# Epic Fail - Man vs Tree **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 21, 2012, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422 "2012-03-21T17:04:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/21 "2012-03-22T13:53:02Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > With that big of a tree, falling, I’m surprised the roof didn’t completely collapse. I figure the branches helped slow the fall. But wouldn’t you love to see the reaction of the roofers when they arrive and see this tree, the roof and the cut stump? ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/22 "2012-03-22T14:30:45Z")
> [@Docta\_G](#): > > That’s a Douglas fir, so this event probably happened in western WA or OR. I never understood Northwesterners’ fascination with cutting down trees for no good reason. I need a new roof; I know, Ima gonna get me the n-surance people to pay for it. Now how do I go about getting just enough damage that they need to replace the roof. I know… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/23 "2012-03-22T14:46:58Z")
When I was in 8th grade, our science teacher suddenly went missing. All we knew was that a substitute teacher had been assigned, and that Mr. Smith was going to be out for a long time. When he showed back up, several months later, he was in…well, he was in a body cast. Seems he’d attempted to chop down a tree in his yard, and to prevent it from falling on his car, which he didn’t have the foresight to move, he climbed way up into the top of the tree (pine) and tied a rope to the top. He then tied the other end of the rope around his waist, in an oh-so-misguided attempt to pull the tree in the direction he wanted it to fall. Yeah. The tree fell, crushed his car, and he became the projectile in a homemade 90-foot-tall trebuchet. Came extremely close to killing him. He was lucky to be alive. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/24 "2012-03-22T14:48:28Z")
And Jesus Christ, I hope no one was in that house. ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/25 "2012-03-22T14:49:01Z")
> [@Ogre](#): > > When I was in 8th grade, our science teacher suddenly went missing. All we knew was that a substitute teacher had been assigned, and that Mr. Smith was going to be out for a long time. > > When he showed back up, several months later, he was in…well, he was in a body cast. > > Seems he’d attempted to chop down a tree in his yard, and to prevent it from falling on his car, which he didn’t have the foresight to move, he climbed way up into the top of the tree (pine) and tied a rope to the top. He then tied the other end of the rope around his waist, in an oh-so-misguided attempt to pull the tree in the direction he wanted it to fall. > > Yeah. The tree fell, crushed his car, and he became the projectile in a homemade 90-foot-tall trebuchet. > > Came extremely close to killing him. He was lucky to be alive. See now a video of THAT would have gone viral. It does concern me that it was a science teacher though. Clearly he didn’t do the calculations correctly. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/26 "2012-03-22T14:53:44Z")
> [@Moonlitherial](#): > > See now a video of THAT would have gone viral. It does concern me that it was a science teacher though. Clearly he didn’t do the calculations correctly. Yeah, I’d say. 😃 He did have the grace to be embarrassed when he explained it to his students. ---
**Author:** ![Docta\_G](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/2bfe46/32.png) [@Docta\_G](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Docta_G)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/27 "2012-03-22T15:18:59Z")
> [@FlyByNight512](#): > > You wouldn’t believe the amount of sunlight those things can block out all year round. We’re all sunlight deprived to begin with, so every ray is precious. 😛 (Well, that plus the more obvious reasons of very aggressive roots and the tendency to fall on houses. I would have chosen to take down the tree in the video too, albeit with a professional crew.) > > My grandfather used to use a block and tackle to pull trees in the direction he wanted them to fall. It worked well in the forest around his cabin, since there were always trees at a suitable distance to attach the other end of the rope to. I never saw him cut anything larger than eighteen inches in diameter, though, and it’s possible that I’m overestimating that. The tree in the video definitely calls for a professional crew. I’m from Puyallup, WA, and grew up with guys who wanted nothing more out of life than to set chokes, buck, and fell. Oh, and chew and drink. ---
**Author:** ![Docta\_G](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/2bfe46/32.png) [@Docta\_G](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Docta_G)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/28 "2012-03-22T15:21:53Z")
> [@Hypno-Toad](#): > > So how badly do you think it damaged the house? It didn’t appear to crush it. But who knows if the roof trusses were broken or outright snapped. And did it mess up the shingles? Maybe, maybe not. That roof is completely fucked! 😛 ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/29 "2012-03-22T15:42:20Z")
I agree! If you watch closely, the entire thing, jumps a little, at impact of the tree. That can’t be good. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/30 "2012-03-22T17:33:31Z")
> [@Ogre](#): > > And Jesus Christ, I hope no one was in that house. Well, I strongly suspect _Mrs._ Lumberjackass wasn’t home, since the neighbor could not have been so mean as to deny us the footage of THAT reaction… ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/31 "2012-03-22T17:47:49Z")
> [@Ogre](#): > > And Jesus Christ, I hope no one was in that house. I am hoping the family lawyer was sitting on the toilet. ---
**Author:** ![Ca3799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9f8e36/32.png) [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/32 "2012-03-22T18:21:27Z")
> [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](#): > > Why was someone standing there filming him chopping a tree in the first place? > (Is there a voice-over explanation? My computer doesn’t have sound on). I worked with a tree trimmer/arborist when I was young. There is something about a tree being felled that makes people stop and watch. They just do it. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/33 "2012-03-22T20:01:53Z")
Video no longer there. No fair, I want to see tree fall fail. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/34 "2012-03-22T20:53:46Z")
[![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Px_BCqasYoc) You’re welcome. ---
**Author:** ![Laggard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de053/32.png) [@Laggard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laggard)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/35 "2012-03-22T21:11:24Z")
That’s what you get for chopping down a perfectly cromulent tree. ---
**Author:** ![that\_darn\_cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/59ef9b/32.png) [@that\_darn\_cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/that_darn_cat)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2012, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422/36 "2012-03-22T21:38:25Z")
On the up side, got plenty of pine for the new trusses… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epic-fail-man-vs-tree/616422.md?page=1)