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This Week HomePublisher's ColumnJim Ward's End of PenAsk A Mexican!SportsMusicMovie TimesCalendarContestsWord of the WeekSearch ArticlesBest of the Best20082007200620052004To AdvertiseAd RatesPrint SpecsDeadlinesOnline ClassifiedsPrint ClassifiedsClassified RatesFor Non-ProfitsFTP SiteReadershipAbout UsAbout What's Up!MissionContactOther PubsEl Paso IncSouthwest SeniorBook of Lists Volume 10, No. 10 December 3-9, 2008
Sexy El Paso firefighters
Dress down for a good causeBy Ma R. Cortez Its called the Firefighter Combat Challenge.
Every year, teams of professional firefighters nationwide don 50-pound gear and compete in a grueling drill that they must finish in less than two minutes.
The El Paso team currently ranks best in Texas and among the top 10 in the world.
This year, as a means of fundraising, the 10 members of the local team are taking it off for a 2009 calendar officially called the first annual El Paso Heroes Firefighter Combat Challenge Calendar.
The unveiling party for the sexy calendar, the first of its kind of local firefighters, will be held Thursday at the Three Legged Monkey.
The proceeds from the calendars, which cost $10, go to the team, so they may continue to represent El Paso around the world, as theres a big expense for traveling, said event promoter Carlos Mendoza. Its a huge sporting event, and they are a very elite team. But theyve done so much work for the community as well, its time to reward them and help them out with their cause.
What is that community work? The team, whose members range in age from 23 to 40, volunteers with the Muscular Dystrophy Association, Sierra Providence, Race for the Cure, the Miracle League and other organizations.
For every 5k Run/Walk supporting one of these causes, team members show up to run the whole thing in full 50-pound gear.
A portion of the proceeds from the calendar will also go to the charity of their choice.
The January calendar page features a team photo; after that, youll see individual sexy-but-tasteful shots of the teams 10 members. The December page is dedicated to Kip Hall, a member of the combat team who passed away in October 2007 at the age of 39.
It was done in such good taste, you can have a mother and daughter looking at the calendar and not feel weird at all, Mendoza said. It appeals predominantly to women, but also the gay community. We are looking into doing an event at the OP as well.
The team competes in four regional competitions and one world championship each year.
We just finished a competition a few months ago in Austin, said 28-year-old Daniel Roy. Every main Texas city except Houston was represented, and we came out Top 5 in the country and No. 1 in Texas. Last year at the world championships, held in Las Vegas, out of 200 teams worldwide, we finished in the sweet 16, Top 10 in country and No. 1 in Texas as well.
If more funding was available, they could participate in more events, team members say. Hence the need for additional community support.
The best thing about it is that we are real guys, not models, who really do this job. We are full-time, paid firefighters, said Roy, who has been a firefighter with the El Paso Fire Department for three-and-a-half years and a member of the team for three years.
Jon Killings, 33, has been an El Paso firefighter for 11 years and part of the El Paso Combat team for five.
Killings said being a member of the combat team has kept him physically fit and ombre dress well prepared for tackling all aspects of his job.
I have on multiple occasions experienced the same kind of intensity in real situations, Killings said. You can be at a fire for hours, but the first 20 minutes is very intense the adrenaline rush, the lactic acid burn. You are wearing a SCOTT air pack, breathing through a mask and working hard the same as a combat challenge except its not for fun. Its real life.
Killings said he joined the team to give him extra motivation to stay in shape.
Its the best of both worlds, because I love the job and being a firefighter, and peacock dress I get to compete, stay in shape and hoodie dress do something that ties in with the El Paso Fire Department.
The course the team completes at competitions includes scaling a five-story tower, hoisting and dropping 45-pound hoses, descending then re-ascending the tower, moving a 160-pound eyebeam with a sledgehammer, running a series of cones for 75 feet, dragging a 225-pound charged hose line and dragging a 175-pound deadweight dummy backwards 106 feet.
All firefighter recruits must complete this course in seven minutes or less to become a member of the El Paso Fire Department. Out of 900 firefighters in El Paso, these 10 can do it in less than two minutes.
The firefighters featured on the calendar will be at the club to show off their abs and biceps of steel in person, but the only way to take one home with you is to buy the calendar.
El Paso Heroes Firefighter Combat Challenge Calendar
Unveiling party and autograph signing
Thursday, Dec. 4 11 p.m.2 a.m.
Three Legged Monkey, 1550 Hawkins Blvd.
For info call Carlos Mendoza at 626-8822
Videos of Firefighter Combat Challenges are available on You Tubethe Versus Cable Network
Comments or questions about this story? E-mail Secretwhatsuppub.com
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