The first part of the day was spent doing ladder training. We unloaded ladders from an engine and the tower (E-212 and TO-29), practiced carring them, raising and lowering them, securing them, climbing them, and so forth. Yeah, any monkey can put up a ladder, but how many folks can look cool and coordinated while doing it? :)

Here, Marci heels the ladder while Victor climbs it. You have to keep your fingers out of the way in case the top section comes slamming down, making this maneuver hard on the forearms if you do it very long.

After climbing up a story or two, Marci leg-locks in by putting one leg through the ladder, hooking the back of her knee around a rung, then pushing her foot back through between the rungs below, locking her leg in place. I snapped the shot below a little early - she actually leaned back further than the picture shows.

Logan demonstrates the same technique. His leg-lock is more visible, I think. Not sure who leaned back furthest. I told Logan and Marci I'd put it to a vote, so if you want to email me with who you think did best, feel free!

Marci carries the roof ladder up an extension ladder. Once to the top, the person carrying the ladder has to leg-lock in, then manhandle it to the roof, raise it hand over hand, lay it flat on the roof, then slide it up until the hooks on the tip are over the roof's peak. The roof ladder then provides stability and safety - a place to walk - while the firefighter cuts open ventilation holes in the roof with a chainsaw or performs some other task.

Later in the day we practiced hydraulic ventilation. We had to stay low - below three feet - and belly crawl through the dark, smoke-filled building to a metal stair, then up the stair (still low) to a small door-like opening on the second story, open it, and spray through that opening. Between the smoke and the darkness, you literally can't see more than about 18" in front of you.

Below, Victor and I prepare to enter with a charged 1 3/4" line, while one of our instructors, Travis Honga, looks on. I'm on the nozzle, in front.

Once we hit the landing and opened the window, I fired off a narrow fog stream through the window, spraying outside. The movement of water through the opening creates a draft and draws the smoke from the building. It didn't take long before we could see again. As one of the career guys mentioned in passing: "Hydraulic ventilation rules!"

Oh sure, it looks easy. But the gear weighs about 20-30 lbs, and the airpack another 25-35. Crawling around on your knees and elbows with 50+ lbs of crap on you is hard enough. Throw in zero-visibility, a couple of inches of water on the floor, and a metal staircase and it gets a little tiring.

Once everyone was good and exhausted, we picked up dangerous power tools and started cutting holes in slanted mock roofs. Oh yeah, it was a fun way to end the day.

Victor finishes the third of four cuts for a ventilation hole. His left foot rests on a pickaxe he's buried in the "roof" as a foothold. His right foot rests on the roof ladder mentioned above.

The determination on Marci's face is visible even through her face shield in this shot taken from below the prop.

As the day wound down, the instructors cranked up the tower (TO-29) and a couple of the guys clambered to the top in the rain. This shot gives you an idea of how high up it was.

A close-up of Jeff at the top of the tower. The nozzle is plainly visible in this shot, and if you look closely you can see the footpegs (tiny platforms, really) for Jeff's feet. It was an entertaining end to a long day.