Back in the days of my telecommunications career, I used to frequently climb telephone poles for repair work, new installations, disconnects, etc. This event involved a service order that my buddy, J.C. and I were to work on was at Fort Jackson, SC. At that time, both of us worked for RCA, who had a five-year civilian contract with Fort Jackson. This particular order was for the “disconnection of telephone lines to a mess hall.” This WW2 wooden building was scheduled for demolition. So JC and I proceeded to throw on our gear and put our ladders in place. I took the task of removing the cable from the building and JC hooked his ladder up on the main cable… right in the middle… BETWEEN the two poles. This created a drawn back bow or slingshot effect with JC being the arrow or rock. Then he prepare to cut the midspan clamp to the building. As I’m seeing this dilemma unfold, and before I can get the words out of my mouth JC says “OK Bubba, I’m cutting the cable” - (meaning the cable happens to be holding back the tension). As he does, I’m yelling “noooooo.” I then watch in slow motion the slack going out of the midspan cable with JC being approximately 18 to 20 feet off the ground. JC’s weight causes the ladder to launch him like a catapult into the air. He was running in mid air while flapping his arms… at the same time making noises that were quite foreign to me. To my relief, he gracefully hits the ground, rolls and comes to rest on his back — much like a cat. As I run over to him and ask him if he is alright I’m trying not to laugh at the events that just occurred. He looks at me, eyes wide open, gasping for air, and says “Bubba, Bubba, that scared me Bubba.” I always thought that “Bubba” was a funny word for an African American pastor to use. I miss JC and wonder what he’s up to now - (no pun intended). He is an all around great guy… I think he missed his calling as a stunt man.
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