MISSOULA — Missoula firefighters are taking on “the toughest two minutes in sports" for the first time in 10 years.
That's the tagline for the Firefighter Challenge Championship Series, a competition for individuals and teams to showcase, inspire and level up firefighting skills.
“I went this year for the first time and had a blast, so I'm definitely gonna keep doing it,” said Quinlan Roe, who is leading the Missoula Fire Department’s challenge team.
Watch to learn more about what's called “the toughest two minutes in sports":
Those tough two minutes involve running up multiple flights of stairs, hauling heavy hoses and dummies and more, all while wearing 50 pounds of gear.
This year, teams from both Missoula’s city and rural departments went to and won big at the West Regional Classic in Salt Lake City.
“Whenever you get around it, your body knows what’s coming and it’s like ‘Oh gosh'," Roe said. “The actual course, that was designed by a doctor who was like, ‘What can we make a race that is as close to what firefighters have to deal with in a structure fire as we can'?"
But Roe is no stranger to the challenge course. His father, retired Missoula Fire Department Captain Brad Roe, won a challenge world record.
“We call him a challenge baby, because we brought the Combat Challenge to Missoula. My wife literally went into labor, lifting up a cooler, getting ready for the challenge,” Brad Roe said.
Quinlan Roe watched his dad train for the challenge and quickly started following in his footsteps.
“I mean, he was training out at Station 4 at City Fire with us. He's a little guy running around while we were all doing the course,” Brad Roe said. “Putting on the face mask and wearing a bottle and running up the tower and it's like ‘jeez,’ I had no idea that he'd go on to do it.”
But Quinlan Roe said it got into his blood. Now a firefighter himself, he is taking the Firefighter Challenge head-on. His father is proudly watching and helping him train.
“Right now, my focus is beating the old man's record for sure,” he said.
He's looking to beat his dad’s time of 1 minute and 21 seconds, then plans to take on the new world record. With a time of 1:28, he is getting close.
“Missoula kind of prides themselves on their firefighters as well. And I'm fortunate to work for a fire department that is so athletic and that has the right goals and we are truly ready when we're getting off the engine for whatever's coming,” Quinlan Roe said. “This course even helps us more and more.”
Missoula’s teams built off of the legacy from Brad Roe and so many others when they returned to the challenge this year.
Quinlan Roe told MTN that the teams are working to keep it up. More firefighters are joining the teams and new recruits are interested in the competition. They are training for the challenge and for the community.
“The firefighters deal with trench rescue, high-angle rescue, swift water. They could be running Mount Jumbo, saving lives. They could be fighting wildland fires. They could be on a vehicle crash and it could be -30 out,” Brad Roe said. “Our team is the most important thing, having a team, because what you do when you get off the fire truck is all about a team.”
