The tradition, which originally originated in 1976 in the United States, is also followed in the Czech Republic. 38 competitors registered for this year’s 25th edition of the Czech Tree Climbing Championship, in addition to Czech representatives, guests from Slovakia, Poland, Hungary and Israel also came.
“It’s a measurement of the competitors’ strengths, their skills, experience and climbing techniques. It’s a simulation of their work and a presentation of this profession. What they demonstrate is the activity they normally do at work,” explains Jakub Fanta, arborist and guarantor of the competition, which is organized by the professional association Society for Garden and Landscape Design.
But the contestants do not cut the trees, they work only with taped saws, the organizers prepared the trees in advance and secured them for the performance of the tasks at a total of five stations.
“It’s about installing a rope in the crown, that’s the basis of their work, they can’t get into the tree without it, the other disciplines are for time – climbing the branches and climbing the rope for speed, then work in the crown and rescuing the injured. The last two are the most complex and interesting, it’s really about technique and experience,” explains Fanta.
For example, while climbing the rope as fast as possible, the competitors must reach a height of 15 meters and ring the bell there. “The world record is under eight seconds,” says the organizer. The best Czech competitor is said to be able to do it in about 10 seconds. And who knows, maybe it will be surpassed this year.
The most spectators on Saturday were apparently attracted to the rescue of the injured man, who was left hanging on a rope in the air.
“From the moment the competitor enters the competition area, he has six minutes to remove the dummy, which in our case weighs around 90 kg, so it really is the weight of an adult man. At the same time, he has to provide first aid before the ambulance arrives, there is always a simulated injury, this time it is a falling branch on a climber who is unconscious,” describes the organizer.
Among others, Jiří Voda, a forty-year-old arborist from Horní Vilémovice near Třebíč, performed in front of Novinek’s camera during this rescue.
Photo: News
“It is important not to make any technical mistakes, there are many things that are scored, it is necessary not to forget anything and to respect the time limit,” he summarizes what he has to think about during the discipline.
He has been working in the industry for sixteen years and has already won the Czech Championship five times. “I got to it through rock climbing. Today, it’s not the only way to get to it, it can also be studied at school. It’s a varied job and I enjoy moving through the trees as such,” the competitor explains.
He admits that it can be a dangerous profession if the climber takes risks. Therefore, we usually work in a team so that in the event of a problem or injury there is someone on site to help. “And the most important thing is not to fall,” laughs Voda.
The number of female tree climbers is increasing
Tree climbing is historically and statistically dominated by men, estimates indicate that women make up approximately 5 to 10% of professional tree care workers. However, according to the organizers, they are slowly penetrating the field and competitions more and more.
