ON SUNDAY JANUARY 23, AT CRETEIL, FRANCE, a town outside of Paris, an annual track event was held exclusively for firefighters, the “Foulees 18,” an 18 km race. The length of the course corresponds with France’s fire emergency phone number, 18.
This year’s race commemorated the bicentennial of the birth of the Sapeurs Pompiers (Fire Brigade) in Paris. The event brought 1,560 participating firefighters from almost every country in Europe to the unique course that travels on paved roadway, dirt roads, and across grass.
And They’re Off !
The rain that fell most of the day made for slippery streets and muddy fields.
Vigili del Fuoco
Competition is between teams of up to 10 runners. This year’s winners are from Torino (Italy) and the 2nd and 3rd place teams are from Madrid.
Vigili del Fuoco
The fastest runners were completing the course in about an hour. A “good” time for the distance with the road conditions was around 1:20.
THE VOTING WINDOW HAS BEEN EXPANDED TO ALLOW YOU TO CAST
A BALLOT EVERY SIX HOURS NOW.
Also, the page with the voting machines on it has added a brief resume of each
Fire and EMS blog that are in the running.
So CLICK HERE to cast your ballots for your favorites. Vote for as many different blogs as you like,
or vote repeatedly for one, it’s up to you. Balloting ends at midnight, February 1.
Irvine, Calif., attorneyKim Olenicoff’s estate planning practice has slowed in the past couple of years due to the economy, but that’s OK with her because the need to guard against flatulence and sweat stains appears to be recession-proof.
Built and ready to give a demonstration run at a Supercar race in Sydney on December 3 – 5.
The board itself has to be a sturdier plank than the usual skateboard in order to carry the weight of the 630-horsepower V-8 Supercar racing engine.
Since it is too heavy to pivot like a regular skateboard, the wheels have to be able to turn in order to steer it. When the rider gets on the board you will see him holding an electrical switch box that controls the steering mechanism. There is a hydraulic drive system that directs the power to the wheels.
THE GOOD CITIZENS OF IZTAPALAPA, MEXICO, decided to make a mark for themselves. This past Sunday October 17, in a fit of civic frenzy, they got together and broke the world’s record for the Largest Enchilada.
The hefty snack was 230 feet long and weighed nearly 1,500 lbs. It took 165 pounds of corn, 602 pounds of white onion, 269 pounds of serrano chilis, 331 pounds of cheese and 33 gallons of cream along with the guacamole and salsas to fill the wrap. The extensive cooking crew started at 5 am cooking and cutting up the all-fresh ingredients.
Naturally, Guinness Book of World Records had an official in attendence to witness the successful attempt to wrest the title from the previous record-holder in Las Cruces, New Mexico.
ITN filed this video report on the assembly of the beast of a feast:
The Associated Press also had its camera recording some enchilada moments:
BACK IN AUGUST WE POSTED A STORY on Airbag Safety HERE. If you missed it, click on the link and you will see a graphic display of why we are certain that there will always be a need for fire, rescue and EMS agencies.
Well, there is just so much of that foolishness going on all the time that we decided to create a separate posting category and let the chips (or nitwits) fall where they may. This will be an occasional series as the stories and videos come to our attention. Here is today’s entry for the Nitwittery Hall of Fame:
If you come across any examples of Why We Will Always Need a Fire/Rescue Department, send them along to us so we can share.
The 25th anniversary games of the Rubik Cube European Championships are being held in Budapest, Hungary, this weekend.
Quick-thinking, nimble-fingered enthusiasts from 28 countries were vying for prizes in 19 different categories of competition including blindfolded, one-handed and feet-only.
This raw video from yesterday’s competition shows some of the contestants’ unbelievable skills (including a feet-only guy). From the video it looks like they might be adding a new category soon for smartphone apps gaming.
Erno Rubik himself was there to award the prizes.
Erno Rubik
If you’re curious, the world’s record for fastest solving game is 7.08 seconds. The blindfolded record is 30.94 seconds and one-handed has been solved in 11.19 seconds. Oh, the feet-only you ask? A nimble-toed Estonian holds that record with 36.72 seconds.
You can read the full listing of records on the World Cube Association’s website HERE.
This video shows Dan Dzoan of California setting what was then the record for one-handed play three years ago. His record has since been shattered.
How do they do it blindfolded? When the timer begins, they can study the cube for as long as they want, then they pull the blindfold down and solve it. The elapsed time including the study period is what counts as you can see in this video:
Read a pictorial history of Erno Rubik’s development of his Magic Cube HERE.
ONE OF THE HIGHLIGHTS OF SEPTEMBER in Sydney, Australia, is the annual Stiletto Races. In years past the charity fund-raising event has been centered on an 80-meter sprint. But this year a new format was introduced, the 4 X 100 relay. As in past years, all entrants were checked to verify that they were wearing heels that were at least 3 inches high, and that they had “smooth legs.”
More then 100 entrants lined up on Tuesday morning to grab the baton and when the starting gun sounded they were off and running.
One of the teams failed to finish when one of the ladies lost a heel.
When the dust and heels settled, the winning team, The Pinkettes crossed the finish line in just
one minute and four seconds. A new world record for the 4 X 100-meter stiletto.
The Associated Press brings us this video report from the race course:
The anchor runner on this year’s winning team is Brittney McGlone. Miss McGlone was also the winner of the 2008 sprint that Firegeezer reported on. In that race there were 265 glams with gams who sprinted 80 meters. For the sake of historical accuracy, we reprise our video from that race two years ago:
BAD NEWS ARRIVED FROM WEST SPRINGFIELD, Massachusetts, last week and Firegeezer readers are being called in to help solve a transgression against civilization. During the local fall fair known as the Eastern State Exposition, the West Springfield FD operates a temporary fire station on the fairgrounds.
Google Satellite view
One morning while everybody was out of quarters, an unidentified woman entered the day room and, for reasons still unknown, smashed the coffee pot! We know she’s the culprit because the security camera caught her in the act of covering her tracks after she did it. Moreover, it is apparent that this normally good natured, law abiding woman had absolutely no remorse regarding her unthinkable crime against coffee. Sadder still, she cleaned the crime scene and fled before local authorities could arrive and apprehend her. But the camera never lies.
Do you recognize this elusive miscreant?
Now there is an A.P.B. (All Points Bunn-O-Matic) issued for her and the firefighters are asking anybody who has any information leading to solving this sad case to please let them know. If you are able to lend any assistance at all, CLICK HERE and fill in the blanks.
The Eastern State Exposition – locally known as The Big E – is a major agricultural fair and runs through October 3. CLICK HERE to learn more and get directions on how to get there. While you’re there, stop by the fire station and say hello. Coffee donations will be appreciated, I’m sure.
THE PROBLEM OF RUDENESS and poor behavior on social networks is nothing new. Unfortunately, despite serious efforts to train the rabble how to behave in a civilized manner, the message just never gets through to some people.
Facebook was one of the leaders in the campaign to introduce Online Etiquette to the masses, but as you can see it hasn’t had the overwhelming success that they had hoped. Facebook prepared this video tutorial back in 1964, seemingly without any measurable effect:
ANOTHER IRRELEVANT “WORLD’S RECORD” was set Friday evening when more than 7,000 people gathered in Coralville, Iowa, to do the Hokey Pokey. The event was part of an annual festival held to kick off the Unversity of Iowa football season. Legendary Hall-of-Fame coach now retired, Hayden Fry was famous for his team’s doing the silly dance in their locker room after winning big games. It kind of grew after that. Coach Fry told how the tradition got started and grew in an inteview with the Cedar Rapids GazetteHERE.
Last night (Friday) at 6 pm the believers and thrill-seekers started pouring into the Iowa River Landing Park to become a part of the once-in-a-lifetime event to break the current record of 4,431 that was set in Toronto, Ontario, in 2003.
Guinness World Record judges counted the entrants as they filed into
the dance area and then monitored the 5-minute dance, striking off
the count whenever anyone was observed not dancing.
(SourceMedia Group News photo)
They didn’t just break the record, they obliterated it as the music started up and 7,384 dancers did the Hokey Pokey for the required 5 minutes that Guinness demanded for an official record. The Des Moines Register documented the performance in this video report:
“Ladies and gentlemen, we just won another one,” the 81-yr.-old Fry said afterward. “You are now members of the Hokey Pokey team.” He added that a bum knee kept him from participating in the dance, “I know I can get my left foot in, but I’d struggle like hell to get it out,” he said.
Former Iowa football coach Hayden Fry (center) observes as his
wife Shirley (left) joins the record-setting crowd.
(SourceMedia Group News photo)
Firegeezer adds: Making this epic event even more fitting is the fact that the man who wrote the Hokey Pokey song, Larry Wang died last month in Clinton, Missouri. GlossyNews.com reported on Mr. Wang’s passing:
With all the sadness and trauma going on in the world at the moment, it is worth reflecting on the death of a very important person who gave the world fun and togetherness for over 50 years. His death almost went unnoticed this past week, but friends made a few calls and his passing was given special remembrance across the nation.Larry Wang, the man who wrote the ever popular song,Do the Hokey Pokeydied last week after a prolonged illness. Mr. Wang was 93 years old and last resided in St. Mary’s Nursing Home in Clinton for the past several years.
Larry was a resident of Clinton for the past 74 years and served one time as musical director for the Clinton High School until his retirement in 1977. In 1953 Larry wrote the famous words to the Do The Hokey Pokey dance and song that is still as popular as ever and performed everyday around the world.
His death is not without controversy. It seems the most difficult part for Bert Hayes, a local funeral director, was getting Larry’s body into the silk-lined coffin. First, they attempted to put his left leg in…. and then that’s when the trouble really started.
DO YOU RECALL THE “PRE-CARDIAL THUMP”? It was once believed to be effective as a means to defibrillate or start up the heart prior to performing CPR on a patient.
Back in January a group of strip-mine workers in Chile tried it out on a diesel truck and it worked. But the outcome wasn’t what they were hoping for, as you can see in this video:
THERE IS A GOOD REASON WHY you are instructed to always use your seatbelt, even though you have airbags installed in the car.
This group of Russian auto mechanics prepared this safety demonstration video to bring the point home about the importance of using your equipment properly.
You might want to save this video to use at public talks or exhibits.
“Whatever you say, do NOT call me an ambulance driver!”
Thus began our interview recently with Sajjad Sobhraj, an Emergency Medical Care specialist in Punjaboori, India.
Sajjad Sobhraj
In our constant quest to bring emergency responder techniques from other countries to share with our readers, Sajjad (just call me Saj) gladly answered some questions for us via email.
Firegeezer: So, Saj…. how long have you been rendering first aid and emergency medical care in Punjaboori?
Sajjad Sobhraj: Oh, many…at least 18 years now. I first got interested when I saw the glorious heros who came to the aid of my uncle when he got stomped by an elephant.
FG: That sounds like a noble calling for you. How long did it take you to advance to the level of driving the ambulance?
SS: Oh, I rose quickly to that in only two years. I have always been talented in vehicle management techniques.
FG: I see. It sounds like they sure found the right man for the job in Punjaboori.
SS: Oh, yes….I have received many treasured paper certificates admiring my work.
FG: Congratulations, Saj. I can tell you are a proud man. If you will, tell us please what you are called if “ambulance driver” is not allowed?
SS: Oh, I much prefer the official title they have given to my job description: Pre-Hospital Transportation Specialist.
FG: I see. That is a more accurate description of what you do. Allow me to ask, what were you called before you became a Pre-Hospital Transportation Specialist?
SS: Oh, I thought you knew that already. Oh, I was called…. an ox driver!
ROLLERCOASTER RIDES ARE OFTEN REFERRED TO as “white knuckle” rides if they are fast and steep. But on Sunday 102 people made it a “white nipple” ride as they set a new record for naked rollercoastering. They gathered at the Green Scream Rollercoaster in Adventure Island, an amusement park at Southend-on-Sea in England.
Reuters
Besides setting the new record, they used the frolic to raise money for charity, a cancer treatment foundation. There were so many participants that they had to make three runs to accommodate all the riders who jointly raised more than £22,000 for the charity.
Reuters
The Daily Mail has MORE. The Sun has the “R” rated pics along with video that has a “full screen” option, and story HERE .
Leonard Spivey joined jetBlue when the airline started 10 years ago.
Scott McCartney, writing in today’s “The Middle Seat” in The Wall Street Journal, points out a unique aspect of Mr. Spivey’s pre-employment experience:
The very first class of jetBlue flight attendants included a retired fire fighter, Leonard Spivey, who became the role model for the airline and is still flying today at age 70.
Mr. Spivey brought gravitas to the job—crucial for an airline with no experience—and provided a pipeline to bring in others.
To jetBlue, his focus on safety was appealing; his take-charge manner and calm under fire were crucial and his corny jokes and upbeat nature were infectious.
About ten percent of the 2,400 jetBlue flight attendants have emergency service background.
Back to McCartney’s article:
The NYPD and FDNY veterans at jetBlue say the schedule of a flight attendant fits well with what they are used to: a few days on with long hours, then several days off. The pay is less than what they earned working for the city, but the flexibility is better in some cases. (…)
The everyday duties of a flight attendant—serving coffee and soft drinks, picking up trash in the cabin—weren’t a difficult adjustment because fire fighters have to clean the firehouse, make coffee, do dishes, clean tools on trucks, and make beds all the time, he says.
ONE OF THE MOST UNIQUE, and certainly the longest golf course in the world is laid out in the Nullarbor region of Australia. The 848-mile long course covers two time zones and has tees as much as 50 miles apart.
The Nullarbor is a desolate area where travelers hurry through to get to the other side of the goldmining region. But the folks who live there came up with an idea to get tourists to slow down and look around the communities that they pass through. Each of the 18 golf holes has its tee in a different town or point of interest, encouraging people passing through to stop (and spend some money) instead of racing through the region.
Since the region is largely a desert, the tees and greens are made of artificial grass. Players (travellers) use a score card purchased in Kalgoorlie or Ceduna for A$50 and play holes at various sites along the continental road. On presenting the completed card they can claim a certificate for playing “the World’s Longest Golf course.”
Keep alert when you’re playing the 4th hole though, Australia’s largest population of Hairy Nosed wombats live in the area.
Melissa Long of Bloomberg News introduces us to this memorable course:
The London Daily Telegraph has a hole-by-hole guide to the Nullarbor Links HERE.
The Nullarbor Links has its own WEBSITE HERE. (click on “photo gallery” for some great shots of the course.)
While researching information on the Metropolitan Fire Department stumbled upon Statter’s Source of Scandously Salacious nonSuccinct Statements.
This is a New York Times headline from November 03, 1885:
THE FIRE DEPARTMENT.; Completion of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade of New-York. Difficulties in the Work of Reorganization. Catalogue of the City and Suburban Companies. Thirty-five Steam and Five Hand Engine Companies, and Fifteen Hook and Ladder Companies. THEIR ORGANIZATION AND LOCATION Present Condition of the Paid Fire Department. The Fire Telegraph System–The Board of Engineers. THE FIRE DEPARTMENT. SUBURBAN ORGANIZATION. MISCELLANEOUS MATTERS. NO MORE BELLS. STATUS OF VOLUNTEER FIREMEN. VOLUNTEER COMPANIES DISCHARGED.
So I am mistaken, I thought his endless headlines were to improve capture in seach engines.
I did not realize that Statter was continuing the journalistic tradition started over a century ago!
COLLEGE STUDENTS AT BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY, in Utah, being college students and all, set out to break the unofficial “world’s record” for the largest-ever Water Balloon Fight.
Deseret News
With the battle scheduled for this past Friday, the organizers began filling the balloons on Wednesday, taking shifts and working through the night until they had 120,000 balloons armed and ready. Nearly 4,000 people showed up for the classic battle (and the free T-shirt) and the combat went off successfully, beating the previous record set by the University of Kentucky by 1,000 balloons.
Deseret News
KTVX Ch. 4 Salt Lake was on the battlefield and filed this video report:
It took 48 hours to fill the balloons, and a mere 6 minutes and 30 seconds to destroy them. For those of you who are military strategists and crave more combat and carnage, this raw video shows the entire 6-½ minutes of intense battle:
That’s probably a safe claim to make. It’s hard to imagine more than one treehouse that is 97 feet high. The labors of Horace Burgess were spent over 14 years using nothing but scrap lumber and stray pieces found laying around.
He did buy the nails, though….over a quarter-million of them, and he now has a 10-story structure anchored around a still-living white oak tree that is approx. 80 ft. high and has a 12-ft. diameter trunk. There are six other smaller oaks that act as natural pillars and support the sprawling 10,000 sq. ft. building. Burgess figures that he has spent about $12,000 total on it.
If you want to take a trip to see this oddity for yourself, here are the directions:
It is located the end of Beehive Lane in Crossville, TN.
Take exit 320 off of I-40. Turn north onto TN-298, and then take the first right onto Cook Rd. Make a left onto Beehive Lane and then continue 0.2 miles to the treehouse.
Lat: 35.98540743554687 N – - – - Long: 84.99386608600616 W
Admission is free and it is open every day until dark.
Don’t be shy about going up to see it. Mr. Burgess gets 400 to 600 visitors every week. To see some more photos of this remarkable structure, go HERE and HERE.
A SCHOOLBOY IN CAMBRIDGE, ENGLAND, IS A FAN OF “SPIDERMAN,” but he doesn’t think much of the costume. Hibik Kono, 13, is fascinated with climbing walls, though. So he set out to make his own wall-climbing outfit and as you will see, the young inventer was an instant success.
Using just a pocketful of spare change, he bought two 1,400-watt used vacuums, added some scrapmetal parts and some dedicated elbow grease and developed his spidery climber.
This DIY genius was shunned at first. When he announced his plans his teachers and parents were doubtful that he’d succeed. Kono’s design technology teacher, Angus Gent, told reporters, “I’m hugely proud of him. When he came to me with the idea at the beginning I had my doubts.” But to the surprise and delight of his community, the 13 year-old’s design was successful and Kono says he completely trusts the machine to hold him up on any wall.
photo by Geoff Robinson
However, his mom’s not so sure, she won’t let him climb the walls in his bedroom for fear that he, “may pull down the ceiling.” Kono thinks that the machine could be helpful for window washers, and in some of his demonstrations shows how one could easily use one hand to support themselves on his DIY machine and the other to clean the surface they’re climbing. Kono showed his nifty technology off to a school assembly, but unlike Spiderman, Spiderboy has limitations. His mom won’t let him climb higher than the vacuum cleaner power chords will let him. You see, he’s got to keep his machine plugged in to work.
Watch him demonstrate his invention in this video:
You have probably wondered at some time or another just what happened to this guy.
Thanks to Firegeezer, now you know.
* * *
* * * * *
Here’s a bit of fun with numbers:
If you multiply the number 111,111,111 by itself, ie: 111,111,111, the product will be:
12,345,678,987,654,321
Now my little calculator won’t register a number with that many digits, and I didn’t
take the time to try and prove it out to see if that is accurate.
But it is my understanding that a constipated mathemetician worked it out with a pencil.
* * * * *
Can you turn an old fire engine into a profit-making venture?
Our colleague Steve Marshall found somebody who has done just that.
But first you have to become an ordained minister and then hit
the road with your traveling wedding chapel.
Recent Comments