A Record Turnout
Saturday the 1st of September was my first experience of the Fittest Firefighter competition and what a memorable day it was, with competitors’ friends, families and hundreds of members of the public each shouting words of encouragement to the 40 plus competitors. Those in the know tell me it was a record turnout!
The day started fairly early for all of us from the Welfare Fund team. With Mark, our newly crowned Event’s Co-ordinator, Pauline and Beth being the most energetic of us, each spending most of their early morning rushing around collecting and delivering the last few pieces of equipment needed to make the event run smoothly. The rest of us from the Welfare Fund went about setting up a stand where specially designed T shirts and children’s helmets were sold promoting the event.
The competition started just after 10a.m. when each finalist took to the stage, their intention being to beat not only their own target times but also the efforts of their opponents. Every 15 minutes a new pair of competitors stepped forward, some finishing their contest with times that surprised them, others feeling sure they could have done better!
Alongside the firefighters were 10 finalists from an original figure of 100 from the Brigade’s LIFE project. Each young finalist was put through a similar course to that completed by the main competitors.
At about 4.30p.m. and after an agonising wait for those with exceptionally good times, the defending champion Paul Gray stepped forward for the final contest of the day…… and you’ve guessed it, it was a Hat Trick for this unbeatable athlete.
Paul says that this was the last time he’d be taking part in the Fittest Firefighter competition but who knows the temptation just might prove to be too much!
On the accompanying pages are some of the many photos taken on the day, plus a number of testimonials from competitors, each giving their own insight into their experiences on the day. You never know after reading what they have to say you just might be tempted to try your luck next year!
Carole Connolly
Welfare Fund Director