by Scott Magin
(This drill took place on July 8th. Full results of the drill can be found at www.NYSDrillTeams.com)
It was Friday Night Lights in Williamsville, however there was no football game scheduled. What can be better than a football game on a Friday night you ask? The annual Main-Transit Slo-Pokes drill under the lights.
The drill was run alongside the department’s annual Field Days event that including carnival rides, a food stand, a beer tent and an entertainment stage. As we got closer to the start of the drill, the bleachers on both sides of the track were filling up. The team captains drew where their teams would be lining up and we were ready to race. The lineup for the day was as follows: Spencerport, Main-Transit, Sheridan Park, Henrietta, North Greece, Point Pleasant and Sea Breeze.
The first 3-Man Ladder run set the pace for the night: a 7.00 by the Slo-Pokes. Sheridan Park followed with a 13.29, Henrietta had a slip on the ladder which caused the climbers to touch out of sequence, and North Greece ran a solid 8.66. Point Pleasant ran a smooth 7.59 only to have Sea Breeze step up with a 7.50 and finish out the event. With this order of finish - Main-Transit, Sea Breeze, Point Pleasant, North Greece and Sheridan Park - it looked like there could be some surprises tonight…and there were.
B-Ladder was completed with times close to each other and a nail bitter, in the second event. The Slo-Pokes set the pace again with a 7.14 and walked away satisfied with their run. The Ol’ Henries ran a 7.69, followed by North Greece pulling out a great run and an unexpected 6.72. The Pea Pickers ran a 7.46, followed by the Indians’ 7.84. This was the Lil’ Squirts’ first event won in this season, followed by Main-Transit, Point Pleasant, Henrietta and Sea Breeze.
There were only four teams running the C-Truck events so each team knew they had to run good to get the better points. C-Ladder was started with a 10.62 by Main-Transit (2nd place), followed by Henrietta with a 10.54 (1st place), North Greece with a 12.09 (4th place) and Point Pleasant with an 11.57 (3rd place.) The Sea Breeze Indians did not bring their C-Truck to the event because of mechanical concerns.
As the sun started to come down and the track lights became more visible, the water time was set at 4.64 and the teams were ready for C-Hose. Main-Transit put up a 14.83 and North Greece ran a 16.81. Henrietta had a good run going but ran into some trouble getting the nozzle on and finally completed the contest with a 20.83. Point Pleasant came in hot to the hydrant and Jamie Pittinaro was able to hang it as he slipped to the ground. A quick hit like that only gave Jeff Champion one chance to get the nozzle on and unfortunately he did not have the time and finished with an 18.72.
B-Hose started with Main-Transit and an 11.18, followed by Henrietta with a 14.78, North Greece with a 13.36 and Point Pleasant with a 14.94. Sea Breeze was the last team to run and requested a 20 minute break-down. With less than a minute to go on their break-down, the Indians pulled up to the starting line and were ready to go. Their time of 10.56 took first place and this is the first event that they won this year.
After B-Hose, the Slo-Pokes had a 6 point lead with three events remaining. Meanwhile, 6 points separated North Greece, Point Pleasant, Henrietta and Sea Breeze in the two through five positions. So much could happen in the next three races, so all times were important.
Efficiency was the first event where all seven teams were able to compete and the Red Onions were the first to go with an 11.09, finishing in fourth place. The Slo-Pokes had a great target trip at 9.71 to take first, Point Pleasant took second with a 10.25, Sea Breeze third with a 10.73 and Sheridan Park took fifth with a 12.33.
Spencerport brought their B-Truck to the drill and was able to run a conservative Pump run. With delayed water out, for safety of a new team, they put up a third-place run with a 7.61. Main-Transit was up next and ran aggressive with success for a 6.32 and first-place run. Henrietta ran a 10.27 for fifth, North Greece ran a 9.16 for fourth and the Pea Pickers took second with a smooth 7.55 run.
Going into Buckets, the Slo-Pokes had secured first place overall for the day but were not holding back. The host team took first place in the event with a 22.17 followed by Point Pleasant (31.93), Henrietta (35.18), North Greece (35.19) and Sheridan Park (40.35).
Total Points for the day:
Main-Transit – 37 Pts.
Point Pleasant – 25 Pts.
North Greece – 20 Pts.
Henrietta – 15 Pts.
Sea Breeze – 13 Pts.
Spencerport – 5 Pts.
Sheridan Park – 3 Pts.
WNY has had a different team win at all three of its drills this season. Also, two more teams won first-place trophies this week who had been winless so far this season. This strikes the curiosity of what will happen at the next drill in Spencerport. With only two more races counting for yearly points, there will be some teams stepping up their game to take the yearly championship trophy.
No comments:
Post a Comment