A team of Travis firefighters competed alongside civilian and
Department of Defense teams Oct. 23 and 24 during the first Firefighter
Combat Challenge U.S. National Championships in El Paso, Texas.
During the competition, the Travis AFB team proved
they are a force to be reckoned with.
In the relay competition Oct. 23, Travis team
members Tech. Sgt. Mike Melton, Staff Sgt. Harry Myers, Staff Sgt.
Jelani Brooks, Staff Sgt. Frank Abreu and Adam Groom scored the second
fastest time at 1:10.56. The team was edged out by the SAMS (Soldiers,
Airmen, Marine and Sailor) team from Goodfellow AFB, Texas, which posted
a world-record time of 1:10.46.
The relay competition involves three to five team
members sharing seven portions of the relay course.
The course begins with a team member carrying a
42-pound hose roll up a six-story tower of stairs. At the top of the
tower, a second team member hoists a 42-pound hose roll up the tower
before making the trip back to the bottom of the tower. At the bottom of
the tower, the relay continues with a third team member performing the
forcible entry portion of the course using a chopping simulator. Using a
nine-pound mallet, the team member must hammer a 160-pound steel beam a
distance of five feet. Once the forcible entry event is complete,
another team member runs 140 feet, zigzagging through series of cones
before picking up a hose, dragging it 75 feet and then opening the
nozzle and hitting a target with a water stream. The final portion of
the course involves a team member dragging a simulated victim (a
175-pound mannequin) a distance of 100 feet. Time stops when the
competitor and victim completely cross the finish line.
The Travis team's strong relay finish didn't
happen by accident. Sergeant Melton said it took months of hard work
preparing for the competition.
For the past five years -- about the time Travis
AFB began fielding a firefighter challenge team -- members of the Travis
team have been training 11 months out of the year.
“It’s all about progression. Today was just a
step toward the world championships," said Sergeant Melton.
"We did what we set out to do. Today’s time beat our fastest time
ever by three seconds."
With their strong finish in the relay event, the
team was able to focus all their attention on the team and individual
competitions Oct. 24.
“This being the first ever national
championships, we’ve really worked hard to make sure the Air Force has
the title of national champions,” said Sergeant Melton.
The team participated in four categories: team,
individual male, individual female and individual male over the age of
50.
With three of the same members who competed in the
relay competition, Travis placed second in the team competition.
The Travis team also set the pace in the
individual competitions. Sergeant Melton placed third in the male
category, Dave Chiodo placed third in the male over the age of 50
category, and Shenah Flores placed third in the female category.
The team will put its reputation on the line again
Nov. 13 and 14 as they are set to compete in the World Firefighter
Combat Challenge in Las Vegas, Nev.