Members of the Martensville Fire Department are already hard at work planning the Saskatchewan Regional Firefit Championships that will be held in Martensville during Buster Days weekend June 2nd and 3rd. This will be the first time the event has been held in Saskatchewan in a number of years, so the MFD members are feeling quite honored to have this opportunity. This event, which showcases firefighter’s skills and fitness levels, is often referred to as the toughest two minutes of any sport. Beginning in 1994 in Vancouver, the event has grown each year and sees active, medically cleared structured firefighters that are 19 and up from Canada, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, England and the Middle East. The Championship Finals show is now aired on TSN, OLD & RDS.
There will be 13 locations across the country hosting a competition throughout April up until the Firefit Nationals & World Championships, which will be held in Spruce Meadows, AB in September 2018. The intense competition can be done as an individual or as a team and consists of a stair climb with a flashlight and four foot bundle of hose weighing 42 pounds to the sixth floor. From there, participants are required to hoist a 42 pound roll of hose; then descend the tower using proper technique. The next challenge is forcible entry, where firefighters use a nine pound shot mallet to hammer a beam, followed by a 140-foot sprint and a hose advance where they are required to drag a fully charged hoseline 75 feet. The final challenge is victim rescue where they drag a 165 pound mannequin backwards for a distance of 100 feet. “It is definitely something to see. Everyone is competing in their full gear, including our self-contained breathing apparatus. To see how fast some of these members can move is incredible,” MFD Deputy Fire Chief Dean Brooman said.
Currently, the members of the MFD are approaching businesses in Martensville, Saskatoon and surrounding areas seeking sponsorship for the event. “This is a really unique opportunity for some of these businesses because it is not your typical event, so it is a great way to get their names out there and to be recognized in a little bit of a different way,” Brooman stated. There are several sponsorship options available ranging from $5,000 to $500. Businesses sponsoring the event will have the chance to display their logo during the event, as well as numerous other promotional opportunities.
Brooman, who participated in Firefit early into his firefighting career said, “It was the most brutal physical thing that I have ever done in my life. Way back when I did it, the respected time was under three minutes and now those times are ancient. Some of these members participating, their times are under two minutes and even close to the one minute mark. It is absolutely unbelievable.” Brooman described the feeling of completing the competition was like nothing he had ever felt before and that the personal challenge was extremely rewarding. Numerous other members of the MFD were interested in this opportunity, with many having competed in Firefit at some point throughout their career. “This is something that is recognized throughout North America, if not the world and we knew how great of an opportunity this would be for Martensville to host something like this. It is a perfect tie-in with Buster Days and it will be a huge draw for Martensville and give us a lot of recognition out there,” Brooman added. There will be several members of the MFD participating in the competition this June, so get prepared to cheer on your hometown members.
As things progress towards the event, the MFD will be seeking volunteers to help throughout the two day event. “We hope that the spin-off economically will be huge for the city. We are really happy that we can deliver this to the City of Martensville and give an opportunity to the people of Martensville and surrounding areas to come out and see a really unique event that you don’t see all the time.”
For more information about Firefit and what it entails, visit www.firefit.com. For updates from the MFD, you can follow them on Facebook under ‘Martensville Fire Department’.
Photocredit – Firefit Championships FB page http://www.firefit.com
