Has any one ever used this method?

[Matthew]

This is a video of a guy logging , he is ground skidding and his horses are having trouble starting the load. He puts a 4 or 5 foot -4inch around piece of wood under the log being pulled and it gets the log started. Is this a advised method or is the log out of control while on the piece of wood? It is just my opinion but it looks like the horses are without at least back shoes and they would really help.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6bH2oB875w

[jen judkins]

I thought they were a very well presented team and did not think any part of it was out of control. I thought the logging rolling bit was awesome and would do it myself if the occasion arose (though I have not tried that before). Just another arrow for the quiver. I’ll be interested to hear from some loggers about the technique.

Thanks for posting it! Jen

[Carl Russell]

I agree, he did a great job, but the britchen…WTF.. might as well not even have it on…

Team and teamster worked well together. I liked the way he applied the roller log. I have used roller logs many times. There is no doubt that a log on rollers will reacts differently than one just skidding on the ground, but in this case it was obvious that the teamster was well aware of how the log was moving. His team was very responsive, so I feel good about him making somewhat risky maneuvers.

Thanks for the link, Carl

[mitchmaine]

i noticed the britchin too, carl. heck, you could put another horse in there. not that they needed it but you gotta wonder………..

[Stone Horse Farm]

I liked the team alot, and the roller was a handy solution to get the log rolling BUT I would have had a much shorter trace to start with for more lift. Or an arch. Those traces were chained to the britchens as a sort of lazy strap too far back on the trace thus pulling them way away from the animal (useless anyways). The quarter straps were snapped to the market straps to keep up out of the way, but were distorting the line due to the aforementioned ‘lazy straps’. Awesome team, in the collars but quiet. Beautiful.

[Scott G]

You can move a lot with roll poles, aka loggin’ like an ancient Egyptian. Felling across one would have helped reduce his excavation time while trying to set chokers as well and killed two birds with one stone.

Using a set of chokers for a bridle set up would have given him a bit more lift and helped considerably as well as lessening the trench being plowed back to the landing. An arch would be optimal.

The britchen…wow, maybe the guy doesn’t own a hole punch 😉

Nice quiet team

[jen judkins]

@Carl Russell 18913 wrote:

, but the britchen…WTF.. might as well not even have it on..

HAHA! I didn’t even notice, my first run through! When I went back and looked specifically at the britchen…I laughed my ass off! How could I have missed that! Maybe he never goes downhill?

[Carl Russell]

jenjudkins;18928 wrote:

…. Maybe he never goes downhill?

Britchen is basically useless when working with loose rigging anyway, and he may never use them on a wheeled rig so never snugs them up. Many loggers used to just have back pad and belly band and that was it. Just seems funny to have britchen on the harness and not have it adjusted to fit, especially seeing his apparent skill and savvyness.

Carl

[mitchmaine]

hey carl, i picked up some harness like that in a pile of gear i bought once. it was four ring with the tugs and spider gone, and the guy hooked chain in for tugs and passed them through canvas fire hose to protect the horse. never tried it out tho’. light and easy to use, i think.
somebody pointed out the long hitch. i think i might have shortened them up a few links.
i feel bad pickin’ this man apart without him able to defend himself. especially when he’s doing such a handy job with his horses. that must be the price you pay when you put yourself out there on cyberspace.
nice quiet team tho’, ain’t they?
mitch

[grey]

It kind of comes with the territory, Mitch. It’s the same as being photographed candidly. You never know what the story is behind the situation. I once had my picture taken and put in an equine publication; my horse was wearing a hastily-borrowed harness that was about five kinds of loose and sloppy, but the collar fit and the hames fit and I was just dragging stuff on the ground. Made me look pretty bad, though. Them’s the breaks! But, yeah, we should take into consideration that there might be a perfectly good reason for things being the way they are.

[J-L]

He just pulled off his yoke strap and pole strap from his farm harness to get it out of the way. Then put his quarter straps up out of the road. The brichen doesn’t have anything to keep it forward. It’s not out of adjustment, just out of use. Probably the quickest way to go from farming to loggin with the same set of box brichen harness.
I have done similar when working in places with lots of snags ground skidding. No brichen necessary but easier to just take a few things off rather than readjust everything. Glad no one took a picture of it!
Looks like a good hand with a nice team.

[Baystatetom]

As a “want to be” ox logger I am glad I saw your video. You may have saved me and my team a lot of frustration by sharing. Thanks

[Claddagh Farms]

That team did really well to ground skid big hemlock sticks like those. I used to log in WA and it’s a hard job for a Deuce & a 1/2 boom truck to snag some of those logs. Do any of you other loggers whistle at your horses, or is it just a WA thing? Seems like quite a few of the loggers I knew back there used whistle commands. I could never pick it up. By & large Tony & I work silent except for “walk-on” & “back”. I’m trying to get him to learn “step-up” for taking one step forward….seems he’s always trodding on the lines, chains or trace chains…it might also help him put his shoulder to the load a bit easier. Been considering training him to sheep dog commands for everything else vocal….then I wouldn’t have to re-train myself.

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