Some say 20-30% of the body weight should be on the waist and 70-80% on the legs but we tend towards 50/50. But it is a personal adjustment in the final analysis!
Waist belt and thigh adjustment is typically intuitive.
As Treemagineers Mark Bridge pointed out in the last post the webbing running from the side D's to the bridge D's is a very important component of the TreeMOTION harness.
This adjustable webbing connection determines how much of your body weight is taken by the waist belt versus the leg loops. It also controls the center of gravity for efficient work positioning.
If the webbing is fully adjusted out, too much load is taken by the leg loop. Your body position has a tendency to drift backwards - you might even feel you could flip upside down. Perhaps you can?
Go the other way and cinch this webbing up tight and your face will be in the hitch or mechanical device. Too much weight is being taken by the waits belt, making the position uncomfortable for any prolonged period - and not much fun even with a small jolt.
The optimum position has you sitting with your bum between the two connection points and the center of gravity running vertical away from you. You will know when you are find this position!
