Climbing a tree is a recreational activity for most people, Finance Investment but for a select few it is an exercise of agility, speed and precision.
Twenty-three people competed Saturday, June 28 in the 29th annual Ohio Chapter International Society of Arboriculture Tree Climbing Championship at the Chadwick Arboretum and Learning Gardens at Ohio State University.
Three of the contestants,Finance Investment all professional arbors, advanced to the “Master’s Challenge Round.”
Chris Bramlage of Milford, near Cincinnati, won the state championship for the second consecutive year. He works at Madison Tree Care & Landscaping. Bramlage will represent the Buckeye State at the International Finals July 26-27 in St. Louis.
Jose Fernandez, who works for the Wexner family in New Albany, was runner-up and Brian Griffith of Madison Tree Care & Landscaping was third.
The championship had five preliminary events: secured footlock, belayed speed climb, throwline, work climb and aerial climb. The three competitors with the highest aggregate score advanced to the Master’s Challenge Round.
The events are all tasks competitors perform in their daily duties as arborists.
Chris Ahlum, manager and safety director of Ahlum & Arbor Tree Preservation in Hilliard, is a past competitor and was co-chairman of the 2008 Ohio Chapter Championship.
The preliminary events are proscribed, Ahlum said, but the Master’s Challenge Round is free form.
“Each person does it a little differently … anything goes,” said Ahlum, adding the contestants are not permitted to watch each other.
The secured footlock event requires a person to climb a static rope hanging free from a treetop. In “belayed speed climb, the rope is against the tree trunk and the climber, using the rope as leverage, must navigate the tree limbs to reach the top.
Throwline requires the person to hit a series of targets with rope. Work climb is a series of events including cutting and throwing limbs, and aerial climb requires the retrieval of a 200-pound mannequin from a tree.
In the Master’s Challenge Round, competitors have 28 minutes to complete a hybrid of all five preliminary rounds in the order of their choosing.
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