When Bruce McCandlis did the first independent spacewalk, why did they not at least have a safety tether?

Question

I mean just in case it failed. How would they have recovered him?

Answer 1

He was testing the Manned Maneuvering Units and the Manipulator Foot Restraint.  Since there were two MMUs aboard, I suppose they could have taken the other one to fetch him if he had been unable to get back in on his own.

"Former NASA astronaut Bruce McCandless II was one of the first two astronauts to make an untethered walk in space, in 1984, when he participated as a mission specialist on the tenth space shuttle mission (STS 41-B). He and Lt. Col. Robert Stewart tested the Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU) and the Manipulator Foot Restraint. McCandless made the first untethered free flight on each of the two MMU's carried on board and alternated with Stewart in the activities constituting two spectacular extravehicular activities."

Answer 2

The shuttle would have manuvered to him and picked him up in the cargo bay.

(The difference in velocities was around 1/2 feet per second.  The shuttle has more than enough delta-V to retrieve an astronaut with a faulty MMU.)

Answer 3

My guess is that it would have interfered with the maneuvering pack he was using.

The line would create some sort of drag on you, perhaps pulling you off course or even flipping you around.