Iron Firemen Wooden Ladders & Iron Firemen
We just got back from Firehouse Expo and just like every other time we travel, we met some awesome Brother and Sisters and had a BLAST!
Some of the stories I can tell ya about, others I need to wait on the statute of Limitations to expire….LOL.
I guess the biggest news of the trip was that Dave Statter (Statter911.com) had the gals hanging all over him!
The two beautiful young ladies by his side in the picture above right worked at what I could only imagine being some type of Sports Bar.
The place was called “Scores”. I assume it’s one of those places that have twenty of so televisions on the walls so that their customers can keep up the “scores” of their favorite sport / game?
The gals must have really been impressed with Dave because they left him a bunch of these free passes and made him promise to come visit. I guess that’s how life is when you’re at the top of the Blogging world?
I’d never seen him so happy …. he was walking on cloud 9! That is until he arrived at a dinner we attended for the Network.
LMAO… as much as I loved the look on his face when the Scores gals sat down, you should have seen it when he spotted me sitting next to Chief Rubin at dinner!
Of course I’m talking about former DC Chief Dennis Rubin.
I saved Dave a seat but he didn’t seem interested. I thought they were old friends from Dave’s days on the job. Dave talks about Chief Rubin all the time and the Chief even mentioned Dave in a book he wrote. Well, apparently I’ve been confused because Dave didn’t take me up on the seat….. he likes sitting at the head of the table anyway…LOL.
Ironfiremen.com on FaceBook HERE
All kidding aside, the dinner was hosted by First Arriving Emergency Services Network (link). This is the network that hosts all the top web sites / blogs related to Emergency Services (including The Fire Critic, Statter911 and mine). It’s the one place you can visit to find all the latest news, videos, stories, articles etc.
There are currently over 30 sites hosted by the Network so you wont have a problem finding what you’re looking for. You can scroll down through the latest stories / post or use the links to individual sites.
So, we had a great dinner with some of our fellow bloggers and then headed out for the Brotherhood Bash which was held on the streets of “Little Italy”.
The Bash, as always; was hosted by the Central Maryland FOOLS (link) and was once again a huge success.
This year, I believe some of the proceeds benefited Sons of the Flag (link). They couldn’t have chosen a better group to support!
Rhett (The Fire Critic) and I have been HUGE supporters of these guys from day 1. They are doing some amazing work, growing day by day and making a difference.
Rob Weidman (FDNY R-2) was even on hand for the event. Sons of the Flag were a big help in Rob’s recovery.
Hopefully you remember Rob from the Crown Heights Brooklyn fire back on December 19, 2011. Rob was on of the firefighters caught in a flashover while searching the top (3rd) floor. He’s the one who made it to the front window and bailed out onto the aerial which was moved into position just in time.
He received burns to over 40% of his body! I can’t tell you how good it felt to see him this weekend with NO BANDAGES!
Rob is an amazing person, a great friend and one hell of a Brother. If you don’t know his story, please use the link below (which includes more links to the actual video etc) to learn more.
Read “Money Well Spent”…click HERE
So the BASH was a huge success with plenty of Brotherhood for everyone!
Rhett (the Fire Critic), Andrew Catron and I always enjoy talking and hanging out with old friends as well as meeting new ones.
We took a TON of pictures and there’s no way I can get em all up in this post. If you took a pic with us, WE’D LOVE TO SEE IT!
Please “tag” us if you post them or you can just post them directly to our Face Book wall (the link can be found in the top of this post).
More Bash photos from Stan Jaworski HERE
I mentioned Andrew Catron a minute ago and maybe you don’t know him. Andrew is a good friend of ours and has traveled with us to places like FDIC for the past couple of years.
Andrew run the Blog Model City Firefighter (link) out of Kingsport Tenn. and it’s worth the read!
Andrew is an active IAFF and FOOLS member. He participates in many of the 9/11 Memorial Stair Climbs. He is also the person responsible for making the Fire Critic / Ironfiremen Challenge Coin as he works for NM Coin.
Find and follow Andrew in the links below….. he took some good pictures during the trip to Expo….
Model City Firefighter HERE or on Face Book HERE
You see another GREAT and long time friend of ours in the picture just above right.
The Brother sitting beside me is Chris Naum (link).
Chris runs several top notch Fire Service web sites as related to Command, Building Construction and more. He’s also one of the most sought after speakers in the Country.
You can learn more about Chris in the link attached to his name (above) or by visiting one of his sites … Buildings on Fire.com by clicking HERE.
Chris brough his wife and daughter to Expo this year and we had a BLAST!
Whenever anyone asks or talks about my mustache, I always tell them that mine is at least #3 in the fire service. I consider Chief Billy Goldfeder #1, Chris #2 and me humbly following.
Well, apparently it’s not good enough for him to out do me in the “stache” Department, now I’ve caught him trying on kilts! Geesh …. with legs as tan as his, there’s NO WAY I can compete…LOL. All kidding aside, I wanted to say a special THANK YOU to Chris for the talk, advise and Brotherhood shared this weekend…. I love ya Brother!
So, this was the first show that The Fire Critic and I have attended where we were NOT working for someone or some company. It was VERY refreshing to be able to walk the show, see what was out there and network. Next week, we’re going to do it again….. well almost.
On Thursday, July 24th; The FireCritic and I will be heading down to Raleigh, NC for the South Atlantic Fire Rescue Expo (link)!
WE CAN’T WAIT TO GET THERE!
If you are ANYWHERE close to Raleigh you NEED to attend this event (it’s bigger than Baltimore). I’ve attended for the past two years but this will be Rhett’s first visit.
You can read about my last two trips (which were QUITE eventful) in the links below….
Read about the 2013 SAFRE HERE or the 2012 SAFRE HERE
There is something for everyone at this show and The Fire Critic and I will be taking full advantage.
We arrive on Thursday because we are competing in their BBQ Throwdown! That’s right, Rhett and I will be set up and smoking about 200lbs of pork, ribs and who knows what else all night long! (That’s our new smoke pictured left!!)
We are also pulling the camper down so our site will be the one you’ll want to be at. They are judging the site setup as well so we’re really gonna “do it up”. We’ll have food, beverages, corn hole and a lot more. Be SURE to come by and hang out with us…. it’s gonna be a GREAT time!
So after we win the BBQ Throwdown, you’ll find us on the exhibit floor before heading over to the Brotherhood Bash on Friday night.
It’s at a new location this year and they haven’t released the details yet but don’t panic. All ya have to do is follow us…. “we know a guy”….LOL
There’s also a 5k run, a Haz-Mat Challenge, Firefighter Competitions, a Golf Tournament , Corn Hole Tournament, Antique Fire Apparatus, a Parade and MORE!
Chief John Salka is giving the Keynote Address “Leadership in the American Fire Service”.
These Brothers and Sisters do it up right!!
Who knows, you may even catch us atop one of those antique rigs, riding in the Parade again this year!
The only way you can do that though is to show up. We hope you will!
We should be set up for the BBQ Throwdown by around 3-4pm…. be sure to bring a chair and a smile …. we’ll see you there!
Thanks as always for following. Please be sure to use the links I’ve included and to always follow us on Face Book, Twitter etc. I’ll keep ya updated throughout the week.
Stay SAFE and in House!
Captain Wines