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Two hundred competitors from around the nation celebrated their proud, tough profession Saturday at Levi Carter Park in the 10th Annual Public Power Lineworkers' Rodeo.
Three-man teams climbed power line poles in contests simulating the rescue of injured utility workers and other tasks.
The event, overseen by the American Public Power Association, brought attention to the skill needed to be a lineworker and enabled apprentices and veterans to compare and sharpen their abilities.
Gary Gates, president and CEO of the Omaha Public Power District, said he was touched by the 7:45 a.m. ceremony in which lineworkers climbed poles to put the American, Nebraska and other flags in place.
It was fitting that a drizzle fell, for lineworkers are called out in blizzards, windstorms, bitter cold and other conditions that drive most people indoors. “It's an emotional deal, at least for me, to watch their quality and dedication,” Gates said.
The rodeo graded squads on safety, workmanship, teamwork and speed. Some 130 power poles were temporarily erected in the park for the events.
“The competition is fierce. It's fierce,” said Steve Ledford of Memphis, Tenn., a chief judge for the competition. “They're really fired up.”
Tommy Barksdale of Nashville scrambled up the 40-foot pole during the rescue competition, officially called the “hurtman,” which involves bringing a mannequin down from near the top of the pole.
Spikes on his boots helped him scale the pole. Once up, he belted himself loosely to the pole. He was up, rescued the mannequin, and back down in about 1 minute and 50 seconds.
“It's not my fastest run,” Barksdale said, “but it was a good clean run.”
Barksdale and his teammates know the danger of both the profession and the competition. One of their teammates, about 10 days ago, fell 30 feet from a pole during practice and broke his back. The teammate wasn't paralyzed. “We're lucky,” Barksdale said.
A couple of years ago a friend and co-worker had been working many consecutive hours, repairing lines after a Tennessee tornado. The man accidentally touched a hot line and was severely shocked. He lost a leg and three fingers, Barksdale said.
“We all know the dangers every day when we go to work,” he said.
The tattoo on the forearm of one of Barksdale's teammates, Steve Stubblefield, speaks to his pride. The tattoo depicts a lineworker working near the top of a pole. Stubblefield is a big guy with a beard and ponytail. The figure on the tattoo looks a bit like him.
Three members of an OPPD team, all in their late 40s, said they've participated in various lineworkers' rodeos for years. They're most likely too old to compete for first place, they said, but they enjoy and know what their profession is about.
“It's the type of job not everybody can do,” Chris Coniglio said.
“Not everybody wants to do it,” said Kevin Faust.
Faust's dad and uncle were lineworkers. Teammate Rick Miller's dad was a lineworker, too. When things go haywire, daggers of electricity can arc through the air and turn into fireballs, they said. You don't want to see that, they said, but you will if you're in the profession a long time.
Tennessean Tommy Barksdale's wife, Suzanne, knows the best and worst her husband's job has to offer. The debilitating injury to her husband's friend two years ago jolted her into a recognition of the risk, she said.
But seeing her husband's team win Tennessee's state title a year ago was a thrill. “It was a great day for them,” she said. “They were screaming, you know, just hootin' and hollerin' and clapping.”
Contact the writer:
444-1123, rick.ruggles@owh.com
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