After the History Channel “Suicide Missions” HIGH VOLTAGE special on linemen came out in 2000, the American power delivery industry took notice of Ropes That Rescue and Reed Thorne. The documentary was a definite 'watershed moment' for lineman training in rescue off power transmission lines and conductors as the History Channel video showed so well. Soon afterwards, the use of kernmantle rescue ropes on these huge transmission lines, like those used in mountain rescue and fire rescue, was slowly making its way into the industry. Reed wrote early articles in Transmission and Distribution magazine trying to change the paradigm of using typical linemen “brain buckets” on transmission and instead using climbing style helmets with sturdy chin straps and no hard brim which could injure the lineman’s neck in a fall off a tower. Of course, this was a hard sell to utilities but the change was afoot. PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) for transmission line workers began to depart from the PPE that distribution linemen wore. And for good reason. Transmission linemen would see more traumatic injuries (falls, and mechanical failure issues) and distribution linemen would see more electrical clearance issues (contact injuries, etc.). Even the harnesses changed and Reed teamed up with a leading harness manufacturer (Yates Gear) to create the best transmission lineman harness which is still a best seller all around the world. This harness carries the RTR logo even today. 
The videos shown below are prime examples of Reed’s work with linemen tasked with sometimes difficult rescues off of steel transmission lines and towers and also his efforts to introduce rope access to the discipline. There are three videos here which were produced by some competent audio visual people for the three different companies. We acknowledge them for allowing us the use of these for our web site.
- The History Channel “Suicide Missions” HIGH VOLTAGE showing 500kv energized rescue of injured linemen from center bundle where clearances were too tight.
- The Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) production for their crews on what we did to access cross tie spacers in their extensive 500kv system in California
- The Quanta Energized Services produced video of Ropes That Rescue hands-on training at Georgia Power Company where line crews were replacing center phase V string insulators on live 500kv lines.
