Reba the firefighter
MY PART TIME JOB by Rebecca Rusch
Some of you may not know this, but I am a part time firefighter/EMT in my hometown of Ketchum, ID. I have been working for the Ketchum Fire Department for about 3 years and it’s a great diversion from becoming a one dimensional bike geek. I spent the early part of this week working on a major fire that burned two commercial buildings on Main Street in Ketchum. It was by far the biggest structure fire I have ever seen and reported to be the biggest one the town of Ketchum has ever seen. The video clip below tells the best story and shows stunning images of what it was really like that morning. All I can say is that it was a very intense experience. Watch for yourself.
http://blip.tv/file/1263918
The call went out at around 3am and I worked straight through until 3pm. After that, I went home to sleep for a while and then back to stand watch at the fire site from midnight until 10am the next day. That was Tuesday. Wednesday morning I left town to head to Arizona for a 24 Hour race this weekend. This was not the ideal training and resting that should happen the week before a long race. Far from it. My coach will not be very happy to be reading this. However, I made a commitment to the fire department and was grateful to be in town during this fire. While it was not the best preparation for a race, the experience was once in a lifetime and I am so glad I was able to do my small part to help the community where I live.
Needless to say, I was completely spent from working on the fire. I was so distracted and tired that I actually left for the race without packing any bike lights or socks for the event. Luckily, I was able to get the gear FedEx’d and am feeling a lot more prepared physically to race this weekend. This race is part of the USA Cycling Ultra Endurance Series and also the site of 24 Hour Nationals in 2009. So, I’m here to get more points in the series and also check out the course for next year. From Arizona, I head straight to the Interbike trade show in Las Vegas.
In Las Vegas, I’ll be meeting with sponsors, seeing friends and doing a bit of PR while I’m there.
If anyone is around the show, here’s a schedule of appearances. I hope you can drop by and say hello.
Monday Sept 22: 4pm poster signing at Specialized
Tuesday Sept 23: 4pm poster signing at Specialized
Wednesday Sept 24: 11am poster signing at World Bicycle Relief
Wednesday Sept 24: 1pm, 24 Hour racing seminar and slideshow at Light and Motion
Thursday Sept 25: 10am, poster signing at World Bicycle Relief
Thursday Sept 25: 1pm, 24 Hour racing seminar and slideshow at Light and Motion
Thanks for reading and I hope to see many of you in Las Vegas.