Some of you guys are either braver or dumber than me it seems. Falling is a very real posiblilty for every hunter that ascends a tree. The flippant atittude of walking away or having a sore ass is just pure idiocy. Falls happen FAST, and the likelihood of being able to correct yourself in mid-air before contacting the ground is very slim. Plus, your natural reactions will have you reaching for something, further changing your position in the air. Even landing on your feet from 14' up is going to cause some problems. Let alone landing flat on your back/stomach, or in the worst case, on your head/neck.
I hadn't really ever thought about what I would do if I fell. I take all the pracautions that I can, but getting and out of the stand is the problem. I carry my cell, wear a harness, have a knife, but wow, if I did fall and couldn't get out, hate to think about it. I hunt a long way from home usually, and alone on most hunts. I'm sitting here wondering if I would be able to get back into the stand if I was hanging from my harness. Or, if I fell on the opposite side of the stand from where my strap-on ladder is, how that would work. May have to try it in the yard sometime.