Six members of the Drumheller Fire Department competed at the Canadian and World FireFit Competition and came home showered with medals.
Each firefighter had to qualify for the competition at Spruce Meadows over the weekend of September 10. Individually and as a team, they shined on the course.
Duane Bolin said this is one of their best results ever.
“For sure it was, for bringing home plaques and medals, that’s for sure,” he said, adding this was his first gold medal at Canadians and the first medals at Worlds.
In the Canadian Over-60 category, Keith Hodgson won gold. In the Canadian over-50 category, Duane Bolin won gold, and Merv Smith won silver.
In the Canadian Over-50 team event, Bolin, Smith, and Hodgson won silver. In the Canadian, Over 40 team competition, Jonathan Molzahn, Jeff Gerlinger and Phil Thompson won silver.
In the TECH 2 relay Over-50 category, the team of Bolin and Smith won gold.
In the Canadian Over-50 team relay, Bolin Smith and Hodgson won silver, and then bronze in the World Over-50 relay. In the Canadian Over 40 relay Molzahn, Gerlinger, and Thompson won gold.
“We were kind of floored by the number of awards we won,” said Bolin.
He explains while this is the Canadian Championship, because there were competitors from the international community, they also participated in the same competition. He said FireiFit has expanded to have a European schedule.
‘FireFit is just starting to kick off there,” he said.
Bolin said the department members worked hard to get these results.
“We practice twice a week, and once we get closer to the competition, we would set up our course on the weekend,” he said.
He adds, the FireFit course challenges strength and stamina.
“It’s about keeping your overall fitness up. It is the big thing. Running stairs is your cardio piece, but then guys are usually doing straight training twice a week as well,” he said. “Someone might be a fast runner, but if they don’t have the strength to lift a hose or swing a hammer or pick up the dummy… that was the point of this whole obstacle course, it used to be a physical requirement for joining a fire department, testing your strength and abilities and everything else.”

Drumheller Legion held a memorial in honour of the late Queen Elizabeth II on Monday, September 19, the same day her state funeral was held at London’s Westminster Abbey in the United Kingdom. A memorial procession was originally planned to take place from the cenotaph in front of the Badlands Community Facility to the Legion, however, inclement weather moved the procession indoors. About 40 people, including Drumheller Mayor Heather Colberg and Battle River-Crowfoot MP Damien Kurek, attended the memorial. MP Kurek laid a wreath on behalf of Canada and gave a speech reflecting on Her Majesty’s 70 years of service on the throne, as the only monarch many have ever known. Drumheller Legion President Gary Boucher laid a wreath on behalf of the Drumheller Legion and gave a speech acknowledging Her Majesty for her service in World War II as an ambulance driver and mechanic, and her lifelong commitment to the throne and the people of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. Mr. Boucher thanked everyone for joining the Legion in remembering Queen Elizabeth II and welcomed the reign of King Charles III with those gathered singing God Save the King.