Canadian Championship Winners ~ Halifax, NS
|
|
2007 National Team Champions
2007 National Relay Champions
~ Halifax Regional Municipality Fire Service ~
Team #1 Members: Joe Triff, Andrew Foote, Rob Hebb, Adam MacNeil, Mike Sears
Team #2 Members: Joe Barbati, Richard Hynes, Bruce Mosher, Cyril Fraser, Jeff Clarke
|
| |
|
National Team Perennial Championship Trophy
Donated by Sherbrooke & Longueuil Fire Service & Areo-Feu
|
| |
We have arrived in Kamloops and the beginning of the 2007 Season is upon us!
Great site! And looks like fabulous weather!
Here is what the new floor looks like!
For those of you who know Jeff Bell of the Kamloops Fire Department... check out what he has been working on!
The 2007 Season is Upon Us!
Hello FireFit Competitors! The 2007 Season has begun, with off-season strength training in full swing! Course work will start in the spring, West Coast sooner than the rest of you! In fact we are enjoying… finally… some normal Wet Coast Weather! We have definitely had enough of the Snow!
As you have probably heard the West Coast has been battered by some vicious storms this winter including hurricane force wind-storms which devastated British Columbia’s jewel, Stanley Park. Luckily we survived the wind, which believe me was incredible and quite humbeling. Considering we are surrounded by 100’ to 200’ trees we count ourselves very lucky. To our amazement the worst storm for us, was an end of November snow storm, very unusual for us in Canada’s Banana Belt! The dogs had a lovely time…
and we enjoyed it too until the power went out for over 3 days and then waking up Monday, November 27th we found the shelter that we store all the FireFit Equipment under COLLAPSED! What a shock!
Luckily no one had been under it as it was a huge mess of twisted metal and snow. Damage to 4 vehicles and the only thing that came out of it unscathed was my 20’ T-shirt Trailer nestled between the tower and our living trailer!
Needless to say it has been interesting dealing with all the Insurance Companies and despite being at the top of the list for replacement of our shelter we are still with nothing! Luckily it has done more snowing than rain this winter so we have tarpped what we can and hopefully we will not have too much damage done once the rains do come.
In between Insurance calls we have been hard at work getting things organized for the 2007 FireFit Season. Dale has researched and purchased a new flooring system for the Event. The new flooring is called Versa Court.
Versa Courtt is an all weather multi-game court system. It is used for outdoor tennis courts, Basketball, Volleybal, Cricket, Badminton etc.
The course will be colour coded with red & white on the right side and yellow and black on the left side (when facing the tower.) This new surface is a ¾ inch raised grid work of interlocking molded plastic. The advantages are that it is a one piece court surface that will cover over rough pavement, smooth concrete and wet spots. It is not affected by the sun or wind and using normal caution during rain should give us an all weather, standardized court for Events.
We are also upgrading the upper arm of the manikin. Simulaids is in the process of adapting the Rescue Randy we used last year (Handcuff Randy) with a stiffer upper arm and keeping the soft lower arm. The soft lower arm got rid of the problem that has always existed with the fingers getting caught in the pavement and Competitors having to kick the arms out in order to get their arms around Randy. The stiffer upper arm will allow for the normal pick-up Competitors are used to.
The new Force Machine went through a rigorous testing year and is now available from PMC, contact Perry Haire at 613.968.2882 or Email: phaire@tpmc.ca .
We are hoping that all Events will be firm by the Middle of February so that we may do our Annual Mailing! Please remember to update your personal information in the Registration System, train smart and in a matter of a few months we will see you on the course!
Be Fitter, Faster, Stronger… FireFit!
***NEW*** In Case of Emergency (ICE)
After reading this I have added ICE to my cell phone.
A recent article from the Toronto Star, "the ICE idea", is
catching on and it is a very simple, yet important method of
contact for you or a loved one in case of an emergency.
As
cell
phones are carried by the majority of the population, all you
need to do is program the number of a contact person or
persons
and store the name as "ICE".
The idea was thought up by a paramedic who found that when
they
went to the scenes of accidents, there were always mobile
phones with patients, but they didn't know which numbers to
call.
The idea is that you store the word "ICE " in your
mobile phone address book, and with it enter the number of
the
person you would want to be contacted "In Case of Emergency
".
In an emergency situation, Emergency Services personnel and
hospital staff would then be able to quickly contact your
relative or friend, by simply dialling the number programmed under "ICE".
For more than one contact name simply enter ICE1, I CE2,
ICE3 etc.
A great idea that will make a difference !
Thursday, August 31st - Thank you Team Toronto! Gitter Dun! A bit of a challenge but thanks to Debbie, Charles and their Team it all came together! Great time on the 'Beach' with Randy K & Mr. Drover! Great to see Niagara Falls Air Force Base and Warwick up from the States! Super bunch of guys!
For those looking to order the FireFit Force Machine please contact Prototype Machining at 613.968.2882 or www.tpmc.ca
Windsor looks like it is shaping up to be a great Event! If you not going to be there we are going to miss ya!
Wednesday, August 23rd ~ We believe a great time was had by all in Ottawa at the Navan Fair! What a super place! Many thanks to Denis & Ivan for putting together a great Event. The racing was good, with some truly exciting races! Way to go Denis SUB 2! The D-Train laid down a convincing run despite a penalty. Ottawa is always a great place to visit and we look forward to returning! Check out the Results.
This weekend we where in Brampton right downtown! The weather was threatening but we managed to get it all in with very little rain. It was great to see the Windsor Team out again with Jumpin Jack Flash back on the course after a bad ankle sprain. The race of the day was between Mike Gilbert and the D-Train, Dwayne Drover and what a race it was! Jacqueline of Vaughan also had a fantastic race getting herself into the zone and bettering her PB. The Major hosted the Competitors to a Pizza Party after the Saturday competition and is a fantastic supporter of our Event. We look forward to returning!
This week it is on to Toronto where we will be right in the heart of town in the Toronto Dominion Centre! You won't want to miss it!
Check out our Tentative 2007 Schedule! It is all coming along nicely!
Don't forget to update your Competitor Bio's prior to your next Competition. Remember that Registration for Events closes the Wednesday before an Event.
For all those planning on going to Niagara Falls please register early as we are trying to get a sense of numbers. Also you need to reserve your Awards Dinner Tickets prior to August 31st with Mike Halle (burf@cogeco.ca) as tickets will not be available after that date due to the fact that we need to confirm the # of Diners with the Chef. So please contact Mike RIGHT AWAY!!!
Wednesday, August 9th ~ Despite
an amazing drive through 2 unbelievable storms last week we made it to
North Bay in one piece! It was great to be back and we received a
wonderful welcome from all the North Bay Gang! Great site location
made for a fantastic Event which was to be expected with the North Bay
Organizational Committee headed by Derrick Desilettes doing a fantastic
job. Thank you so much! The weather was perfect! Not to
hot, with no humidity. Great crowds cheered the competitors on to
some fantastic races. Look out for the New Windsor team (all rookies
this year) with top three times all under 1:35! WOW! North Bay
looks like they are back in form too with Eric Denomme running a
1:29! We look forward to seeing more from both these teams! A
big thank you to Sharon Paris (our rent-a-mum) for letting us get cleaned
up and rested! On to Ottawa! See you on the course!
Sunday, July 30th ~ Hello
my duckies! We are just wrapping up our visit in Newfoundland!
Many thanks to Craig, Sandee, Brian, Harry, Troy, Wayne, Margo & Brian
for putting on a great Event in Stephenville! Despite the torrential
rain earlier in the day the Event went on without a hitch! True to
Newfoundland the hospitality was 2nd to none! We can't thank you
enough. Sandee you are a gem! Running me around everywhere
trying to get my computer fixed after the hard drive crashed! A big
thank you to all those competitors who made the trip to the Rock... The
Toronto contingent had a time of it but came up with some awesome runs
despite the sleep deprivation! Dwayne, Dan & Joel from
Waterloo, Shaun from Oakville, Chris from Hoyt, Jacqueline from Vaughan
and of course all the Halifax boys who serenaded us! What fun was
had! Check out the results on the Results Page!
Monday, July 24th ~ Awesome Event in
Gaspe! We thank Carl and his team of Benevole for all of their hard
work throughout the week! The participation from this Department is
second to none! Just check out the Results! Now it is on to
Stephenville! Take care and see you on the course!
Wednesday, July 19th ~ At
least I think that is the date! The summer just seems to be
flying... barely time for us to catch our breaths! We are in
picturesque Gaspe, Quebec! The weather is gorgeous... not too hot
with a light breeze to keep you just right! The course is up and the
Training Camp has begun!
Goodness hard to believe that it
has been a month since I last posted! Well since then we have been
to Kitchener, Quinte West, Moncton and now Gaspe!
A big thank you to our Hosts in
Kitchener, Quinte West and Moncton for 3 great Events. Thank you to
the Competitors who layed down some awesome runs too! Thank you for
your great hospitality from the best camp spot you could ask for at G.K.'s
place! The 4 lb lobsters (notice plural! thanks R.A)... to Dale's
Chocolate Birthday cake (of which he did not share! K.B)... A long hot
shower in Shediac (Yippeee!) Here in Gaspe we are being treated to a
stay in a beautifully restored Inn established in 1860! More long
hot showers!
It has been great to hook up with
all of our Eastern Competitors and we look forward to the trip to the Rock
next week. Stay tuned for Gaspe Results!
2007 Schedule
We are in the beginnings of
developing our 2007 Schedule. If you are interested in Hosting an
Event please forward your information to hilary@firefit.com
Please include contact mailing address, Phone #'s and Email.
See you on the course!
Be
Fitter, Faster, Stronger... FireFit!
Wednesday, June 21st ~ The First
Day of Summer is here! Well lets hope the weather starts to improve
for us! Our last 2 Events left a little bit to be desired as far
as weather was concerned! The Vermilion Event went off without a
hitch with plenty of hands on deck to build & tear down! This
year we introduced the Relay Tournament which we ran on Sunday after a
great Individual Day on Saturday. The Tournament was well received
and we believe we will do this again next year.
Our visit to Moose Jaw was great despite
the challenging weather. My that wind can blow in
Saskatchewan! This was a building year for the Saskatchewan Event
and we hope to return to Moose Jaw next year and see more teams
enthusiastically participating. Gord and his crew did a great job
and we must thank the Moose Jaw Casino and Temple Garden's Mineral Spa
Hotel. What a fantastic spot! Moose Jaw has some very
interesting History... that we were completely unaware of. A great
place to visit! The FireFit event was held in conjunction with the
Street Festival so there was loads of things to see and do all
weekend! We look forward to returning!
2006 Rankings! Check them out
Classement 40 ans / Over 40 Category
Classement
Équipe / Team Category
Classement femmes / Women's Category
Classement individual / Men's Category
Classement relais / Relay Category
Sub 90 Club
Thursday, June 8th ~ Couple of
Awesome Events in Chilliwack and Syncrude. Many thanks to Lisa
Axelson and her team for putting on a great first time Event! Check
out some footage from the Event! www.tvnwmediagroup.com/firefit We are looking into doing webcasts from some of our Events throughout the
year. Let us know what you think!
Thank you Syncrude for a great day in Fort
McMurray... the sand storm was a bit challenging but we all toughed it out
and it turnout to be great fun! Look forward to seeing you Teams in
Vermilion. Drive safe and see you on the course!
The New Force Machines are shipped and I
will be picking up in Edmonton today! Will keep you posted on what
we think of them!
Tuesday, May 16th ~ Here
is the New Course Layout!
Monday, May 15th ~ Whoowee! What a weekend! We could not have asked for a better spot or
weather! Fantastic! Thank you Dano! and your Crew for
doing an AWESOME job! Thank you Victoria Fire! Our site was
right on the water of Victoria's Inner Harbour... a bit of a challenge to
get into but well worth it! Course looked great! and attracted a
huge crowd! The Beer Garden ran out of burgers and hot dogs and had
to race to get more! Luckily Lighthouse Brewery was right on top of
the suds which were plentiful and delicious!
The racing was great! No slips or falls even the Corporate Rugby Team stayed standing up!
Vancouver won the Team with Delta
close behind! Watch out for Delta this year... they are back with a
powerhouse Team! 3 new competitors running sub 1:49... WOW! Their Relay will also be one to watch as they won the Event with a 1:14! Mark Millward, also of Delta
laid
down a great first run of the year with a 1:33 winning the Over 40 Cat.
and placing him 3rd overall. Tamara Wolfe of Langley had a good
first run with a 2:42, despite just recovering from a torn hamstring
injury. Colin Macaulay was the man to beat running a 1:26.32, great
to watch! Ryan (wrong turn) Rickards, (who said that!) of Delta was
right on his heels so if he can get his turns right he will be good to
go!
Next stop Chilliwack! 2006
has begun! See you on the course!
Fitter,
Faster, Stronger... FireFit!
Monday, May 8th ~ WestJet has given us booking Code #'s again this year! Here is how
it works! Call WestJet
Specialty Sales Team at 1.888.493.7853 to make flight arrangements. For flight schedule information, please
visit www.westjet.com.
With the Booking Code # for the
Event you wish to attend (find this on the Event Webpage below the 'Who's
Coming' link. WestJet will offer a 10%
discount off their best available regular fare at the time of booking
(excluding seat sales). Travel arrangements must be made through the WestJet Specialty Sales Team.
Discounted rates are available for travel up to 3 days prior and 3 days
after each of our Events. For groups of 10 or more travelling
together, please contact WestJet Specialty Sales for fare information.
1 complimentary ticket will be
given by WestJet for every 50 seats
booked per Event. We are hoping that we will be able to do a draw at
Finals in Niagara Falls for at least 1 ticket! Happy booking!
Tuesday, May 2nd ~ Introducing... the New Force Machine! Developed by
Competitors for Competitors!
From Chris Wigley, Quinte West
Hey Dale & Hil,
Here are some pictures of the 'New Force
Machine'. I am
very pleased with the
way it works and I don't notice any changes in my technique even though we are only moving the beam 11
inches instead of 60 inches.
You'll notice that in the pictures, the
mallet is leaning against the beam while
sitting on the tray. This is the position that the beam will be in once it is reset. The face of
the beam is 10" back from the edge of the tray.
This will allow the competitor to have the beam at their heels right from the start. We have a
sticker on the tray similar to the existing force machine
counting down to zero. This sticker will start at 5 and countdown to 0. The beam can physically
travel 12" however we have the "0-Mark" 1 inch
before that so that you can still hit the beam past the finish line. This will force the competitor
to still pay attention and time their last hit. I realize that we have seen
various changes in the past which have been less than
subtle. What I have done here is try to minimize the shock factor and try to as closely mimic the
existing force machine. Right off the bat, you'll
notice that the sled is only 4 feet long. Even with the smaller footprint, it is very stable
and will still allow the competitor to run onto the
sled down the one side if that is the way they do it now. I have kept the following things identical
to the Keiser:
1. face of beam is still 10" x
8" and is the same height off the tray so the view
of the sticker will remain the same.
2. top of beam is at the same height above
the treads
3. distance between treads as well as
distance between the tread and the side
of the beam
4. beam length is the same
5. tread width
6. sticker on the tray
It is very easy to reset the beam. When
the evolution is complete, the beam sticks
out from the end of the tray. You can simply crouch down and place your knees on the edge of the
beam and push in while holding onto the edge of
the treads. The
only major difference that I see would be from the standpoint of the spectator or team mate
watching. We will not be able to clearly see that the
evolution is complete as we were in the past.....once the beam passed the end of the tray.
The cylinder itself has no external parts
that can be tampered with. Each cylinder will be machined and factory set
to be identical. Clean or dirty, wet
or dry, hot or cold...both force machines will be the same on game day. I have played around with the
number of hits and will likely have it set in the
neighborhood of 12 hits for me. This is without me running the stairs and hoisting the donut
before-hand. The machine is set-up so that you are rewarded
for big hits. For instance, if I hit it hard, it took 12 hits. If I went easy, it took over
20 hits.
Please post this e-mail and pics as soon
as you can so that we can start to get
the information out there. I'm still trying to expedite things at my end to have these in place for
your first event but I'll have to get back to you.
The good thing is that it is so damn close to the existing machine and the technique (as far as I'm
concerned) remains the same as well.
Wednesday, April 26th ~ The
legend of Bob Murray has spread down under and he has been convinced that
he should attend the Sky Tower Climb on the 6th of May in Auckland,
NZ. The Auckland Boys are sure that he doesn't know what he is in
for!
Not only has he entered into the
main section he is also doing the 10,000 Stair Challenge where he has to
ascend the Tower three times in 90 minutes, each accent is 1029 steps, or
47 floors... easy for Bob!
The Auckland Boys thought that
you might want to support Bob with Pledges... he will do the climb and we
will see the after pictures!
The Firefighter section to this
Event started out in 2001 with six firefighters climbing. Last year
they had 85 firefighters and together they raised just over $16,000
for the Leukemia and Blood Foundation of New Zealand.
Let's support Bob and help the
Kiwi's! Click on the link below to pledge Bob and leave him a
message of support!
http://www.fundraiseonline.co.nz/BobMurray/
Tuesday, April 25th - RED
FRIDAYS ----- Support our Troops! Received
this from one of our Competitors, no matter what your political
opinion might be we need to support our troops... lets join in!
Very soon, you will see a great
many people wearing Red every Friday. The reason? Canadians who support
our troops used to be called the "silent majority". We are no
longer silent, and are voicing our love for God, country and home in
record breaking numbers. We are not organized, boisterous or over-bearing.
We get no liberal media coverage on TV, to reflect our message or our
opinions.
Many Canadians, like you, me and all our friends, simply want to recognize
that the vast majority of Canadians support our troops. Our idea of
showing solidarity and support for our troops with dignity and respect
starts this Friday -and continues each and every Friday until the troops
all come home, sending a deafening message that ~ Every
red-blooded Canadian who supports our men and women afar will wear
something red! By word of mouth, press, TV -- let's make Canada, on every
Friday, a sea of red much like a homecoming football game in the bleachers.
If every one of us who loves this country will share this with
acquaintances, co-workers, friends, and family. It will not be long before
Canada is covered in RED and it will let our troops know the once
"silent" majority is on their side more than ever, certainly
more than the media lets on. The first thing a soldier says when
asked "What can we do to make things better for you?" is...We
need your support and your prayers. Let's get the word out and lead
with class and dignity, by example; and wear something red every Friday!
Wednesday, April 12th - The
FireFit Crew would like to wish you a Happy Easter!
Hard to believe we are only a month away from our first Event in
Victoria! We are busy getting organized and looking forward to
seeing everyone!
We have posted a new page on the
website called FireFit History...
very interesting to see who has done what! and to note the Medal
Count! Check it out!
This year we are implementing
some changes when registering. We have done some work on the Registration
System and hopefully it is a little more streamline and easier to
use. We have also adapted the payment option this year.
Upon Registration you will be required to complete payment either by Visa,
Master Card or Department Purchase Order. This is to prevent the problem we had last year where
we had Events that appeared full but when it came to Competitors actually
showing up some of those who had registered without paying where no
shows. This caused disappointment for other Competitor's who
wanted to compete but we had to turn away as we thought we were
full. This year you will be required to pay when
Registering. We hope that this will help eliminate the problems we
had last year. Keep your fingers crossed! Any problems please
contact our office at 604.626.0918 or Email: admin@firefit.com .
We would also like to thank all
those who Competed and Volunteered for the Grind in the City Charity
Stair Climb in Support of Muscular Dystrophy! It was a fun day
and we look forward to this Event growing!
See you on the course! Be
Fitter, Faster, Stronger... FireFit!
Monday, March 6th - Well
the season is fast approaching! Hard to believe that or first Event
is just 3 weeks away! The Grind in the City Charity Stair Climb for
Muscular Dystrophy takes place March 25th!
This fun Event is open to
FireFighters and the General Public! This fun go at your own speed
event Come and help us Make Muscles Move!
Check out our the FireFit Chat on
the Home page!
Happy
New Year!
Friday, December 30th - Season's
Greetings to all of our FireFit Family! We hope your Holiday's have
been filled with the love of Family, & Friends and that your New Year
will be Happy & Healthy!
The 2006 Season is fast approaching and we
are working hard to finalize the Schedule which in the early stages of
January will probably be updated on almost a daily basis! Check out
the recent updates to the 2006
Schedule!
The 'Grind in the City' Charity
Stair Climb is BACK! This year we look forward to supporting
Muscular Dystrophy! Mark
your calendars for March 25th and join us at the Empire Landmark Hotel in
downtown Vancouver for this fun Event. A great way to measure your
fitness level and keep your New Years Resolution alive!Details
will be posted in the next week!
We are hard at work cleaning up the
Competitor Data Base and the Event Registration System will be up the
first week in January. We have already had people trying to Register
for Events in 2006! Please remember to Register Early as many
of our Events had to be closed last year due to maximum capacity.
We wish you and yours a very Safe and Happy
New Years Celebration! and look forward to seeing you all in the New Year!
Stay Safe and be Fitter, Faster,
Stronger... FireFit!
Monday, November 21st - Hello
Everyone! Things are shaping up for 2006, check out our Tentative
2006 Schedule!
If you didn't make it to the Nationals
Banquet in Edmonton you will want to check out the Hall
of Fame to see our new Inductee's for 2004! It is always a
tough choice as we have so many exceptional Competitors. We will be
creating a submissions area for Nominations on the FireFit Chat in the
next couple of weeks for 2005 Nominees! So stay tuned!
We wish all those heading down to
Florida a safe trip & good racing!
Go
Team Canada Go!
Tuesday, November 1st - Next stop
Christmas! If your looking for that perfect gift check out the 'Toughest
2 Minutes in Sports' Limited Edition Print, perfect for that hard to buy for
individual!
FireFit also has a good
selection of sizes available in our clothing items! There is even
time to special order anything that we don't have in the correct size for
that special someone at Christmas! Give us a call or drop us
an Email! Phone: 604.626.0918 Email: admin@firefit.com
Friday, October 28th - Don't
forget to watch the Premier Airing of the FireFit Championships from
Edmonton Alberta this weekend on TSN, Sunday at 14h30 EST! Let us know what
you think! firefit@firefit.com
Well
after almost a month the New Chat seems to be being used and viewed on a
regular basis! Any suggestions or comments are welcome just drop us
a line at firefit@firefit.com .
Updates
to the 2006 Schedule are happening daily (I can't even keep up
with them!) We are asking all Hosts to confirm their dates no later
than the 30th of November so that Competitors can make holiday pics and
arrangements.
Wishing everyone a safe and Happy
Halloween!
Friday, October 7th - Our New Chat is
Up! Check it out and let us know what you think! FireFit Chat
Wednesday, October 5th - Hey
Everyone! Have been busy testing the New Chat Board and
Forum! It is definitely a lot more advanced than the old
Board! I guess our old board was very antiquated and the software
had stopped being supported way back in 2002! How time flies!
Yikes! We have upgraded to the new Board which has some really cool
features that we think you will enjoy. We hope to have the Board up
by Friday so you can check it out over the weekend and let us know what
you think!
Tuesday, October 4th - Update on the
Chat Board. We are putting together a new board which should be up
within the next 48 hours! Sorry for the delay!
TSN Air Dates! Sunday, October
30th will be the Premier Airing of the 2005 Canadian National
Championships on TSN at 14h30!
2006 Schedule! Beginning to be
tweaked! Check it out!
Friday, September 30th - Our
apologies re the Chat Board. Our provider is having technical
difficulties we are in the process of fixing so stay tuned!
Thursday, September 29th - Hard to
believe but the 2005 Tour is complete! Our last Regional Event
in Strathcona, Alberta saw a super job done by Darren Anderson, Brian
Sturm and their Organizational Committee! A great turnout of
Competitors from across the country enjoyed the Strathcona
Hospitality. We would like to thank #4 Hall for making us feel right
at home and allowing us to do everything from laundry to setting up office
and using the Internet! Fantastic job and we hope to return for a
future Event!
Then a short drive to the Butterdome and
Nationals! Wow what an Event! Thank goodness we where inside!
Early in the week the mercury was dipping in the evening way, to close for
comfort to that 0 mark! The Butterdome staff where super and
provided just about anything that we required! All you had to do was
ask! Thank you to Jacqueline and her staff who were great! And
what a super facility the competitors where able to make themselves at
home and train to their hearts delight as the sun never went down!
No threat of shadows and twisted ankles on this course.
Thanks to all those who came down and
helped setup the course on Tuesday afternoon. Canadian Forces
Fire Marshal's, Delta, & of course Edmonton where there to lend a hand
and made short work of it. It was a quick build and then open for
practice.
The
4 days of competition treated us to thrill's and spills,
as competitors pushed the limits on a course made for performance. Inside
U of Alberta’s Butterdome under ideal race conditions was the perfect
setting for competitors to open up. On final day nearly 200 competitors
raced through the course setting up the drama of the last few matchups.
Two time National champ Jack Bailey set the time to beat at 1:23.32. Next
up we gasped as Dwight Sinnett who’s capable of a sub 1:20 every time he
blasts up the tower, took off against Vancouver's champion Colin
MacCauley. Across the finish line the clock stopped at 1:23.19, but Colin
had to add a 2 second penalty on the tower. Next up the owner of the
second fastest time ever Darren Hillman was taking on Hometown favorite
Bob Murray. Spurred on by the crowd Bob laid down a personal best 1:22.37.
But would it be enough as the only two competitors with faster times this
year took to the tower. Moncton’s Dan Malone was having a stellar year
of personal best races, he stood up against the primed and ready Jerome
Grand-Maison from Gaspe. Going for the gold both men pushed the envelope
hoping to put the final touch on an already outstanding season. But it was
not to be as Dan took a penalty for a missed step, while Jerome missed
finishing the force machine by centimeters. Edmonton’s Bob Murray had
done it in front of the home crowd and became one of only 5 FireFit
Champions. Peter Reid, Brent Hastings, Jack Bailey, Mike Gilbert and now
Bob Murray have been leaders in a group of individuals representing all
the provinces and territories of Canada that over the last 12 years have
shown the extraordinary fitness of an extraordinary profession.
Accolades
go out to all those competitors who traveled to Edmonton to compete, the
camaraderie and sportsmanship is still unrivalled in any sport. Many
thanks to the Edmonton Fire Department, especially Chief Wolsey for his
continued support. To Scott Macdonald and his Organizational
Committee who did a great job many thanks! To Bob Murray & Tara
thanks for your vision and support (and the space in your garage!)
We will miss you while you are in Australia but keep in touch! (Skype
baby!)
Looking forward to 2006 we are already busy
planning & dates are already firming so check out
the 2006 Schedule!
We wish everyone a safe and healthy fall
/ winter! Stay in touch! Train smart and be Fitter, Faster,
Stronger... FireFit!
Sunday, August 28th - Just finished
the Biggest Event of the Year! 186 Individual Competitors plus 30
Relay Teams! This was a warm up to Nationals for sure! Mario
Martin did his usual FANTASTIC job of organizing a most
spectacular Event!Definite Nationals Quality!
Saturday saw an outstanding Event day
unfold with perfect weather to boot! The women where ready and
Jacqueline Rasenberg of Vaughan took home 1st place with a 2:35.50, in
second was our Over 40 Canadian Champ Darleen Acton running a 3:04.26 and in
3rd from Conception Bay South, Jennifer Dawe with a 3:28.21 (watch out for
this girl!). In the Nicely Cured Division we had our Canadian Over
50 Champ John McGratten from Fredericton in 1st Place, Murray
McCartney of Canadian Fire Marshal's 2nd and Jacques Breton of Levis in
3rd! In the Over 40 Division it was Jimmy Kolar of Sudbury in 1st
with a 1:36.79! Denis Leduce in 2nd with a 1:45.56 and
Yoland Deschenes of Valcartier with a 1:48.05! Cooking with gas in
the Fastest Male Division was none other than Jerome GrandMaison of Gaspe
Team Lennox with the fastest time clocked on the course this year of
1:20.51. Dan Malone of Moncton smashed his own personal record with
a 1:21.69 to take 2nd and Dwight Sinnett also of Gaspe took
3rd with a 1:24.93! If you were not there you missed some Fantastic
Races!
In the Team Division it was Gaspe in 1st
with a 4:25.35! wooohweee! In 2nd was Moncton with a
4:39.16 (watch out for this team) and in 3rd it was the 'Young Gun's
Team' from Halifax Regional with a 4:59.81 !
The Pelican Relay was run on Sunday with 30 Teams
participating! Gaspe was primed and ready to break their World
Record Time that they set in Osgoode, Ontario of 1:06.27 . They came
so close just missing it by 2 one hundredths of a second (1:06.29).
Gaspe took home Gold but not without a true
challenge by Longueuil in the last race! Our Host Team was 2nd and
in 3rd a disappointed CFB Valcartier who had had a neck and neck race with
Longueuil for the final round. 4th went to Ville de Quebec.
Many thanks once again to Mario and his
amazing Event! It was fantastic! The Volunteers where
exceptional too! Thanks to the Longueuil Team and we look forward to
next year!
Now we are on the long trek West! We
will be on the road for at least 5 days so if you have any questions about
Nationals please contact our office at 604.626.0918 or Email admin@firefit.com ! See you in Strathcona!
Stay Safe and Train Smart!
P.S. Please update your
Competitor Bio's and TSN Bio's if you are going to Nationals! We
need this prior to your arrival! Do this from the Registration Page
and use your login and password.
Wednesday, August 24th - Can you say
Survivor! That is what it felt like on Friday in Brampton!
Minus the sand and palm tree's... the weather was a definite challenge
with tornado warnings and the sky opening up and dumping more rain than I
have ever seen! And it wasn't one of those short lived summer rain
storms...oh no it went on and on and on! When it is 3 in the
afternoon and it looks like night time you know there is something weird
going on! But we survived to put on another event! And WOW
what an event! Brampton just seems to be getting bigger and
bigger! 32 Relay's hit the course on Saturday evening in a
tournament style Event under the lights. Everyone seems to like this
format and was the competition fierce! We have some fantastic teams
coming up! Waterloo, Pearson, CFB Valcartier, Hamilton, Mississauga,
Ville de Quebec, Brampton, hey Laurentian Hills you guys did GREAT!
Not to mention Milton F.D. who had 5 Relay Teams in the Tournament that is
about 1/2 of their Department! What a turnout!
There were a couple of nail bitter races
but once the smoke cleared after 6 rounds it was Edmonton in 1st, Windsor
in 2nd, CFB Valcartier 3rd and Pearson 4th. But what a
battle!
Sunday dawned with clear blue skies and a
light wind. No threat of rain...thank goodness! 146
Individuals where registered to race! This was going to be a Big
Day! I don't remember much of it actually... it is all a blur of
smoke from the heat press! Due to the rain on Friday we had not been
able to get the bulk of the Competitor shirts done so it was catch up all
day. I do apologies to all those who had to wait, thank you for your
patience. So what I know of the event are the results! In the
Women's Division Tanya Philips of Mississauga had a great run taking home
1st place with a 2:29.57, her team mate Angie Holman not far behind in 2nd
with a 2:38.90 and Jacqueline Rasenberg of Vaughan in 3rd with a great
solid 1st run of the year at 2:39.47! In the Over 50 Division
we had Ron Hache of Sudbury in 1st running a 2:08.06 (awesome!), Brian
Jones from Belleville in 2nd with a 2:11.99 (Wow!) I think that is a PB
for Brian! and Bill Holwell all the way from St. John's, Newfoundland was
3rd with a 2:28.01, great job gentlemen!
The Over 40 Division was smokin' with Jack
Hickey of St. John's, Newfoundland running a PB of 1:31.92 to take first,
Randy Kalan of Kitchener was in 2nd with a 1:39.85 and Paul Dekay of
Niagara Falls not far off his PB with a 1:47.61 (not bad Paul, for the
first race of the year! wow!)
As it came down to the end of the day the
time to beat was 1:29.34 run by Steve MacCulloch of Guelph, run earlier in
the day. Steve's time was holding up until the last 2 runs of the
day. Mike Gilbert ran a 1:28.48 to take 2nd and Darren Hillman of Windsor,
Team Tregaskiss ran an outstanding race clocking a time of 1:24.05!
Wish I'd seen it!
The Team Category was won by Windsor - Team
Tregaskiss with a 4:30.49. Can you say depth. Windsor was
missing Jumpin Jack Flash and Greg Kotsis but still puts together an
outstanding Team Time! In 2nd was Edmonton missing 2 key players as
well to injury (Malcolm Hills and Neil Robertson) and also putting
together an outstanding Team Time of 4:49.72. Awesome to see you
guys! Looking forward to Nationals! In 3rd was a surprised 3
Muskateers Team from Ville de Quebec with a Team Time of 5:03.60 (Well
done!). Brampton's own Demon Team placed 4th with a 5:03.83 and won the
Regional Bye to Nationals.
Many thanks to all the Volunteers who made
this Event possible, it was a biggy and the weather made it more
challenging than usual. Thank you for your endurance!
Congratulations to Chief Macdonald, Peter Reid, Jordan Paris & Alexis
for putting the whole weekend together it was great! Thanks to Tom
Brayton of Scott Health & Safety for his support and to Ackland's
Grainger who provide volunteers from Coast to Coast!
On to Longueuil for this weekends
Festivities! This Event is going to be bigger than ever with 191
Individuals Registered and 37 Relay's to run on Sunday! Pray for me!
NATIONALS NOTE:
Please ensure that your payment is received
in our office prior to Nationals in order to reserve your spot.
Please reserve your National Awards Banquet
Tickets by September 1st with David Pusch at david.pusch@edmonton.ca
STRATHCONA NOTES:
1. In order to make Registration &
creation of the Start List faster we are going to require that all
Individuals and Teams pre pay their Registration Fee. Any payments
not received 1 week prior to this event will then be deleted and make
space for our waiting list.
2. IF you are unable to attend Registration
Confirmation the night before the Event, please contact our office by
September 8th to confirm you and your team members attendance.
Please either Email our office at admin@firefit.com or call 604.626.0918. Those who do not confirm with our office or come to
Registration Confirmation will be matched with others who have not
confirmed and run the risk of running by themselves. We are trying
to find a way to generate the Start List in a more timely fashion and not
make those who have Confirmed suffer. I hope that this will also stop
my hair from turning gray!
3. Don't forget Strathcona has a
number of Events planned which we are sure you will want to attend:
On September 10th, 2005, Strathcona County Emergency
Services will be hosting a Combat Challenge competition adjacent to its
main station. In addition to the Combat Challenge event planned for
that date, Strathcona County Emergency Services is also hosting two other
significant emergency service events that we would like to highlight for
your attendance.
On September 9th and 10th,
2005 the Strathcona Firefighters Honour Guard will host the 6th Annual “Just Because” Comedy Fundraiser at Festival Place in
Sherwood Park in support of the Strathcona Fallen Fire Fighters Memorial
Foundation; a non-profit foundation established to provide scholarships to
the young children of police, fire and emergency medical service personnel
killed in the line-of-duty. This year’s shows feature the great
comedy of Host/MC Billy Cowen (K-Rock Radio), Andrew Grose and Headliner
John Wing. Tickets for the event are available through Ticketmaster
(www.ticketmaster.com) for a
cost of $22.50 (includes seating charge) or by calling the Festival Place
box office at 449-3378. These are two great evenings of comedy and
raise money for a very worthwhile cause—please make every effort to be a
part of this great event!
Also
taking place on the morning of September
10th, prior to the opening ceremonies for the Combat
Challenge, is the Strathcona Fallen Fire Fighters’ Memorial March and
Ceremony where the Strathcona Firefighters Honour Guard will lead a
parade of uniformed fire, police and emergency medical personnel in a
march and Memorial Ceremony in
honour of all those who have fallen in the past, and will fall in the
future. All uniformed personnel are invited to take part in this
march and ceremony.
If
you are coming from out of town and wish to place flowers during the
ceremony, we would ask you to complete two basic steps. Firstly,
please feel free to contact Panda Flowers at 1-866-416-1719 prior to
August 24th to order a floral arrangement for the ceremony.
It will be delivered to the Memorial Site on the morning of the Ceremony
and be in position for you to lay it when you are called upon to do so.
Secondly, please provide a brief email to the Strathcona Firefighters Honour
Guard (strathconaguard@shaw.ca)
advising them of you intention for placing a floral arrangement and
providing the name of the person who will be called upon to make the
placement.
Despite
our sincerest hopes and wishes, as each year passes we continue to face
the loss of our emergency services’ brothers and sisters. In
December of 2004, Strathcona County Emergency Services laid Fire Fighter
Mike Adamson to rest following his lengthy battle with cancer. On March
2, 2005, we shared in the pain of our fellow law enforcement personnel as
they mourned the loss of Constable Schiemann, Constable Johnston,
Constable Gordan and Constable Myrol—four RCMP members killed in a line
of duty shooting while protecting the residents of Mayerthorpe. Less
than three weeks later, we stood together with our heads lowered as we
grieved the loss of Yellowknife Fire Department members Lieutenant Cyril
Fyfe and Fire Fighter Kevin Olson.
Unable
to find any justification for the line of duty deaths of our brothers and
sisters in emergency services, we honour their memories by carrying on
with the tasks before us and doing the best in all that we do.
Please take the time to join us as we honour these members during this
year’s Memorial March and Comedy Fundraising events.
Sincerely
yours,
Captain
Michael (Todd) Nixon
Strathcona Firefighters Honour Guard
Strathcona
Fallen Fire Fighters Memorial Foundation
Last
but not least if you have any questions or concerns please feel
free to contact our office at admin@firefit.com or 604.626.0918. It is best to Email the office as after Longueuil
we will be driving across the country and I will have no access to
Email.
Train
Smart! See you on the course!
Thursday, August 18th - Canadian
Nationals update! Getting Close! Please Register and ensure
that you order the Correct T-shirt Sizes as we are having these shirts
screened. This means we won't have the luxury of making adjustments
to sizes as we will order what you request when you register. We
don't want to disappoint so please double check your Team Members
sizes.
Nationals Award Banquet:
Please contact David Pusch to reserve your tickets. Tickets must be
pre ordered by September 1st. Contact Dave at david.pusch@edmonton.ca
Don't be disappointed as last year we had to turn people away!
Please book early!
Thursday, August 18th - Hey, Hey Hey
we are on our way to Brampton after a great Event in Windsor! Never
a surprise ... Windsor was bigger & Better this year with, bands,
Kid's Zone, Beer Garden & Food Vendors. The Charity Dinner on
Friday night was excellent as we are sure was the complimentary dinner on
Saturday. All i's were dotted and t's crossed. One little
glitch was the rain which soaked the coarse and due to the painted surface
beneath our flooring made it very slick. For the first time this
year we had problems with the floor so in the interest of safety we
removed the floor for Event day. This did not solve all the problems
however as the painted surface was slick despite the friction tape that we
put down and we saw some spills in the Relay. Due to the # of
Competitors as well as just being a one day Event we were unable to run
the Tournament Style Relay so began the day with a 2 run Relay
Event. Windsor showed that they are still at their top form posting
a 1:06.61 in the first round. They carried on to the 2nd round
taking 1st Place with Guelph in 2nd and new comers Waterloo in 3rd!
In the Women's Division Jana Chvatal from Toronto took 1st with Wendy
Krebsz of Markdale in 2nd and Daina Leroux of Streetsboro 3rd. Don
Kempf of Cleveland took home top honours in the Over 50 Division with Dave
Cusack of Lyons-Muir (who is now in the Over 60 Division!) coming 2nd and
Dave Kadwell of Burlington in 3rd. In the incredibly
competitive Over 40 Division long time competitor Bret Yundt of West
Lafayette layed down a 1:38.18 taking 1st, perenial favourite Randy Kalan
(speach!) was 2nd at 1:42.24 and John Blackburn of Pearson 3rd at
1:46.64! As the day went on the times got faster the crowd
anticipated what was to come with the home town favourites ready to show
their stuff! The run of the day came from Darren Hillman running a
1:24.30, Jumping Jack was 2nd (even with a horrific chest infection) with
a 1:27.72 and Steve MacCulloch of Guelph had a great run at
1:29.14! Team Results saw Windsor - Team Tregaskiss in 1st
with a 4:21.66, Waukegan Fire in 2nd with a 5:11.56 and Pearson Airport in
3rd with a 5:19.13 .
We would like to thank Lynne, Jill, Randy,
Jim, Jack and Chief Fields of the Windsor Fire Department for their
support and hardwork in organizing another fantastic Windsor Event.
Also the support of Dave Belamy of Tregaskiss for his vision in making the
Event such a huge success. It is always great to return to Windsor
and re-connect with friends and acquaintances. Terry thank you so
much for the lovely basket with a little something for everyone including
Sheba!
On to Brampton!
Tuesday, August 9th - We are back
from being away on the Rock! and what a trip! Stephenville was
a great time and a fantastic Event. Wonderful to see all of the
Newfoundland Teams as well as some from Wolfeville, Halifax, Waterloo,
Oakville & Hoyt making the trip to the rock! Great location with
a perfect parking lot and facilities for the Event. Some hot times
were run on this course with Chief Jack Hickey taking home Fastest
Individual as well as Over 40 Title with a great run of 1:32.93,
smokin! Wade Crane of CBS took 2nd Overal with a personal best of
1:36.73 and Rob Hebb of Halifax was 3rd at 1:37.83. Like I said
there were some GREAT Races! Kathy Babcooke of Wolfeville, won
the women's Division, also with a personal best of 2:36.94 and Wayne Smith
took home the Gold to North Atlantic Refining with a 1:57.44 in the Over
50 Division. The Team Category was won by Halifax at 4:58.20 and in
2nd was Conception Bay South(CBS) running a super time of 5:14.51.
CFB Halifax placed 3rd with a 5:37.89. The Relay's were exciting and
once the dust cleared it was CBS in First, CFB Halifax 2nd and Halifax
3rd.
A great big thank you goes out to Craig and
Sandee Harnum for looking after every possible detail as well as either
making arrangements for people to be picked up or personally meeting them
at the boat in Port aux Basque! Sandee even made me an
appointment for a pedicure! , my first ever, (not that you can tell now!)
which was absolute heaven! Thanks to Mrs. Harnum for a wonderful
home cooked meal and 2 huge trifles! And to Craig and Sandee again
for a Salmon BBQ on Sunday night! A great big hug to all the
hardworking Volunteers also who where excellent!
The Marine Institute which has just opened
a new campus in Stephenville, along with it's main campus in St. John's,
has approached us to confirm a long term Hosting Agreement. Taking
the bull by the horn the Marine Institute has ensured that Newfoundland
will have Regional Events for the next 5 years. We see this as a
win win for everyone. The Newfoundland Competitors are now assured
that they can qualify for Nationals without leaving the Rock, and we know
how expensive this is! What a bonus! We are sure that
this Event will get better and better every year! We can't wait to
return!
We also thank Debbie for the Event logo
design, and wish her much strength with her own Challenge! We are
thinking of you!
After leaving the Rock and traveling for 4
Days we made it to Osgoode just outside of Ottawa. This quaint
little Village was host to the 12th FireFit Event of the Year! 142
Individual Competitors ran through the course on Saturday plus 22 Relay
Teams, 5 Corporate Teams and 4 NxG2 in 2 out Teams on Sunday! WOW
can you say big! Holly Molly! Carole & Perry did a
fantastic job of organizing this event with dinners on both Saturday &
Sunday nights! A Wine & Cheese for Sponsors on Friday and non
stop volunteers all weekend long!
The weather was sun sun sun all weekend
which was hot, hot, hot and so were the times! 1st & 2nd Place
in the Men's Division was taken by Dwight Sinnett and Jerome Grandmaison
respectively of Gaspe ! This has been a horse race all
season long between these two. 3rd place saw Chris Ogg of
Mississauga with a fantastic run! Watch out for Chris he has been
improving all year! Just 43 tenths of a second separated the big man
Mike Madigan of Longueuil from 3rd Place with a PB 1:34.87 yeaha!
In the ladies division it was Denise (shootergirl) Townshend placing 1st
with new comer Kelly Hathway of Toronto in 2nd. Home town girl
Darlene Acton was 3rd after fighting a fire all morning long prior to her
race! In the Over 50's Brian Jones of Belleville took home gold (you
go boy!) with Ron Hache of Sudbury 2nd (great to see Ron back on the
course!) and Jacques Breton of Levis 3rd (well done Jacques!) John
Blackburn of Pearson Airport place 1st in the Over 40 Category with a
super 1:44.43! A local boy done good, Denis Leduc of Ottawa District
8 was 2nd and 3rd was Dean (shootergirls brother) Bourque of AECL.
Now on Sunday we ran the Relays, Tournament
Style! This is only possible when we have 2 day Events due to the #
of Individual Competitors that we have. We are thinking that this
will have to become the norm, at least in Ontario, that all Events will be
2 day Events with one day being for Individual runs and the other for
Relay. We began the day with our new NxG2 in 2 Out Event,
which incorporates the donning of your pack and the changing out of an NxG2 cylinder. 4 Teams participated and it was a huge success and well
received.
For those interested in competing in this
event it will be open to Mutual Aid Departments. It is a Mixed Event
at the moment ,but may evolve next year. So if you have a female or
male from the same Department or Mutual Aid Departments then start
practicing and sign up!
The NxG2 in 2 Out saw Sandy
& Darlene of Ottawa Dist. 90 set a new World Record of 2:05.81 just
beating out Dean Bourque & Denise Townshend who ran a 2:06.97. I
understand a re-match is in the works!
Our Toronto Ladies Team took home the gold
in the Women's Relay Event running a Team Best of 2:21.83 with the Osgoode
Ladies in 2nd with a 2:39.34.
All eyes were on the last race of the day
as Longueuil raced Gaspe who just seemed to get faster and faster.
Twice in the Tournament Gaspe ran 1:07's they were gunning for the
record!... Don't blink or you might miss it and sure enough in the last
race Gaspe did what they have been working on all season... a 1:06.27a New
Worlds Best Time! AWESOME! Longueuil was no slouch
with a 1:13 and Ottawa Sector 8 was 3rd with a 1:17! It was a great
day all round!
A great big thank you must go out to Sandy
and Darlene as well as Denis Charbinaue for their hardwork and knowledge
that really helped Carole and her committee do such a great job!
Merci Carole, Bravo! P.S. Chief Al Mathews is Awesome!
Monday, July 25th - Lots of
updates! Rimouski was FANTASTIC! Sylvain, Francois and Vincent
along with the organization committee did a bang up job of their first
Event! Great facilities for all the competitors. Big Crowd! Great
weather! and what an absolutely beautiful place to live! If you have
never been there then stay tuned as we hope to be back! The Gaspe
boys dominated this event taking 1st in Relay and Team Events. 1st and 2nd
in Individual. Charles Belanger 3rd. Cathy Belanger took home
the Gold in the Women's Division and we are sad to say that she is hanging
up her boots ... for now. We hope to see Cathy back in the
future. Murray McCartney took first in the Over 50 with Yoland
Deschene 1st in the Over 40! Bravo Rimouski! Thank you for
everything it was Tres Tres Bien!!
Update for Osgoode... have added
some more spaces but register quick as it has already filled once.
Also there will be 2 Banquets at this Event. Saturday will see a
supper at the Osgoode Legion. $10 per person with lots of cheap
refreshment! Sunday Awards dinner is $25 per person at the Community
Center (Event site) YOU MUST PRE BOOK your tickets for BOTH of these
functions. Please call Carole St-Jean at 613.957.7657 work or
613.826.0297 home or Email: carole_st-jean@phac-aspc.gc.ca
Osgoode has also requested that all competitors bring their City Flag to
the Event for the Opening Ceremonies. There will also be a Tandem
Relay Event. Tandem Teams must consist firefightes (1 Women and 1
Man) from the same Department. Exchanges will be either before the
Forcible Entry Machine or after. Tandem Competitors can not run on
other Relay Teams.
Off to the Rock! See
you on the course!
Monday, July 18th - Since our last
post we have completed 2 more Events, Belleville and Fredericton!
Belleville, Ontario saw
a huge turnout with Over 150 Competitors Registered! Can you say MAXED
OUT! It was a great competition and a fantastic Event site right on
the water. Lots to see and do at the Belleville with the
Waterfront Festival in full swing! Many thanks to the Belleville
Bunch! for putting on a great Event! Thanks to Ray and Diane for
having us for dinner it was very kind of you to think of us and add just
one more thing to your list of 101 things to do! The meal was great
and so was the company!
The Belleville Event saw competitors from
across the province as well as Quebec, and the States. A great
turnout from the women with Mississauga posting their 2nd win in the Relay
this year. The Men's Relay was won by CFB Halifax with a smoking
time of 1:17.59 and last years hosts, Quinte West, captured the
Regional Title. Winning their first team Event Pearson Airport
posted a 5:23.61 with their fastest 3 running a 1:45, 1:47 & a
1:49! Well done gentlemen! CFB Halifax took home silver and
Longueuil Bronze. The Regional Team Winner was our Host Belleville
Team 1. Tanya Philips won the Women's Division running a time of
2:32.97 and this after just returning from maternity leave!
Wow! The Over 50 Division was won by Belleville's own Brian Jones
and the Over 40 saw a perennial favorite Jimmy Kolar of Sudbury in
1st. Over all Male winner was the current Canadian Champion Mike
Gilbert running an impressive 1:27.41, in 2nd with a personal best was
Chris Ogg of Mississauga with a 1:38.37 and 3rd place was taken by Rich De
Grandpre of London running a 1:39.08.
Then it was on to Fredericton where the
weather cooled a little for the first couple of days... a welcome break,
but the heat was soon back and it was hot, hot hot for Event Day! A
great location at the Fredericton High School who allowed us to take over
their parking lot and provided us with everything we needed. John
McGratten, Dave McKinley and Murray McCartney pulled everything together
for an excellent Event! Over 110 competitors took part making it a
full day. Two new Women's Relay Teams competed with Prospect just
eeking out the home town team of Fredericton. The Men's Relay was
determined in a very competitive race between Gaspe and CFB Halifax.
Gaspe pulled off the win with a 1:13.55 to CFB Halifax's 1:14.61 ! In 3rd
was CFB Valcartier with a 1:18.16 . Kathy Babcooke of Wolfville won
the womens division with Darlene Acton of Ottawa 2nd and Vanessa Moores of
St John's 3rd. Our charming Host and World Champion John McGratten
won the Over 50 Division despite battling knee and shoulder injuries and
just coming off a double hernia operation! 2nd was Bill Holwall of
St. John's Regional and Murray McCartney took home 3rd. The Over 40
Division saw Jack Hickey of St. John's Regional, Dave Mckinnley of
Fredericton & Cyril Fraser of Halifax, one two three. The boys
from Gaspe cleaned up the Team Results taking home 1st with a 4:34.98,
Moncton in 2nd with a 4:59.74 (great to see these guys back after a years
hiatus) and in 3rd Halifax Regional with a 5:11.92 ! Overall
Individual winner was Dwight Sinnett with a great run at 1:25.43 then
Jerome GrandMaison at 1:30.47 and Dan Malone with a 1:32.33 in 3rd.
Dano that is a great first run of the year after taking a year
off!
The Hospitality was great in Fredericton
and we thank John, FireBall, McGratten and his wife Judy who treated us to
2 days out on the River tubing and swimming! What a fantastic place
to live! It is truly beautiful. We look forward to a future
visit!
On to Rimouski on the beautiful Gaspe
Peninsula!
Wednesday, July 6th - Well we are
well into Ontario now! Thunder Bay was a fun Event on a beautiful
Marina site! Thank you to Rod, Dave & Carolyne for the hard work
to put on the Event! Thanks to ServiceMaster for making it possible
for us to come to Thunder Bay... and my favourite Hotel in Canada 'The
Days Inn and Suites'! The hospitality is always fine and the
amenities meet all our comforts! Hey Jeff where were ya!? We
missed ya! Rod hope your basement is un-flooded!
The weather was great and with the sun
shining off the lake! The Final Race saw Jimmy Kolar up against home
town favourite Rob Towell. The home town crowd loved it and Rob did
too running a 1:36.45 first time out this year! Jimmy laid down a
1:41.85 but unfortunately took a 2 second penalty for missing the box with
the hose, giving him a 1:43.85, still not bad for the 1st run of the
year! Check out all the results by clicking
here!
Kitchener - Can you say HOT!
Not only heat wise but times as well! Thankfully the weather cooled
on Event Day with over cast skies and the threat of rain. It was a
welcome break from the stiff ling heat over the previous week! But
it didn't cool the jets of our competitors with Mike Gilbert, the current
Canadian Champion, laying down his fastest time so far this year with a
1:25.06, placing him 1st. Dwight Sinnett of Gaspe was 2nd with a
1:29.06 & Steve MacCulloch of Guelph was 3rd with a 1:31.49. We
had a great turn out from the ladies including the return of Tanya Philips
of Mississauga after the birth of her son... so the Mississauga Ladies
Relay is back in full swing! A great showing from Toronto too in the
ladies division with a 3 ladies strong Relay. Tammy Wilson of
Mississauga team took top honours this day with Tanya Philips in 2nd and
Angie Holman 3rd all from the Mississauga ADT Team. Jimmy Kolar of
Sudbury was 1st in the Over 40 Division and Don Kempf of Cleveland took
home the gold in the Over 50 Division. 32 Relay Teams participated
as well and saw Gaspe Team Lennox in 1st, Kitchener 2nd, & Oakville in
3rd! Wow what a day! An estimated 10,000 spectators enjoyed
the competition right in the heart of downtown Kitchener for the Canada
Day Celebrations.
Many thanks to Randy Kalan of Kitchener F.D,
& Sara and Cameron of East Forest Homes for their dedication and blood
sweat and tears! You guys did a fantastic job! Thank you to
East Forest Homes for supporting our Event and bringing us to Kitchener!
It was GREAT! and Kathy with a 'K' you are AWESOME! Thanks so much for your help in the sweat box!
On to Belleville which is FULL! Please
make sure you are registering early for Events to avoid being disappointed
if they fill up. This is the 3rd Event to fill so far this
year!
Also a note to all competitors. Event
Registration (if the Event is not already full) closes the Wednesday prior
to the Saturday Event at midnight! Please make sure you are
registered 'On-Line' PRIOR to attending 'Registration Confirmation' on the
Friday afternoon before the Event to avoid disappointment. Also
please ensure all updates are done to your Competitor Bio and Par-Q Risko
before the Wednesday cut off. If you have forgotten your Login &
Password please contact our office at admin@firefit.com . If you are in the database more than once, then please contact our
office. If you where entered in the database last year then you are
still there. You do not need to re enter yourself, you just need to
go in and update your information. Please ensure you update your
mailing address and Email address so that we have your correct contact
information.
See you on the course! Fitter,
Faster, Stronger, FireFit!
Wednesday, June 22nd - Updates to
Kitchener Event! Check
it out!
Sunday, June 19th - Well we are well
underway on the 2005 cross Canada Tour! Vermilion, Syncrude and now
Prince Albert under out belt; all great Events!
Fire etc., Vermilion - saw
their largest registration to date with over 130 Competitors! A new
location was found for the course in the 'U' which afforded a more
sheltered venue and allowed the use of the schools truck bays for Warm-up
and the Scott Ready Area. This was great as the weather was
threatening but luckily never produced the rain that was
forecast. Tammy and John did a fantastic job of organizing and
coordinating the students who helped erect and tear down the course!
Best ever crew, a great big thank you to all! Competitors from all
over the West took part in the Prairie Regional including Vancouver, North
Vancouver, two huge contingents from Edmonton & Strathcona as well as
Grande Prairie, Airdrie, Cold Lake, Siksika, Fort McMurray and many
more! Looks like our Western Teams are thrilled that Nationals will
be in the west and plan to take advantage! The final race of the day
put us all on the edge of our seats with Bob Murray of Edmonton going head
to head with Colin MacCaulay of Vancouver. Colin took an early lead
but Bob closed the gap coming off the force machine. Colin held onto
his lead but not by much just edging out Bob by ...... These two are on
fire and it will be thrilling to see them both at Nationals!
Fort McMurray - Our
5th visit to Fort McMurray for the Syncrude in House competition was once
again a pleasure! This is a special Event put on for the Syncrude
Volunteer Firefighters to show their stuff. FireFit makes up just
one of the components during the day which is filled with a number of competition and skills
tests. This year saw 13 Relay Teams and 28 Individuals Challenge
the FireFit course. The final race of the day saw Jeff Readman &
Shane Kingston pull out all the stops and put on a great race for the crowd!
Well done Team 2 & Laura for a great set-up and tear down with a super
smooth running event as well!
A great big thank you to Jeff & Tammy
Readman for having us for dinner. It was delicious... Tammy don't
forget to send me the recipe!
P.S. We are enjoying all the goodies
in the basket and I love the box!
We also had the pleasure of visiting with
the McCann family! Thank you for your hospitality. It is always
great to see you!
Prince Albert - Great job Joe &
Heather! And a great big thank you to all the Prince Albert
Volunteers! Our first visit to Prince Albert was a huge success and we
hope to return in the future! The enthusiasm and attention to
details was awesome! The only downer was the weather though we were
able to finish the competition before the real rain came! Thanks to
Whitehorse for making the trip down it is always great to see you
guys!
12 Relay Teams & 56 Individuals ran the
course in P.A.! A number of new teams were on hand and it was great
to seethat after the dust settled all 12 Relay Teams and 10 FireFit
Teams qualified to compete at Nationals! Well done! Joe
Zatylny, the catalist behind bringing the Challenge to PA, ran in the last
race against Brian Fedoriak from Whitehorse. Brian pushed Joe to a
personal best of 1:36.67! As many Host Co-Ordinators know this is no
small feet as there is so much to do when organizing an Event! Well
done Joe! It was a great race! Brian won the competition
running a 1:26.67 with Darren Anderson of Strathcona 2nd at 1:35.21 and
Joe in 3rd. Swift Currents Ryan (poncho) Hunter took home the Over
40 Honours with Travis Merrier a close 2nd! Lindsey Ingram of
Winnipeg had a solid run winning the women's division with a
3:47.
A big thank you goes out to Kristen for
allowing us the use of her office for Registration! As well as Jeff
Readman for helping me load my box!
Next stop Thunder Bay!
Check out all the 2005
Results so Far!
Thursday, May 26th - We have
returned... from our exploits in the Yukon! There's Gold in them
thar hills! What a beautiful place! Clean fresh air,
rivers and streams, lakes and mountains abound. Dale and Roy drove the
Alaska Hwy. and experienced some fantastic views and masses of wild
life. Thank you to Lindsey & Jeannie in Fort Nelson for feeding
the boys a wonderful steak dinner (Dale had more than his share!). They were also treated to a visit
to Jeannie's school and experienced a talking circle. Both Roy &
Dale were very impressed with the politeness and respect that the students
showed for adults and fellow students alike!
Whitehorse was AWESOME!!!
What a great spot! The course was located right on the Yukon River
beside the SS Klondike, one of only 3 River boats left in the Yukon.
We enjoyed a tour of the Klondike as well as a cruise along the Yukon
River which is beautiful with picturesque mountain views. Both the
Department and the community came out in full force to support the Event
and we thank those that came from Grande Prairie, Airdrie, Fort McMurray,
Prince Albert, Fort Nelson, & Strathcona for supporting the Whitehorse
Team in the Hosting of their first Regional Event. The weather
co-operated on Event Day with beautiful blue skies and a brisk breeze that
was gone by Event time. The Whitehorse Relay Team clocked a
fantastic Time of 1:12.99 which was the begin of things to come with Brian
Fedoriak's Individual time of 1:25.87 bringing the crowd to their
feet! Well done Whitehorse! Check out all the Whitehorse
Results. It was an awesome chance to visit the
Yukon.
We would like to thank you all
for the fantastic hospitality shown ourselves and all the competitors who
made the trip. P.S. I love the bubble bath! And Roy
REALLY liked the Hootch! Dale says Yukon Gold
Rocks! Next stop Vermilion!
Monday, May 16th - WestJet is
pleased to offer all FireFit Competitors a 10% discount off their best
available regular fare at the time of booking. Each Regional as well
as Nationals will have a booking code. This will be located on the
Event Page for each Event located on the 2005 Schedule Page.
To check out the rates simply call WestJets
Specialty Sales Team at 1.888.493.7853. When booking you must
book through the the WestJet Specialty Sales Team and quote the booking
code at the time of booking. Discounted rates are available for
travel up to 3 days prior and 3 days after each Event.
Wednesday, May 11th - Hey Oyster
River thank you so much for the buffalo it was FANTASTIC!
Thursday, May 5th - THE
SEASON HAS BEGUN!... BELIEVE IT OR NOT! Comox
kicked off the 2005 Season with a great Event! Mark Amos and his
crew did a fantastic job! Thank you so much! The weather
co-operated and we had a super day of competition with a number of new
Departments competing including Cowichan Bay, North Van Dist., Lions Bay,
Metchosin, Victoria & Team York from Norman, Oklahoma! The
community of Comox / Courtney is so supportive and we love visiting the
beautiful Comox Valley! Check out all the Comox
Results and see who has set down the time to beat so far for
2005! See you on the Road!
Tuesday April 26th - News Flash! Brampton
Event will be a 2 day Event with Relay's being run Saturday
Evening under the lights! August 20th & 21st! This is
going to be a fun filled weekend! So book your Hotels Early as their
is also an Extrication Competition being held in conjunction with the
FireFit Event!
Monday, April 18th - Check out some
pictures from last years Tour! 2004
Tour Pictures Anyone you know?!
Friday, April 8th - Wow Check out
some of the cool stuff being put together for some of the Events this
year!
Don't miss out book early!
Wednesday, April 4th - ALOHA! Freshly
back from our first true blue family vacation in 12 years, Dale and I are
in high gear getting ready for the first Event of the Season in
Comox! Hawaii gave us time to reflect on how much work we have to do
to get ready for the season! Yikes! So much for rest &
relaxation! We met a load of people from Whitehorse (I think they
are stalking us!) and just missed Brian Fedoriac and his family, small
world!
Have just found out that
our Team Registration has been down! Well it is up now and
working. Our apologies! Just a reminder to all
those competitors who are planning to register for an Event... the sooner
the better so as not to be disappointed if we have to close registration
due to an Event being full.
We are receiving
information on a regular basis for all of the Events so be sure to check
out the 2005 Schedule and
click on the links to see what has been updated for each Event.
Yes we will have the
additions to the Hall of Fame up next week! So stay tuned!
Train Smart and be...
Fitter, Faster, Stronger...FireFit!
Thursday, March 3rd - BELIEVE! The 2005 Schedule is ALL
FIRM! Check
it out!
More information will be posted soon on
each Event! Be sure to register early... Less than 2 months to the
start of the SEASON!
Wednesday, February 23rd - Long time
no post! It has been a busy winter for us here on the West (or Wet
Coast)... actually we seem to have dried out lately and are enjoying
beautiful sunny weather!12 degrees today! I won't rub it
in!
Dale has been hard at work unpacking and
re-organizing the tower and trailers. We are planning a change to
our vehicle configuration this year. We have long recognized that
our son, who has been a very low maintenance kid, considering, would one
day not want to come on tour with us. The ability to travel as a
family has enabled us to put the FireFit Tour on, year after
year. Now that Connor is getting older we are waiting for the day
that he says..." I wana stay home with my friends, I don't want to go on
tour!" Over the last 3 years we have tried to find or design a
trailer that could accommodate all of our needs both living/office and
t-shirt. Hours and hours looking, drawing, discussing. Short
of having a special 'Hollywood Trailer' built, and you can imagine the
cost! We have finally found a fifth wheel trailer that gives Connor a
space of his own, with bunk beds, so that he can bring a friend and have
some privacy. Unfortunately due to the number of miles that we drive and
the quality of trailers out there, there really is not a product that also
has room to accommodate my Office & T-shirt area. So we are re
organizing the tower trailer to accommodate me. We are hoping that
this will work and over the next month we will be re designing the box to
work as my office and T-shirt Trailer.After 12 years we are
still learning and changing!
Some of you will notice that we have also
been working on the 'Registration Software'. If you have a
login & password you will have been sent an Email asking you to update
your Department and personal information. If you have changed you
Email address since you entered your information in our Registration
System then you will NOT have received the Email, so please go into the
Registration System and update your personal information and Email.
If you can't remember your Login and Password drop us a line at firefit@firefit.com and we will email it back.
We have tried to clean up the date base of
duplicate names as well as duplicate Departments. We are hoping to
have the French Version up and running before the season starts and this
will make life easier for those trying to register as well as the girls in
the office who don't speak very much French and are trying their best to
help.
The 2005 Schedule is firming up with all
events looking like they will FIRM. Many thanks to Mark Amos who has
stepped forward to host the B.C. Regional again in Comox, on Vancouver
Island. I have updated a number of Event Pages, Check
it out!
The 2006 Tentative Schedule will be posted
at the beginning of March! We are filling up fast so please get your
date requests in and if you are thinking about 2007 or 2008 dates are
filling up in these years too! Drop us a line if you require
Information on Hosting at firefit@firefit.com .
Just 2 months till the 2005 Season
Begins!
Train
Smart and Be FireFit!
Saturday, January, 22nd - Check out
the schedule! Whitehorse, Stephenville and Strathcona all have at
least the beginnings of their Event Information posted! As they update
me with more I will add it to the pages.
The Registration System has been
enabled, after a number of requests from Competitors who are ready to race!
Be sure to register early so that you are not disappointed. Last year
we had a couple of Events that we maxed out numbers and couldn't accommodate
all the competitors who wanted to compete! The count down begins till
the season starts! Just 100 more days!
Tuesday, January 18th - Well the new
year is well on its way and we are madly trying to stay dry hear on the Wet
Coast! We survived the winter blast that mother nature sent our way,
with a foot and a half of snow... (hey don't laugh! we live in the banana
belt of Canada! Snow is rare! ) Record breaking temperatures of
-15! Whew! Now it is +10 and raining like a banshee with the
roads running like rivers! Yeash! Only saving grace is that we
don't have an event this weekend!
Information is beginning to be submitted by
the Hosts for their events and I have begun to build the different
information pages and link them on the 2005 Schedules page. We are
also building our 2006 Schedule. If you are planning on Hosting or
would like information please contact hilary@firefit.com for the 2006 Season.
As many of you know Dale turned 50 in 2004.
Over these 50 years his body has been battered and bruised from baseball,
football, basketball, javalin, FireFit, not to mention me! Over the
last 10 the old injuries have become more nagging (no I'm not talking about
me now!) Thankfully we have done some research and discovered a little
known therapy called 'Prolo Therapy'. This is a ligament therapy and
basically works on the theory of tightening the ligaments that over time,
wear and tear have been stretched & torn. Dale has had Prolo from his
ankles to his shoulders, knee's, hips, ribs, toe etc. After seeing the
success that Dale had I decided that I was tired of suffering from an old
whip lash injury which incapacitated me 2 to 3 times a year, not to mention
the daily headaches and constant aching in my shoulders and up my neck.
I also found success from Prolo and have moved on to having my ankles and
knees done due to old sports related injuries making me susceptible to ankle
sprains and knee problems. Check out the www.prolo.ca website for more
information and some great links. We are lucky here in BC as we have
some great doctors who have specialized in this therapy for years.
Wishing you good healthy, Hilary & Dale, FireFit
|
