Patent ID: 7389854

Claim:
A hunting stand for supporting an operator at an elevated position, said stand comprising: a plurality of racks securely welded to front and rear portions of a vehicle and extending upwardly therefrom, said racks including a plurality of connected tubes and a plurality of support plates attached thereto respectively, said support plates having a predetermined surface area spanning above said racks respectively; a frame have a substantially A-shaped and being selectively adaptable between lowered and raised positions, said frame comprising a plurality of elongated leg members having bottom end portions disposed adjacent said racks, front and rear pairs of said leg members being positioned at said front and rear vehicle portions respectively, a plurality of support members each having an open upper end portion and a lower end portion defining a cavity therebetween, said upper end portions for receiving said bottom end portions of said plurality of elongated leg members therein respectively, said lower end portions being pivotally connected to said racks, a first plurality of cross braces secured medially of said front and rear leg pairs respectively and for defining a plurality of steps onto which an operator may climb, a second plurality of cross braces pivotally connected to said frame and being disposed intermediately of said front and rear leg pairs for assisting to maintain said frame at a substantially stable position when adapted to a raised position, and a plurality of locking flange portions selectively spaced along associated lengths of said second cross braces and said leg members, said locking flange portions being alignable and selectively engageable with said second plurality of cross braces when said frame is moved to the raised position; a plurality of brackets for connecting said leg members to said racks respectively; a seat section attached to an apex of said frame and being adaptable between operable and non-operable positions as desired by a user; an elastic strap removably attachable to said rear rack and traversing across a width of said frame for assisting to maintain said stand at a substantially stable positioned during non-operating conditions; and an elongated support rod having an annular female end portion adjustably attached to a tow ball of the vehicle, said rod having a male end portion oppositely disposed from said female end portion and for engaging a selected portion of said frame during non-operating conditions wherein said rod extends rearwardly and upwardly from the vehicle towards said frame; wherein said front leg pairs are detachable from said front rack when said frame is moved to a lowered position so that said stand can be folded and aligned rearwardly of the vehicle while allowing the operator to be seated in a driver seat to transport the vehicle, said first and second leg pairs have a greater length than said first and second cross braces respectively.