It's really not a tall tale, but back in the 60's I helped to build a wall that was over 120' tall. It was built inside the 'Shake Test' lab at Space Technology Laboratories, located in Manhattan Beach.
We were going to build 2 walls. We would frame a second wall about 2' away and paralel with the 120' wall, so that no one could drill a hole in the one wall and look into the Shake Test lab. Supposedly, the lab would 'shake' a rocket that was suspended from the roof structure while the shaking was done. We never got a clear answer as to what was going to happen there. I did know that there was a very deep hole in the ground on the Lab side of the wall. I presumed that the hole was there to contain the bottom end of any rocket that was too tall for the lab.
My mentor, friend and foreman told me that I didn't have to work on that wall as he knew of my strong dislike for high places. I thought about that conversation for a few days and then decided I was going to conquer that fear. The next day I told Alex that I wanted to work on the wall. And so it started.
We were using a Sky Climber which was a narrow plywood plank atop an aluminum framework. It was about 20' long and there was a hoisting motor at each end. The motor grasped (very firmly) a steel cable. We had safety belts with rope brakes that encircled a lengthy and strong safety rope. The safety rope and the steel cable for the lifting motors were attached to the roof structure. We would have to move those attachments 4 times as the 20' plank was not long enough for the 100'-foot length of wall we were building.
We had to start up in the attic space. The sheet metal workers had put about 1/2 an acre of planks and plywood between the large roof trusses and that is where they fabricated the ductwork that was being used on the project. They even had an electric Manlift to get up to their worksite.
A little while later we had safely attached the cable and rope and took the Manlift down to the ground. In the meantime, our crew had moved the Sky Climber into position and had attached the electrical cables to our motors. All we needed to do was power the motors up and give them a try. We soon learned that both motors had to operate at the same time, if not, one end of our plank would rise higher than the other end. It was close to the end of the day, so we decided to start the next day.
The next morning, my partner and I put our safety belts on and attached the rope brakes. Our wall was going to rest on a structural steel frame with 10' long studs between the supports and we would start by using powder actuated fasteners to secure the top and bottom stud track. We powered up the Climber and went to 20' to start the framing process. That was when I got my first taste of the sway that came with the climber. The swaying would lessen as we climbed and by the time, we were at 60', the angle of the cable kept us pressed against the wall. We had planned on framing 20' of wall at a time before going up to the attic space and moving our Climber gear foward another 20'.
By the end of the week we had framed the the first section the wall, 20' by 100'. Next week we would be going towards the 40' mark. The week went by fast enough as we were eager to have it behind us. The chore of sliding the rope brake along with us everytime we went up or down was wearing on us. That and making sure the power cord was not snagged.
I had felt a pain in both feet that lasted all week. What was the reason for that? I soon figured it out, I was digging my toes into soles of of my boot, trying hard to grasp that plank beneath me. I had to laugh about it but it persisted until we finished the wall.
Now we went to the 60' level, we were going to be half way towards our goal. That week my partner was absent for a few days and so we asked for volunteers. We soon had the volunteer and I briefed him on what we had to do. Up we went and close to the 60' level my new partner stopped his motor and said, "I'm not going any higher. There are birds flying underneath us!" This was true and we had seen it before, as the outside panels of the building were still incomplete, allowing the birds easy access. I couldn't talk him into going any higher so we dropped down to the floor and we found someone else do the job.
The week went by with few problems and then it was time to move the Climber forward again to move us to the next 20' and now go to 80'. It turned out that 80' was way out of my comfort zone and my foot pain increased. We also found that it was much quiter at this height. There were a lot of other trades working in the building and the noise level rose as our Climber descended to gather more material and take a break. When we were up, we could see all the work being done and the workers seemed to be smaller. One day, we spotted a large piece of flat sheet metal slip between the planks up in the attic. The sheet didn't drop suddenly, it caught the air and slid one way and then back again, but always dropping slowly. As we watched we could see it heading toward a carpenter that was busy cutting up some plywood. We yelled as loud as we could, but the only ones that could see what was happening were too high for their warnings to be heard through all the noise at ground level. Then the sheet made its final slide and hit the carpenter at knee level. It must have been a soft bump, as he simply turned around and looked at the sheet laying on the ground before returning to his saw. He had no idea of how close he had come to death or injury.
I did have one moment of sheer terror while working on the wall and that was when I accidentaly tangled my safety rope around the controller for the Climber motor, and as I started to walk to the other end of the Climber, the motor engaged and one end, my end, of the Climber began to sink. I yelled at my partner to "stop climbing" not realizing that I was the one at fault. He was just as confused as I was until he looked down toward me and saw the tangled rope. The plank was at such an angle that I slid all of the way down to my end and only the safety rail kept me in I finally got the message and reversed direction. Meanwhile, I had the shakes from my misadventure and it took a few minutes for my heart to slow down.
I remember that it took close to a month to finish the framing of the wall. Then we stayed away from it until the electrician's finished their work on the wall. Then, a week later it was time to put the drywall on those studs. First, we had to add a pulley so that the drywall could be hoisted up to us as we climbed higher and higher. But instead of a pulley system which would have been slow, we decided to use a 'well wheel' system as it would be faster, though not an easy pull. We found a crew member who willingly took on the challenge of pulling the 90# sheets of drywall up to us.
I didn't stay on the job long enough to see the wall finished as we had to start another project. Now, 50+ years later, I would be surprised if the building itself is still there. But the memories are still with me. And I had found a way to work at heights. I was still cautious but not fearful as my career took me to many tall buildings.
Next, I think I will write about the Circus Circus Hotel & Casino in Reno. It was another 'tall' story...
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