For some strange reason I was taught how to chop down a tree in primary school. Naturally they didn’t set us loose with a chainsaw on the local flora. It was, like most things taught at school, something in a book. I suppose it was meant to be one of those things that was meant to keep us interested while we went through reading comprehension exercises. However I struck it several times, so I’ve remembered it. Twenty years later I’ve actually had a chance to use this skill.
In the intervening time most tree-felling duties have fallen to my father; who sells and repairs chain-saws for a living. I’ve learnt a bit by observation. For example, if you need a bit of tension on a rope, say to ensure a tree falls in a particular direction, don’t use a steam-train. The acceleration is awful and by the time you have any tension gravity has had its say in the matter.
I did my tree the old fashioned way: with an axe. It was just a small tree, but too large for the pruning saw. The exercise is surprisingly theraputic, up until the next morning when the shoulder muscles start complaining. They didn’t teach me about that bit in primary school.