Yeah, you guys that wont wear it are crazy. Do you realize how many people think the same way, and end up dead or so bad off they may as well be dead?

I understand its a minor nuisance to climb all the way up and all the way down with attached to the tree. But its better than the alternative. Like the others have said, its a few extra minutes at most, and much better than years of pain or no more years.

My experience today left me re-thinking everything I do when hunting from stands. I always thought I was extra safe, and cautious, and thought "it will probably never happen to me because I am careful". Well, it happened in the blink of an eye, and caught me so off guard that I would have been seriously injured or killed because ofthe awkward way it slipped. GUARANTEED death or serious injury had my belt not been hooked up! Infact, had I been wearing just a safety belt and not a full body harness, I probably would have flipped upside down because the stand slipped and pitched out to one side.

I preached about harness's before, but now I owe my life to one. Dont count on agility and being used to heights to save you. They wont cushion the ground when a stand breaks, or something goes wrong.

WEAR a HARNESS! And wear it from the time you leave the ground (or a few feet up) to when your feet touch the ground. If you are honestly worried about the extra few minutes, get to your stand location a few minutes earlier. Heck most times I climb up in the morning, I have to sit waiting in the dark anyway. Whats the difference between 29 minutes of sitting in the dark and 27 minutes? Could be life or death!

BUCKLE UP!