Tacoma PAT.

It was a good week, full of ferries and forded rivers and wild dogs and delicious fish and smores and beer. There was too much of the latter on one of the days.

But, now it's time to get down to business. Yesterday was the Tacoma Fire written exam. I read the whole study guide, took the practice test, and re-read my notes and speed read the book again. Alas, there were questions I was unsure of on the test. Luckily, they were the minority. I felt confident about 3/4 of the questions, and only really confused on a handful. I'm hoping scantron luck pulls through for me. But, regardless, I am going to start preparing for the physical because it'll be good fitness regardless. I just don't want to cross the fates.

I have a bit of a mental block with the Tacoma test. I've never taken it, even though I qualified a few years ago. I ended up getting sick and playing in a rugby tournament the week before (bad choices, I didn't know) and was sick and injured when the time came so I sent in a letter of withdrawl. I don't think I was ready for the commitment to a fire career anyway. I was 21 years old and a bit frightened at the idea of a 25-30 year career, even if it was something I loved. Now, having been at my current job for almost 3 1/2 years, I am champing at the bit for a shot at a fire career. Anyway, when I went and practiced for the test I really struggled with the first event. Even though I'm a small person, I'm not used to having trouble with stuff physically. Even in the fire service, I can only remember one time in academy when I felt weaker than the rest of the guys. So, Tacoma's first station on their physical is dragging a 2.5" charged hose line 100'. A charged hose is harder to drag than an uncharged line because it's stiff (not limp) and creates a lot of friction, the further out you get. Additionally, lone firefighters are often on a 1 3/4" lines because they're easier to move and control. At North Kitsap Fire, 2.5" hoses were the job of two firefighters when there was the manpower to share the job. Anyway, point is that those hoses are bitches. They're long, strong, and down to get the friction on. There's about 1 gallon of water in two feet of 2.5" hose. One gallon of water weighs about 8 pounds. So, when you are getting to the end of that hose drag and you are responsible for moving 100' of hose, you are either supporting on your shoulder or pulling about 400lbs of weight, plus friction. This is how I psyche myself out though. The point of all this is that I'm wanting to set up practice stations to go through the motions for these events. This is how I plan to do that:

Test is pass/fail. Time limit is 7 minutes 30 seconds.

(My hands are sweating just thinking about this)

Hose drag : Pull 100' charged 2 1/2" hose line until nozzle crosses the mark.

Need to get a thick rope (as big as possible) and attach it to a tire, filled with concrete. That first rope with be about 10' to the tire. Then there will be a 20' rope that goes from tire 1 to a second tire filled with concrete. This is to simulate how the hose gets heavier as you get more of it behind you. Then, there will be a third tire about 20' out from tire #2. I think I can set this up on the side of the house. It's about 100' there. It'll take some clearing of branches and brush and dog poop though.

I need: 3 tires, 100' rope, 1 or 2 bags ofconcrete.

Equipment carry : Carry two SCBA bottles to equipment drop area.

SCBAs weight about 35 lbs, including the harness. The bottles alone probably weigh about 30lbs. The only trick is that you carry these guys with your fingers, not with the whole palm. So, I could take an adjustable dumbbell and put 30lbs just on one end and use the other end as the handle. I already have those.

Rescue dummy drag : Must move the rescue dummy through a marked course. There are straps on the dummy so it can be drug, not carried.

Generally, I think these guys weigh about 165lbs. The trick is to squat, get a good grip, and lift with the legs and lean back into the drag so you're using your legs, rather than the upper body. There are three 90 degree turns through cones. So, I'm going to hit up Goodwill for a one-piece pajama or something else that's hideous. I can sew the feet and hand openings closed and fill it with dirt or sand (probably dirt since I have plenty of that). I can practice grabbing him under the armpits and dragging him through the trees on the side of the house.

I need: an adult-sized onsie.

Smoke ejector carry : Using proper lifting techniques (great), lift the smoke ejector and carry up four flights of stairs in the training tower. Hang the ejector on overhead hooks.

So, I think these guys weigh about fifty pounds. They are blocky and a bit cumbersome. Easiest to put it on the shoulder because then it's already high and ready to hang. I don't want to spend the time to find an actual fan so I think I'll just use a bucket and fill it with 50lbs. If I could find a 6gal gas can that would also work and I could just fill it with water. That's probably the best bet. I can take it over to the lake stairs and practice going up the stairs with it and then doing an over head press at the top of the stairs.

I need: 6gal gas can.

Extinguisher hoist : extinguisher will be hoisted hand over hand to the fourth floor. No wrapping the rope around hands or trapping the rope with body. Heels have to remain on the floor at all times (so no bracing against the wall). The candidate will then get the smoke ejector off the wall and carry it back to the ground level.

I think this weighs about 40lbs. So this is where upper body comes in. (hands are still sweating) I think for this I really have to work with what I have. I have no fourth floor, but I do have a second floor. So, this will be like a circuit. I'll just lift a 40lb object up to the second story window, quickly lower it back down, and then lift it up again x4 reps. Besides, I'll have to lean slightly out the window so it doesn't knock the side of the house. This will be purely upper body. After completing the four reps I will quickly go downstairs and get my gas can off the top of the fridge to simulate getting the ejector off the wall. If I pass the written, I'll be able to practice this to see how I can incorporate the lower body as well.

I need: about 20' of rope.

Equipment carry #2 : carry 100' bundle of 1 3/4" hose to drop area.

This is about 40lbs, but long and floppy and wanting to un-bundle itself. So, gathering it correctly and lifting it smoothly to the shoulder is key. It's not the same but I'll practice with a stack of wood. Even though it's a totally different feel, it'll still want to detach from each other and slip around. Picking it up should be sort of similar.

35' Ladder Raise : beginning with ladder in bedded position (on the ground) the candidate must raise the ladder and then fully extend the fly sections until dogs are locked. No wrapping halyard around hands.

I have a 24' ladder that I can duct tape some weight on to make it heavier. I can hopefully find a spot where I can extend the fly without hitting a roof/branch/etc.

Kaiser Sled : move the weighted sled back to marked position with a mallet, no overhead swings.

I'll get a mallet so I don't screw up my ax. I just need a chunky round of wood and I'll lay down the rest of that pea gravel on the side of the house. Then, I can just practice moving the wood piece.

So, that's it. I feel like I already worked out, just writing it all out.