[brianmwaters_hn]

There are a lot of companies that claim to do industrial rope access outside the scope of the certification programs, but be skeptical of them at first. (That doesn't include companies in other rope disciplines that are different from rope access, like tree climbing and entertainment rigging. Those are different trades. RA takes most of its methods from caving, and some from rock climbing.) If you want to learn to do it right and have a good experience on the job, "go legit." But that means you'll have to get certified. Unless you have specific, in-demand skills (electrician, fiberglass technician, weld inspector), few companies will pay for your first course - you'll just have to pony up $1000+ on your own. However, once you get a job, they'll pay for your re-certifications, as well as follow-up courses that you take as you get more experience and climb up through the certification ranks.

[doorhammer]

Ohhh, yeah. Sorry. I reread what I said and realized I expressed myself really poorly.

I'm interested in taking the course without getting a job doing it, not the other way around. I was wondering how much it was to take it on my own dime.

I should have said something like "I'm interested in the course; can you take it and not get a job using it, or do you have to be on a job-track through a company to even take the course?"

I used to be a pretty avid rock climber and I'd be really interested in learning the techniques and types of equipment they use.

Reading my post, the climbing buildings part probably didn't reduce the perception that I was trying to do something risky, either

[brianmwaters_hn]

Well, yeah, you can just pony up the cash and take the class. Your experience would be something like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUDob3m6rds - it's really technical, and really challenging. If you have the cash to waste, and a week, it could be fun.

[doorhammer]

Yeah, I'll have to look into it. I assumed you could take the course, but I didn't know if you'd need to be sponsored by a company or anything like that.

I don't know that I'd see it as a waste of money. I just like using my vacation time and money to experience something completely different and new, while learning new skills. Even if I'm not out doing something more interesting and engaged, I'd just end up hiking around finding a place to hang a hammock and read a book on coding or a technical paper.

My wife says my vacations aren't vacations because I never look like I'm relaxing in the classic sense. I'm not kicking back on a beach with a pulpy novel, usually (not that there's anything wrong with that). For me, a vacation is a time to psychologically recharge, and I get that by engaging myself, but on my own terms. Along with that, depending on how long the certification lasts, it's not that bad to have a backup skill/cert in the wings.

I've also found that it's really valuable to get insight into what other people do to make the world go round. Gives me a better respect and understanding of things in general.