Firefighter Combat Challenge - Heroes, atletes, lifesavers Nick Durcholz
Downtown Evansville’s
Riverside Drive
and Cherry Street
intersection will become a fire fighter’s battle ground in mid-October – that’s
when brave men and women will meet to compete in physically taxing events that
mirror many of the struggles and tasks involved in responding to a fire and
saving lives. In other words, these hardy individuals are willing to work their
butts off for others’ entertainment and enjoyment. Of course the fun involved
in watching the Evansville Metro Firefighter Combat Challenge Team in action is
part of it, but more importantly, the event allows the people of Evansville to realize
just how mentally and physically taxing it is to be a firefighter.
The Evansville Metro
Firefighter’s Combat Challenge mimics many of the same tasks a firefighter must
perform on a routine basis. Wearing what they call “full bunker gear” and SCOTT
Air-Pak breathing equipment, pairs of competitors engage in a series of five
events linked together. There is a “High Rise Pack Carry,” in which competitors
climb a five-story tower with a hose bundle; event two is the “Hose Hoist;
“Forcible Entry” is next, which sees the use of a chopping simulator and a
nine-pound mallet to move a 160-pound steel beam horizontally for five feet;
next is a “Hose Advance,” a tricky 140-foot slalom course competitors must
navigate with a fully-charged hose; finally, the “Victim Rescue” demands that
each firefighter lift and drag a 175-pound mannequin backwards a distance of
100 feet.
Simply performing one –
let alone five – of these events would be demanding enough, but competitors
must accomplish each in order, and with a very strict set of rules and
guidelines to follow.
Festivities begin at 12
p.m. on both October 17th and the 18th. In addition to
the excitement of the Firefighter’s Combat Challenge, visitors will be in a
prime location to enjoy all of what the downtown area has to offer. From fine
dining to historical attractions including the last operational World War II
Landing Ship LST 325 and the picturesque ReitzHomeMuseum, the experiences are many. Casino
Aztar Hotel will serve as the host hotel, and when the Combat Challenge is
mentioned upon check-in a special room-rate will be given.
Other festivities
include an on-site Chili Cook-Off on the 17th starting at 12:30 p.m.
and will showcase the culinary skills of local Evansville Fire crews. Funds
generated from the Cook-Off will go to benefit the MDA and the Hoosier Burn
Camp. Ten crews have joined, each armed with ladles and five gallons of chili.
An amount of $5 will get a patron a cup of chili to be refilled at each of the
10 booths. Regardless of the recipe, it’s a great way to combat the cool weather.
On Friday, October 16, West
Franklin Street’s (and Evansville firefighter-managed) Club Royale
will host a meet and greet with the firefighters; free cover is available to
them and their guests. Drink specials will be available for everyone along with
live music by The Jimmies.
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