My young hunting buddy Mike outgrew me. It wasn't that he grew up, got a driver's license and discovered girls, although all those things happened. Mike, who later played college football, literally outgrew any tree stand I had when his weight neared 300 pounds.

We were lucky, very lucky. After one afternoon hunt, we met as planned at dark at a field edge, to walk together back to my truck. We started driving and Mike said something like, oh yeah, I almost forgot to tell you, but you know that stand I was in? It seems like those cables, the ones that go to the platform, are sort of giving a little.I'd realized Mike was getting bigger. I was driving a small pickup then, and it had seemed that Mike was stuffed into the passenger side. But weight limits on tree stands? I'd never given it a second thought.Most climbing stands, portables and single-person ladders are rated to 300 pounds, and two-person stands commonly rate to 500 pounds. If you're a heavyweight division hunter, you have to consider the total of your weight, your clothes, your backpack and your gear.What's more, you better find out what the weight rating is for your safety harness. It won't do you one bit of good to buy a stand rated for 350 pounds if you have a fall while wearing a harness rated for 250 or 300.If a hunter's weight exceeds the harness rating, in a fall the hunter could tear through the harness, or portions of the harness could tear or be compromised in such a way that the harness strapping material could wind up around the hunter's neck, choking him. And how old is the tree stand you're using? Forget the Craig's List deals - do you really want to trust your safety, possibly your life, to an old stand you got for $25?I've recently been stand-shopping (yeah, I know, most women like shoe shopping, I like studying tree stand specifications), and found a new portable stand with a generously-sized platform for $70. You shouldn't use any stand that does not have a sticker on it that says "TMA (Treestand Manufacturers' Association) Approved."Some years ago, I was at a tree stand safety lecture given by John Louk, president of TMA. A man named Bobby volunteered to step off the front of a tree stand platform, while wearing a full-body harness, to demonstrate a "fall." The stand was only about head-high on the tree; Bobby was about six feet tall and weighed about 250 pounds.Bobby dangled and struggled for three or four minutes, using significant effort, before he was able to climb back into the stand. Once his breathing returned to normal, he said, "I'm going to buy a ground blind." Then he thought some more and said, "On a cold day I would not have been able to get back into the stand."It was a demonstration that illustrated one more safety step we should all take before we hunt from any type of elevated stand. First, buy a stand that's TMA approved and suitable for your size and the weight of your gear. Second, always wear a full-body harness which is tethered to the tree.And three, let someone know where you'll be and what time you'll return. Otherwise, you may find that you've become a real tree hugger!