Monument To A Tense Moment

I ran across this old barber chair in Jefferson County, Illinois recently. This tree was cut somewhere around twenty years ago, and the stump serves as a silent reminder to those who see it that trees have the ability to smash you if don't know what you are doing. When the tree began motion, it split lengthwise, standing on the springpole, and what happened next we do not know. If the logger escaped unharmed he was a lucky person, and I hope he changed his ways.

Here is what he did wrong. He made one horizontal cut on the heavy side of the tree, then cut from the opposite side without first opening the front to allow the tree to rotate downward on the hinge wood. When the first cut closed, the tree split. I imagine fast footwork ensued to get out of the way. Read the chainsaw safety rules on the lower left sidebar, and peruse the postings under the 'Chainsaw' label to learn all of the cuts you need to safely drop a tree. It doesn't take a very big tree to kill you, and chainsaws are the most dangerous tool we use, so please pay attention to safety when you crank up.