Several years ago, I had an old friend, Jim Finn. Jim had invented a totally new concept in tree stands. It was a very small package that would fit in your pocket. It was inflatable, very lightweight, and easily attachable to a tree. You simply climbed up the tree using two Velcro straps to attach it and then you popped to CO2 cartridges which immediately inflated the tree stand.
Now I heard through the grapevine that Jim had sent one of these inflatable stands to Swede as a birthday gift, knowing that he was a tree stand hunter. He had sent it as a gift hoping that Swede would use it and possibly do a chapter about it in his new book.
About a week after receiving the gift, Swede decided to give it a try. It was one of those blustery windy days that often happened around the middle of September. As a matter of fact, it was so windy that most hunters in their right mind would have stayed home and not even consider hunting let alone climbing up a tree that was blowing to and fro in the wind. But Swede being the mighty Hunter that he is, wasn\'t about to let a little windstorm keep him from hunting that day.
As he approached his favorite tree he put the inflatable stand in his pocket and proceeded up the tree. Swede likes trees that provide great height and he stopped climbing at approximately 35 feet above the ground and found an excellent place to attach the inflatable tree stand. Unfortunately he didn\'t tighten up the Velcro straps as per instructions. But he did manage to pop the two SO2 cartridges and the stand immediately inflated. It was a rock solid and Swede was very very impressed. So, he climbed into the stand. \"WOW\"! Not only was this a lightweight, very portable, easy to inflate tree stand, but it was exceptionally comfortable.
About an hour later, just as Swede was getting a little drowsy, he happened to look to his right and noticed movement. It was a spike bull, and one of the biggest elk Swede had ever seen in his life. As I mentioned earlier, the tree was swaying back and forth but he didn\'t want to miss the opportunity to collect the biggest elk he had ever encountered. So, with the trees swaying he proceeded to pull an arrow out of his quiver.
Unfortunately, his elbow bumped into a limb as he was a pulling the arrow from its quiver and the broadhead punctured the side of the inflatable stand. Now do I need to tell you what happens to a balloon when it deflates? Well, the inflatable tree stand took off like a rocket ship with Swede still setting in it. We are all so thankful to this very day that Swede had thought to fasten his seatbelt because he was last sighted 200 miles to the east dangling from a power pole in downtown Boise Idaho.
He was caught on radar at Mountain Home AFB as he entered it Idaho airspace and they scrambled two F-16 fighters immediately to intercept him. Apparently they thought something that made a radar blip that small and traveling that fast, could possibly be a stealth fighter. As one of the fighters flew over him, the jet wash from his engine forced Swede downward and onto the power pole. What a lucky break! Had it not been for that jet forcing him down he would have continued on course and probably would of crashed somewhere out on the desert in the vicinity of Idaho Falls.
The Boise fire department had to call in a hook and ladder truck to get Swede off the power pole. All the while they said he was hollering,\"Save the treestand! Save the treestand\"!
The police were also on scene and they took him to the station or mental evaluation.
I still can\'t figure out, to this very day, why Swede omitted this chapter from his tree stand book :crazy: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
Now I heard through the grapevine that Jim had sent one of these inflatable stands to Swede as a birthday gift, knowing that he was a tree stand hunter. He had sent it as a gift hoping that Swede would use it and possibly do a chapter about it in his new book.
About a week after receiving the gift, Swede decided to give it a try. It was one of those blustery windy days that often happened around the middle of September. As a matter of fact, it was so windy that most hunters in their right mind would have stayed home and not even consider hunting let alone climbing up a tree that was blowing to and fro in the wind. But Swede being the mighty Hunter that he is, wasn\'t about to let a little windstorm keep him from hunting that day.
As he approached his favorite tree he put the inflatable stand in his pocket and proceeded up the tree. Swede likes trees that provide great height and he stopped climbing at approximately 35 feet above the ground and found an excellent place to attach the inflatable tree stand. Unfortunately he didn\'t tighten up the Velcro straps as per instructions. But he did manage to pop the two SO2 cartridges and the stand immediately inflated. It was a rock solid and Swede was very very impressed. So, he climbed into the stand. \"WOW\"! Not only was this a lightweight, very portable, easy to inflate tree stand, but it was exceptionally comfortable.
About an hour later, just as Swede was getting a little drowsy, he happened to look to his right and noticed movement. It was a spike bull, and one of the biggest elk Swede had ever seen in his life. As I mentioned earlier, the tree was swaying back and forth but he didn\'t want to miss the opportunity to collect the biggest elk he had ever encountered. So, with the trees swaying he proceeded to pull an arrow out of his quiver.
Unfortunately, his elbow bumped into a limb as he was a pulling the arrow from its quiver and the broadhead punctured the side of the inflatable stand. Now do I need to tell you what happens to a balloon when it deflates? Well, the inflatable tree stand took off like a rocket ship with Swede still setting in it. We are all so thankful to this very day that Swede had thought to fasten his seatbelt because he was last sighted 200 miles to the east dangling from a power pole in downtown Boise Idaho.
He was caught on radar at Mountain Home AFB as he entered it Idaho airspace and they scrambled two F-16 fighters immediately to intercept him. Apparently they thought something that made a radar blip that small and traveling that fast, could possibly be a stealth fighter. As one of the fighters flew over him, the jet wash from his engine forced Swede downward and onto the power pole. What a lucky break! Had it not been for that jet forcing him down he would have continued on course and probably would of crashed somewhere out on the desert in the vicinity of Idaho Falls.
The Boise fire department had to call in a hook and ladder truck to get Swede off the power pole. All the while they said he was hollering,\"Save the treestand! Save the treestand\"!
The police were also on scene and they took him to the station or mental evaluation.
I still can\'t figure out, to this very day, why Swede omitted this chapter from his tree stand book :crazy: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
