by Scott Magin
(This drill took place on August 27th at Point Pleasant. Full results can be found at www.NYSDrillTeams.com)
Although it felt like the season just began, it was upon us, the final drill. The teams were standing on the Point Pleasant track, which is the final stop on the Western New York tour, and ready to put everything on the line and run their best.
Going into this drill, the Main-Transit Slo-Pokes had a 29-point lead over the Point Pleasant Pea Pickers for the WNY Total Points Championship. However, a lot can happen in one drill. Although there was a lot of ground to make up, no team would ever surrender and give up their opportunity to become the Champions!
The Point Pleasant drill attracts more than just Western New York Teams. The Port Washington Road Runners, Oyster Bay Teddy’s Boys and the Roslyn Highlanders made the trip to run in this drill. There were other Long Island, and past Long Island, residents on hand to watch the drill as well.
The weather report the morning of the drill showed Hurricane Irene was heading towards Long Island and it was inevitable that something was going to be happening since parts of NYC and Long Island were already closed off and/or evacuated. Before the drill began, the Highlanders made a tough decision as a team and began to head for home while they still could. They were all missed and would have definitely changed the final outcome of the drill.
The running order for the day was: Port Washington, Henrietta, Spencerport, Main-Transit, Sheridan Park, Sea Breeze, Point Pleasant, Oyster Bay and North Greece. The clock struck 12:00 and the drill was underway…
The Road Runners set the pace in 3-Man Ladder with a 7.11 and it seemed with them running 1st, they would set the pace in all of the races throughout the day. Henrietta ran a 7.97 while Spencerport congested the ladder and was only able to pull a 10.62. Main-Transit put up their time of 7.49, Sheridan Park ran a 12.80, Sea Breeze received a No Time and Point Pleasant stepped up and ran a 7.47. The Teddy’s Boys used their utilization Tool, Vinny Monaco, in the event and pulled out a 9.43, while North Greece finished the event with an 8.14. Team order of finish was the Road Runners, Pea Pickers, Slo-pokes, Ol’ Henries and the Lil’ Squirts.
It should be noted that although the teams outside of WNY will earn the points for the drill and daily trophies, the points for yearly trophies are reconfigured using only the WNY teams and their times. For example, the WNY points in 3-Man Ladder were distributed as such: Point Pleasant – 5, Main-Transit – 4, Henrietta – 3, North Greece – 2 and Spencerport – 1.
Motor Hook & Ladder Class ‘B’ was started out by Port Washington and a 6.00, followed by the Ol’ Henries with an aggressive run that unfortunately had them dig outside of the safety zone for a No Time. Main-Transit came in with a longer than normal break into the patch which resulted in a conservative 6.31 and the Indians followed up with an 11.89. The Pea Pickers saw the door open again to gain points on the Slo-Pokes and put up a smooth 5.90, while Oyster Bay followed up with a 9.68 and the Lil’ Squirts with an 8.14. The Pea Pickers won the event, followed by Road Runners, Main-Transit, North Greece and Oyster Bay.
Port Washington’s C-Truck coming down the track really woke the crowd up for C-Ladder and allowed them to post a 9.38 to open the event. Henrietta stormed in and was able to complete the event with a 10.14 followed by Main-Transit. The Slo-Pokes were to salvage the deep drop by pulling the ladder back into the patch ahd finishing with a 14.25. Sea Breeze ran an 11.40, with Point Pleasant running an aggressive 9.83 to pull closer while North Greece received a No Time. Port Washington won the event, followed by Point Pleasant, Henrietta, Sea Breeze and Main-Transit.
Total points going into C-Hose:
Port Washington – 14
Point Pleasant – 13
Main-Transit – 7
Henrietta – 5
North Greece – 3
Sea Breeze – 2
Oyster Bay – 1
The water time was set at 4.68 for the hose races and the teams were ready to continue with the day. Danny Salerno brought the Road Runners in very well and set the pace at a 13.40 for the other teams to challenge. Henrietta ran a 16.25 and the Spencerport Red Onions were back on the track after not racing in the ladder events. Joe Muniz drove the C-Truck in and gave Johnny Short the chance for a good hit at the hydrant while allowing Brian and Chris the time to put the nozzle on and finish with a 13.26. The Slo-Pokes ran into another hurdle and finished the event with an 18.73, only to be followed by the Indians and a 23.47. Mark Champion brought the Pea Pickers in aggressively and Jamie hit the hydrant really well. That left Jeff Champion with only one shot to break the hose and get the nozzle on. With the water at that speed, the Pea Pickers blew off and finished with a 17.47. The Lil’ Squirts followed with a 14.38. The Red Onions took first place followed by the Road Runners, Lil’ Squirts, Ol’ Henries and Pea Pickers.
Port Washington was not letting second place, or fast water hold them back. They came down the track and put up a strong 8.58 (1st place) and setting the pace again! Chuck came in hot for Henrietta allowing Josh to hit the hydrant with some authority and giving Eddie the opportunity to hit the target and put up an 8.68 (3rd place.) Spencerport ran aggressively and nipped the Ol’ Henries by a hundredth with an 8.67 (2nd place.) The Slo-Pokes troubles continued with an 11.48 (5th place.) The Indians ran an 11.52 and Point Pleasant a 15.57. Oyster Bay did not complete the event and North Greece ran a 9.55 (4th place.)
Although it had been a rough road for the Main-Transit Slo-Pokes, at this point in the drill they had secured winning the yearly trophy for total points.
Total points going into Efficiency:
Port Washington – 23
Point Pleasant – 14
Henrietta – 10
Spencerport – 9
Main-Transit – 8
North Greece – 8
Sea Breeze – 2
Oyster Bay – 1
The Efficiency contest brings out all the teams back to the track and shows a real team effort. The 9.64 run by the Road Runners didn’t hold for long as the Ol’ Henries topped it with a 9.52, which is the fastest WNY Efficiency time this season. Spencerport’s times have improved at every drill and continued today when they ran a 10.55. Main-Transit ran 12.66, Sheridan Park ran 11.88, Sea Breeze ran 12.51 and Point Pleasant received a controversial No Time for nozzle over the nozzle-line. Oyster Bay ran 11.58 and North Greece finished the event with 10.14. Henrietta won the event followed by Port Washington, North Greece, Spencerport and Main-Transit.
The track for motor pump must have been a little slick, or things got in the way of some people because more than a few teams lost control of the nozzle, or couldn’t gain control because someone slipped along the way. Port Washington ran an 8.26, Henrietta ran a 12.48, Spencerport ran a 10.42. Main-Transit and Sea Breeze both ran Overtime. The Pea Pickers ran a smooth 7.51, while the Teddy’s Boys ran an 11.37 and North Greece finished with an 8.50. Point Pleasant won the event with Port Washington finishing in second, North Greece in third, Spencerport in fourth and Oyster Bay in fifth.
The Bucket Brigade was the final call for WNY and would be the last event until next year. The Road Runners set the bar once again with a 23.06 and they seemed quite happy with their day. Henrietta pulled out a 30.65 followed by Main-Transit, who ran off their pace but still put up a 23.95. Sheridan Park, with only 4 people on the ground, ran a 49.64 and Sea Breeze, with only 3 people on the ground, ran a 38.93. Point Pleasant ran a 26.62, Oyster Bay ran a 38.26 and North Greece finished out the WNY season with a 32.83. The Road Runners took first place followed by Main Transit in second, Point Pleasant in third, Henrietta in fourth and North Greece in fifth. Both Sheridan Park and Sea Breeze were troopers ALL season. Buckets was an event they both could have chosen to not participate in because of manpower issues; however, went to battle knowing they are running for pride and earned a lot of respect from their fellow teams and the fans.
Total points for the day:
Port Washington – 36 Pts.
Point Pleasant – 22 Pts.
Henrietta – 17 Pts.
North Greece – 15 Pts.
Spencerport – 13 Pts.
Main-Transit – 12 Pts.
Oyster Bay – 3 Pts.
Sea Breeze – 2 Pts.
The Road Runners had one heck of a day, placing in first or second in every event. Special thanks to the people and teams that made the journey to Point Pleasant for their 2011 drill, and congratulations to the Main-Transit Slo-Pokes for winning the 2011 Total Point Championship trophy.
Here’s an (unofficial) summary of the yearly trophy winners:
3-Man Ladder - Main-Transit Slo-Pokes
B-Ladder - Main-Transit Slo-Pokes
C-Ladder - Point Pleasant Pea Pickers
C-Hose - Point Pleasant Pea Pickers
B-Hose - Henrietta Ol’ Henries/North Greece Lil’ Squirts (tie)
Efficiency - Main-Transit Slo-Pokes
Motor Pump - Henrietta Ol’ Henries
Buckets - Main-Transit Slo-Pokes
C-Truck Points - Point Pleasant Pea Pickers
B-Truck Points - Henrietta Ol’ Henries
Truck Points - Point Pleasant Pea Pickers
Foot Points - Main-Transit Slo-Pokes
Yearly Points - Main-Transit Slo-Pokes
