4 Weeks Complete

A full and complete week!

First female in California to get Hydrogen Fuel Cell Fire Training.

Tuesday was a full morning of lecture including “classroom instruction, group exercises involving incident scenarios and a quiz” (Direct quote from Whittier Daily News).

http://www.whittierdailynews.com/ci_15679439?IADID=Search-www.whittierdailynews.com-www.whittierdailynews.com

(That is the link to the article)

I really enjoyed the hands-on live-fire exercise. Even though the water pressure was only at 100 psi, it was still pretty tough for me to get a hold of the hose and keep control. I was very thankful to one of the Chief’s from Washington conducting the training, to take extra time with me to help me learn the technique of staying low and really using my legs and lean into the hose. It was fun too.

Class 75 was the FIRST class to ever get this training. “This is first time it has been conducted outside of Washington state.” This making me the first FEMALE in CA to get the training. I feel pretty proud about that! If anyone would like a signature you may ask me on the weekends. haha

Wednesday we did 3 different training exercises. The first consisted of putting our flash hoods over our faces and hooking up to our SCBA (self contained breathing apparatus). My partner and I were then lead up to the 3rd floor of the tower and then put on the nozzle of the hose. We were then instructed to follow the hose out before we ran out of air. I lead my buddy and me all the way out. Almost didn’t make it.

The second exercise involved doing our physical abilities test (Biddle) as many time threw as possible while being timed on air (without the dummy drag, ladder carry, and tower section). It also added an additional hose bundle exercise and connecting and disconnecting a hose to a fire hydrant. It was to show us how long we can make our air cylinders last when we are working. I was on a 30 minute bottle. The average is 12-15 min (50% of the bottle’s indicated time). I lasted for 17 minutes. When I was taking the test, I was trying to breath as many deep breaths as possible. I was so jealous of the guys that used their bottle up within like 8 minutes. One guys I felt so bad for. He accidentally grabbed a 45 minute bottle. He went for 32 minutes straight. He said he kept looking at his pressure gauge and kept getting disappointed when it was going down. Poor guy.

The third exercise involved going into a fully dark and fog-filled room with a partner, finding our SCBAs, clicking into air, and getting back out. I did fine except that the fog made my eyes sting so bad!

We then did all went through a 16″ whole in some ply wood. Super easy for me. I went straight through it with no adjusting or squeezing. The instructor said, “Taylor, we need to make a 12″ hole for you.”

The last little section of this exercise was scooting on our backs through strung across ropes to practice if we fell through something and there were a lot of wires. I flew through this too. As long as the cadets listen and understand why the cadre are telling us to use a specific technique, the exercise is easy.

Thursday was our first time Platoon A and Platoon B were split. I am in Platoon A and we did our first Hose Lay. Most of the morning we learned how to put the hose back onto the apparatus in an organized way. The three ways we learned were flat, accordion, and horseshoe. It is important to make your hose look organized and neat in the back of your rig because it is a direct reflection of you.(This picture is a neatly laid accordion)

In the afternoon we ran through our first hose lays with a Captain, Engineer, Hydrant man, and Nozzle man. I had really fun time with this. It is fun to see how everyone works together to do such a big job. I was the Captain when I did it. For the next month we will perfect both the straight lay and the reverse lay.

Friday was our first ladder day. It was a day full of new thoughts and new strivings. The next month is full of Hose Lays and Ladders.

So far the things I have learned from ladders:

-Do NOT make them have to repeat telling an individual to not do something

-Listen to directions

-He yells at your because he wants you to learn what is right

-Take the little advise that they do give you

-Take an Ibuprofen every 6 hours or less

-Stay on your toes

-Keep your head up

Keeping my head up, looking to God for the strength, staying positive, and believing in myself will help me get through the next month.

“How bad do you want to be here?”

“I want to be here so bad!”

“Why are you here?”

“I am here to spend time and effort in learning the techniques and skills to become a firefighter!”

Do you like it………”I LOVE IT!”

Week 3

7/26-7/30

Mental strength defines how great of a firefighter you can be.

This week was a blessing in more ways that one.

Studied with some of the guys on Sunday night with a yummy BBQ.

Mon- For PT we did 46 burpies. Burpies are a 5 count exercise. 1- crouching down. 2- popping your legs out behind you into a push-up position. 3- going down in a push-up. 4- going up in a push-up. 5- popping your feet back in and standing up. The burpies helped my knee get the blood flowing. My knee has been giving my some problems. This is my problem.

http://kidshealth.org/parent/general/aches/osgood.html

I wear a knee brace underneath my knee to help support it whenever we do a lot of exercise involving my knee.

We went and ran a little more then 4 miles right after that. The burpies helped so much. At the end, I felt like I could easily run at least another mile.

I was feeling good!

Tues- A girl a little older then me, walked into our class during lecture. Asked the teacher a question in the front, and then walked back to me in the last row of the classroom. She said to me, “Hey, can I talk to you when you get out?”

During my next break, I went to speak with her. Turns out she is a previous graduated cadet. She came to ask if I needed any help with anything. As soon as I understood why she was there, I wanted to just jump and give her a hug. I felt as if she was an angel to come and help with the load. That night, her and her friend (also female graduated cadet) came to my house and helped me study for the first big test on Wed. Block #1 has to score 80% or better. They really helped a lot. We talked not only about the test but other small tips of how to get through it. Tips on instructors, tips on topics, and how to live through the academy as a female.

Wed- Block test, no PT , and a full day in the classroom…..really? Yup. Pretty boring day. Before we were dismissed the cadre told us, ” Make sure you all get enough sleep tonight. You will need it for tomorrow.”

Thurs- PT…boy were they right about getting sleep. I was so happy I was ready for the day. Super confident mentally. If I didn’t have my confidence I DOUBT I would have made it through the day alive. Hose drags, sprints, push-ups, sit-ups, squats, lunges, step-up, step downs, and a set of exercises with a 45 lb bar. I really had to push myself hard that day. The hose drag is the most difficult for me. It is with two 50 ft long 2 1/2 hoses. The other guys can use their weight to help with the weight. I am so light that I have to use ALL of my legs to just get the hose 100 meters. The cadre (instructors) were screaming in my face trying to get me to give up. I would never give up. No matter what. It may take me a little longer, but I WILL finish it. When I finished the 3 sets of hose drags, the instructor that was screaming at me gave me a high five. It felt so good to make them proud. Their yelling is truly just a mental game that you have to ignore and keep pushing and keep going no matter what.

Fri- Pt was a challenge but my body was more prepared for it. It consisted of many Plyometrics (a system of exercise in which the muscles are repeatedly stretched and suddenly contracted). It was tool day. We went over the hand tools, the name that goes with each tool, and how to use it. I had some fun practicing my nailing by making our class number. (75) We took apart a chainsaw. We also got to get used to starting up and stopping generators, both motor and engined fans, chainsaws, and rotary saws.

Funny story: As one of the guys were sticking their heads down to look inside of the oil in the generator, a not so attentive student pulled the cord to start. The student on the ground got oil sprayed ALL over him. He was a good sport about it and it was quite comical.

I learned all about how a 2 stroke and a 4 stroke engine work. I really enjoyed the time given by the cadre for us to learn it. I like learning how things work. It is amazing how such a little piston can energize such a powerful tool.

Sun (8/1): I got to go and see Ryan in the Hospital. (Friend who got into a serious motorcycle accident on 7/1) It has been a month since I had last seen him. I was speechless to see his progress. He is a true miracle. Within a month, he has had all tubes removed from him. He is now eating and breathing on his own. He is up on he feet relearning how to walk. He can talk very easily. His memory AMAZED me. He has a better memory then I do, with OUT an accident. He has so much energy and is extremely positive. God has really made a miracle out of him. All of us will continue to pray for him. Thank you to those who may not know him but have been praying for him.

Feeling the Oneness

Before Week 3

7/26

It takes an EXTREMELY strong female to deal with 48 cadet males and even more male instructors for 60+ hours a week…..alone.

By the time it got to Friday, I was ready to chew just about every one of their heads off. I was so very thankful that I had the weekend to cool off.

I feel as if my word does not matter or does not need to be listened to because I am a female. This whole experience is such an interesting growing period for me not just physically, but SO much mentally. Its about staying strong no matter what the guys may say. Its about still finding value in myself when all the others around me may not. Its about keeping my goal set and not allowing those around me to adjust that path. As much as I do not even make a dent in their ego, I need to do the same and just let their words and actions ricochet off of me.

The message I get from many of the guys makes me ask myself questions such as “How do I express myself?” and realize that they don’t listen neither do they care to listen because “The way I feel doesn’t matter.” I am a true dedicated philosopher on life compared to many of my fellow cadets. I see them as a slate. I see myself as a 3D image with continual new additions and many parts that have yet to be discovered. At the same time this is school, not a class in which all of us pour our hearts out about life. So I understand that, but then again at the same time, how much better could we be if we REALLY worked together as a team and listened to how each other felt about respect and using that respect with each other? The last thing I want to be giving to the guy that picks his nose all day, sends me the message that my word has no say, and uses up many of my supplies…..is respect.

I have learned from the last 2 weeks that I have been taking the motherly position to some of the guys; always having the supply they need such as band-aids, highlighters, whiteout, ibuprofen, knee-braces, etc. Now don’t get me wrong, this is a team effort kinda of business. In everything, we are SUPPOSE to do as a team! But I feel there is a fine line between being a team player and being a reliant player. This week I plan to really take myself out of that motherly position and to get some of these boys back on their own two feet. I don’t want to be the one many are dependent on. It takes enough just to keep myself on my own two feet.

This week will be tough. I am feeling irritated and distracted by these feelings. Even now as I write this just an hour before I leave, I feel mentally weak.

“I can do it. The Lord is my strength. Its all mental. Stay mentally strong. Never give up. Never quit!”

Day 2-5

I’m sorry for the deleted pictures. The academy will not allow any pictures be posted on the internet.

Day 0

7/12/10

Whenever I got nervous I would tell myself: Do not be afraid! Its all mental! I can do it! Think about the next thing! No fear. The Lord is my strength! He will give me the strength to do this. Anytime I thought, I can’t do it, I continually said this to myself over and over again throughout the day.

Day started off with us driving in and pulling out our drivers license, car registration, and insurance. As soon as we parked and got out, they started to yell at us, “HURRY UP! YOU HAVE ONE TRIP TO TAKE ALL YOUR STUFF IN. HURRY UP. LETS GO. COME ON. LETS GO.” I had a large bag that weighed about 80 lbs., turnout pants fitted around my turnout boots on top, a lunch bag, a shirt on a hanger, and a gallon of water. Thankfully with advice from friends, all my gear was as tightly packed and ready to go before I got there. We had to run. Everywhere on the campus outside, “the grinder”, it is a requirement to run.

As we were running in the cadre, instructors, were yelling at EVERYONE. It was a good reality kick to realize that if you forget anything, it is OUR fault and not theirs so they are trying to drill into us that it is OUR responsibility and we need to stick to it. Its all about being responsible and respectful. Its about paying attention and being a good listener. All morning it consisted of yelling at each individual who forgot any part of their gear.

We have 3 outfits. Uniform consists of a nice button up shirt with patches on both arms, a name plate, blue pants, black socks, and black boots. P.T. gear consists of a white crew cut shirt with our last name on the front and back, black Rio Hondo Fire Academy shorts, white socks, and running shoes. Our turnout gear consists of helmet, Nomex hood, turnout jacket, gloves, turnout pants, and boots.

Throughout the morning the cadre asked us to continually change to make sure we had each set of clothing right and in order. “WHEN I SAY ‘FALL OUT’ I WANT YOU TO GO AND GET YOUR TURNOUTS OUT OF YOUR BAG IN 1 MIN. ‘FALL OUT’.” “WHEN I SAY ‘FALL OUT’ I WANT YOU TO COME BACK AND HAVE YOUR IFSTA BOOK IN YOUR LEFT HAND AND YOUR AUTO EXTRICATION SECTION IN YOUR RIGHT IN 1 MIN. ‘FALL OUT’.” “WHEN I SAY ‘FALL OUT’ I WANT YOU TO GO AND CHANGE INTO YOUR P.T. GEAR. YOUR HAVE 3 MINUTES. ‘FALL OUT’.” Changing into our turnouts is done outside. Changing into our P.T. gear is done inside the building. The guys go into a classroom and I go into the women’s restroom. This was the first 2 hours of the morning. It also consisted of a drill called “Bunker drill” that consists of putting on your Turnout gear as fast as you can. The goal is to do it under 1 minutes. In the middle of anything he would yell “STRUCTURE FIRE” which is our cue to get in our turnout gear as fast as we possible can. It was a great caught off guard drill and it started to get a bit exhausting after the 5-6 one.

We were told to bring our lunches out for the cadre to look at, “TAYLOR THIS IS GOOD, BUT ITS NOT ENOUGH….” As he was telling me this, I am thinking to myself, I can’t eat that much. Another said, “This is really good. (talking to the others) You guys should go to Trader Joe’s.”

If anyone forgot an item or a piece of anything, we were instructed to get down on our faces in a pushup position.

“EVERYONE DOWN ON YOUR FACES, DOWN”

Then we would yell back “MOTIVATION.”

“UP.”

“DEDICATION.”

“DOWN.”

“MOTIVATION.”

“UP.”

“DEDICATION.”

I would consider the first 2 hours of morning time of running all around to be P.T. We also did leg lifts and squats and jumps with out turnouts.

We then went for a simple 1 mile run. When we stand at attention at our spots each day, I am one of the three that stands in front of everyone. We stand in a triangle, the BC (Battalion Chief) stands at the front, and then the other guide on and I are behind him. We ran in two lines. I stand next to the 2 guys in the front of the line. The BC stands in the middle of the group on the side. The other guide on stands on the side in the far back. In the middle of the run we did jumping jacks and squat jumps.

As we ran back into the campus, I saw in the corner of my eye a cadre with a big fire hose spraying up. One of my instructors yelled to me, “TAYLOR, PUT THIS ON” and handed me a wildland turnout coat (similar to my turnout jacket except with no liner on the inside). Without question, I put in on and started to question; why did he ask me to wear this? Is it because I am the guide on int he front? Is it because I need to workout harder? My question was answered in the next 5 seconds as we were instructed to run into a big circle threw the waters spray. This part I LOVED! They said to us “Your being baptized by fire water.” We ran threw it 5 times. My cadre gave me the jacket because we were all wearing white shirts. I felt very respected.

We then came back and took a shower. We were given 15 minutes. I ran and got my things and quickly as I could and went to the women’s staff shower bathroom. The guys take the women’s and mens showers. As I got there I realized I had forgotten my towel. Oh GREAT! I didn’t even take a shower. I rushed to pulled paper towels out to dry myself off, put some deodorant on, and then get dressed back into my uniform.

Classroom time talking about procedures and polices. I was tired by then. Lunch. I got a total of 6 minutes to eat for lunch; I was given instructions to find out names of the guys who were missing the front shield off of their helmets. This took up about 15 minutes. We had about 25 minutes and we always up line up 5 minutes early.

Sometimes I feel like this is a movie. It is an odd feeling standing up to 50 guys and instructing them what to do at times. I feel like if I truly thought about it, I could psyche myself out with the thought of me being the only girl.

At the beginning of the day, one of my cadre yelled at me and said “TAYLOR YOU NEED TO MAKE YOUR VOICE LOWER” and I was told this throughout the day. He even said to the BC, “BC YOU NEED TO WORK WITH TAYLOR ON HER VOICE.”

“DEEPER, TAYLOR, MAKE IT DEEPER”

“SIR, YES, SIR”

All I do is make a frown and my voice goes down. I feel like I’m in a play and performing a part.

Right after lunch, we all knew it was time for the Biddle Test. Within a half hour, it was all set up and instructed the order in which we would go. Engine 1 was to go first. I am in Engine 1. As we were walking over to the start, I told one of the guys in my group, “Your going first. I don’t want to see my lunch on the side of the track.”

……

“TAYLOR YOUR UP FIRST”

I was the first to go of everyone.

“GO WHENEVER YOUR READY”

I took off. Hose drag 1. Hose drag 2. Halyard raise. Chainsaw climb on the

ladder. Then I got to the part with the rafters. I didn’t wear knee pads, so I tried to climb with my hands and feet. I

slipped and scraped my knee and hit my head. Thankfully I was wearing a helmet. This is a picture of my scrape a week later.

I got back up and the cadre asked,

“Are you ok?”

“Ya, I’m fine, sir.”

I then completed the sledge hammer, the dummy drag, and the ladder carry. Last big step was the tower. I headed up with the hose pack, dropped it, crawled in the pattern indicated, pick it back up and take it to the bottom. Then pick up to SCBA tanks, taking them up to the 3rd floor and dropping them. This is the spot where they stopped me the first time I took it. As I reached the next event of pulling the hose up from outside the window, I looked at the cadre and said,

“I don’t know what I’m suppose to do. What am I suppose to do, sir?”

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO? DIDN’T YOU WATCH THE INSTRUCTION VIDEO?”

“I’ve never done this before, sir. I didn’t get this far last time.”

He then kindly quickly instructed me of what I was suppose to do. I pulled it up halfway. He showed me the time and it said 9:34. I cut 2 minutes off my time and ALMOST finished.

Last part of the drill was to transfer 10 hose packs from one side to another and it had to be completed within 1:30. I finished it in 1:34.

I was happy with both of my progressions. Even though I didn’t not pass either, I felt progress. The first time I did it I felt in a daze. I felt like everything around me was black. This time I felt like I noticed things. My breathing was a lot better too. I had practiced keeping my heart rate up for longer periods of time.

As the other groups took the test, I helped by running the SCBA’s back and forth from the end to the beginning for the next person to use. I did this over and over again. Running back and forth. One time as I was picking up one SCBA, one of the Cadre yelled to me,

“TAYLOR COME SEE ME THE NEXT TIME YOU COME BACK.”

“SIR, YES, SIR”

I returned to him and he said, “It really obvious to me that with your performance today that your cardio is not a problem for you. It is your strength isn’t it?”

“Sir, yes, sir.”

I felt so encouraged.

This testing took of the majority of the rest of the day.

This morning on my Facebook, people wrote me messages of encouragement this morning and it really helped me get through the day from family and friends. It made all the difference. One person gave me this verse for the day:

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” – Joshua 1:9

On the drive home, I had tears of rejoicing go down my face. I couldn’t believe that I made it through the day. It was a day that I had prepared well for!

Changes

My hair:

My truck:

Day Before

Morning oatmeal….plain. It gives no tastes in your mouth to push you to throw up..or so I’m told.

Today is the last day before the academy. It starts 0600 tomorrow. I have everything memorized that is needed. I need to stop being afraid of making my own choices because i will disappoint or get yelled at. I need to take a hold of my choices and OWN them with pride. I need to realize that my choice may not be other choices and I may get yelled at for that choice…but it is my choice and I need to stick to it and be sure of it, not cower away.