LINEMAN’S OLYMPICS
Competition a mix of fun and safety
Perhaps someday the Olympics will feature events like the pole-climb, the individual bucket-truck competition and the hurt-man rescue. But until then, utility linemen in Western Pennsylvania — and, increasingly, the rest of the country — have the Lineman’s Rodeo.
Duquesne Light held the sixth such event at its Woods Run training facility on Saturday, when the utility co-hosted the friendly competition for its line workers with the union that represents them, IBEW Local 29.
“It allows our linemen to show off their talents, and it allows their families to see what they do,” said Jessica Rock, a Duquesne Light spokeswoman.
This year’s rodeo featured 37 employees competing in individual and team events. Among other activities, participants were called upon to rescue life-size dummies from electrical towers, and shimmy up poles with climbing belts and gaffs — metal spikes that project from their boots and sink into the wooden poles.
There was also some water-balloon tossing.
“They actually don’t do that on a regular basis,” clarified Mike Doran, Duquesne Light’s vicepresident of operations, as orange balloons soared between workers on adjoining poles. “We try to add some entertainment value.”
Organizers were expecting more than 1,200 visitors for the event. Kids lined up for bucket-truck rides while families milled about vendor tents, eyeing safety gear to a soundtrack of country hits — including, of course, Johnny Cash’s “I Walk the Line.”
The rodeo doubles as the utility’s largest annual fundraiser: Duquesne Light matches donations from vendor sponsors, and the company expects to contribute more than $40,000 this year.
The events were timed, with judges keeping an eye on the clock while assessing form and presentation. But unlike, say, synchronized swimming, competitors aren’t rewarded for creativity.
Points are docked for safety violations, and “You have points deducted for anything you do out of sequence,” said Mike Mitrisin, supervisor of workforce development.
Winners have a chance to visit the International Lineman’s Rodeo in Overland Park, Kan. Begun in 1984, the event has grown from hosting 12 teams to more than 200.
Duquesne Light sent a team to the event for the first time last year: Mr. Mitrisin, who attended, called it a “fantastic experience,” though the locals didn’t finish on the medal stand. Mr. Mitrisin said the locals’ prospects were hampered because the national competition used an electrical connector not found on Western Pennsylvania lines.
Hoping to have better luck representing Western Pennsylvania were this year’s winning team: Waylon Klein and his teammates, brothers Justin and Jared Gerasimek. Even when their transformer-replacement drill finished behind another squad competing at the same time, they stuck with a safety-first approach.
“We got no deductions,” said Justin Gerasimek. “And that’s the key.”
Ordinarily, the task of replacing a transformer can take more than three hours, but for competition purposes, things were sped up with a pre-installed rig that helps lower the 400-pound device. The wires were also “de-energized."
Still, under the watchful eye of judges, competitors carefully took safety precautions like testing for voltage and attaching hose insulators to shield the lines.
“People wonder why it takes so long to get the lights back on,” said Warren Stough, the company’s director of operation services. “But when you come here, you get an appreciation for what these guys do.”