Interview with Donald "Bumpy" Bray

There is no such thing as the offseason here at The Drill Team Blog. Our very own Dan Laverty recently sat down for a conversation with Donald “Bumpy” Bray of the Hempstead Flukes. Here’s how it went.

This interview took place on November 17th at the West End Firehouse.

Dan: I would like to start off by saying thank you for taking the time and for granting me this interview.

Bump: You got it! Anytime.

Dan: When did you join the Hempstead Fire Department?

Bump: June 10th, 1963

Dan: What Company?

Bump: Engine 5

Dan: Did you race right away?

Bump: Yup

Dan: Why did you join?

Bump: Why did I join? I was first on the Junior Flukes. With the Junior Flukes we got to see different activities within the fire department and as far as racing goes we got to see the B & C trucks. When we were juniors we ran the ground events – 3-Man Ladder, Efficiency but no Buckets in those days – this is how I got involved and as soon as I became 18 years old I joined. At first it was to race, but it isn't just racing it is also about protecting lives and property.

Dan: Who were some of your teammates that first year you joined?

Bump: Well of course there was Jackie (Jack Cloudman). He and I were the best of friends. As a matter of fact, I was the best man at his wedding. We knew each other since we were kids and we always did everything together. He was a year older than me and joined the fire department before me. Billy Florence, all of these people I am going to mention we all lived on the same block and we all played sports together. Just alone from Covert Street alone there was Johnny Orzenz, Bobby Cosgrove and Eddie Florence from my age bracket.

Dan: Where did your nickname Bumpy come from?

Bump: It is a family thing, we all had nicknames. Everybody in the family had nicknames. My father gave me mine. I was about two years old and I used to always bump my head. Believe it or not it stuck for 66 years.

Dan: Do many people still call you Bumpy?

Bump: Sure, yup.

Dan: Do you like being called Bumpy?

Bump: Yeah sure, mainly because it is family orientated.

Dan: I am going to say a few words and you say what comes into your head…

Dan: State

Bump: Biggest

Dan: Bone

Bump: Jimmy O'Neil

Dan: Hydrant

Bump: Best position in racing

Dan: Did anyone Mentor you?

Bump: Not really because I started in junior racing and there we all learned ourselves, we watched others that were older than us. We just basically learned by our mistakes.

Dan: Have you passed your knowledge on?

Bump: Oh yes, definitely. Even now when I go to practices I try and help the younger members. Some of people I did help were Joey, you know JoJo Simone from the Yellow Hornets. He is more or less my protégé. Skippy Abrams, I helped him, he ran for North Bellmore.

Dan: Not many people know you had an incident in 1981, would you like to talk about that?

Bump: I don't remember that because it was a head injury that I had. I will say this there were a lot of prayers going on. I was told by a lot of people, when I came out of being semi-toast for nine days. All those prayers work because it worked with me.

Dan: Were you on any State Record runs?

Bump: Oh yeah, a couple of them – Old Fashioned and Motorized. Motor Pump, B-Hose and C-Hose. 6.18 in Motor Pump, it was the first time in 20 years that the record had been broken and it was by almost a whole second. Two Into One and Efficiency records also. A big part of it was Pat Jeffares, who was probably the best nozzle-man. He was something else, he was good.

Dan: How long did you race?

Bump: 1963-1981

Dan: How many drills do you think the Flukes won during your career?

Bump: In the 70’s we had our biggest winning streak. We won Nassau County Total Points a couple years in a row.

Dan: Name the greatest single shot that stands out to you the most?

Bump: I really can’t say…

Dan: Because there were so many?

Bump: *Laughs*

Dan: Favorite track you raced on?

Bump: Oh easy, Hempstead, without a doubt.

Dan: During your racing career who were some of your biggest competitors?

Bump: West Sayville, they were very big. We were always catching up to them. They would get us in ladders and we would slowly but surely creep up behind them and sometimes we got ‘em and sometimes it was second and third places. You know it was catching up a lot. Central Islip too, it was predominately Suffolk teams back then we competed with. In the beginning of my racing career it was the Oyster Bay Rough Riders, they were tough. Port Washington too with their three teams: The Rowdies, The Runts and The Rangers. They were pretty competitive and also Westbury had a good water team. Their hydrant-man was Tallo. We always competed against each other in tournaments.

Dan: Why do you think some guys are able to race for 20-25 years while others only last a year or two?

Bump: Well it’s hard to say, you could be the best athlete in the world, that don’t mean you can race. Because what happens a lot of times a guy comes out of High School and they try to jump off the truck and stuff like that, it’s a different element. You know, it is not like carrying a football or running for yards and stuff, it is a totally different aspect. We have had good athletes on the team and like you said they only last a year or two because they lose interest. Here is when junior teams come into play. We started back then and we loved it back then and we continued to love it. Another thing too that I found is that the team events in a tournament, where you had the most people from your team running kept the teams together too. If they were competitive in those events you got along better because they were always getting trophies and they were always winning. You had your four-man teams, you know like ladder, hose and stuff like that. If you weren’t winning or at least competitive then the interest waned. They would try for only a couple of years and that would be it. With Efficiency, Pump and Buckets where they all ran, they stayed together a lot more.

Dan: How do feel about all the recent advancements and innovations that have been made to our sport? Drill Team Radio, the Scoreboard, The Drill Team Blog and speeding up of tournaments, etc…

Bump: Between you and I, I only go to one or two tournaments a year these days. I was never much into the Captains Association and stuff like that. I never really followed up to it like that.

What I didn’t like and this is when I was running: the money. You know, some teams had the money and others didn’t. What I mean by having money, I don’t mean from the tax-payers, I mean from fund raising events they used to have. Port Washington and Manhasset-Lakeville used to have these block parties and that gave them income. Every other team would go, a lot of camaraderie, we would all go and support them. That helped them. That helped the drill teams; it was not that they got the money from their departments or the taxpayers because back then we didn’t. What happens now I am not that familiar with, but back then you were self-sufficient. The Flukes would raffle off football tickets, have car raffles, that was a source of income for the drill team.

Dan: Is there any one call that an official has ever made that still sticks with you all these years?

Bump: Oh yeah, sure. Motor Pump, sure, they used to call him "Red Flag". And what it was is he used to red flag us all the time because they thought I jumped off the truck before the line.

Dan: What was your favorite C-Truck that the Flukes ran?

Bump: My favorite C-Truck? The prettiest was the Ranchero. As far as going? Nah, it didn’t go worth anything, but it was pretty. It was not competitive with the trucks like Port Washington’s, Manhasset and the teams of that nature. They had the best of trucks, aerodynamic trucks, lighter and they went into it better than we did.

Dan: Who were the Drivers during your career?

Bump: Jackie and before him was Bobby Marra. I even ran with Al Cooke, Sr.

Dan: How do you feel about Old Fashion versus Motorized?

Bump: Old Fashion is great. For the simple reason is that there is a large body of men competing against each other and that would keep them together. Back in the 70’s we had a very competitive Old Fashion team, we would always be competing against Freeport Truck One. They were also competitive and we would always duel it out at tournaments. Old Fashion was great.

Dan: If you were able to have raced for any other team during your career what team would it have been?

Bump: Probably the Yellow Hornets, more than likely because I knew all of them, I knew everybody on that team.

Dan: How did Bobby Marra leaving the Flukes affect you and the team?

Bump: There wasn’t that much of a difference where it hurt the team. Jackie filled right in after him.

Dan: How did Pat Jeffares leaving The Flukes affect you and the team?

Bump: That hurt big time because he was one of the nucleus of the team as far as his talent, he ran every event and it just hurt.

Dan: What year did you feel or say this is the year for the Flukes, state champ wise?

Bump: What year? I would say the late 70’s – 1977 to 1980. We were very competitive and we could have done it.

Dan: 1978 perhaps?

Bump: It came down to Buckets. It is a team event and everything happened so quick.

Dan: Do you have a lot of racing memorabilia at home?

Bump: Yes, my wife kept a scrapbook. Back then we used to have articles in the paper after every tournament and she clipped out every one of them, pictures too.

Dan: What is your most cherished racing possession?

Bump: My trophy. It is a ten year competitive trophy for B-Truck Total Points. After the tenth year I decided to take it out and keep it at the firehouse.

Dan: What single piece of advice would you like to give to Hydrant-men who are currently running?

Bump: I would have to say consistency, don’t try to break the record and be fancy. Consistency, that’s the key to racing, also learning from your mistakes.

Dan: What were some of the Flukes’ sayings or mottos you would like to share?

Bump: "Hold onto your hats!" When we marched in the parade at the state tournament, the announcer said underneath the arch when we walked through: "Here comes the Hempstead Fire Department Flukes Drill Team and hold onto your hats because they broke the state record!" We all grabbed our hats and walked under the arch laughing and smiling.

Dan: What individual person do you enjoy watching race nowadays?

Bump: Who do I enjoy? JoJo Simone.

Dan: What team do you enjoy watching race nowadays?

Bump: The Yellow Hornets.

Dan: Have you ever wished you did not get involved with racing?

Bump: NO

Dan: I understand you only attend two drills a year, what would entice you to attend more?

Bump: The thing is they have it on the weekends and I work on the weekends. If it wasn’t for that I would go to more.

Dan: We got to get you out to some Friday night drills. The Islip Town Drill, Babylon Town Drill and the like.

Dan: In our pre-interview conversation I mentioned that I interviewed Willie McCarthy from Central Islip. Who were some other people you remember competing against?

Bump: I don’t know his last name, Neil from The Meadowlarks and Darcy. They are the guys the guys I remember racing with and I see them now playing golf. I just played with Neil a few weeks ago at Eisenhower.

Dan: Who ran Hydrant for The Flukes before you?

Bump: Jackie

Dan: After you?

Bump: Who did I break in after me? I guess that would be Pat Cooke, yes Pat Cooke ran after me.

Dan: How did you feel when The Flukes stopped racing?

Bump: You know, to tell you something, I was not that close to the team anymore. I did not have any feelings about it because it was slowly but surely going that way anyway. They didn’t have the older members on the team to keep it together. I would go down to practice and give advice but if you miss two weeks of practice they go back to doing what they want to do anyway. Here’s another thing too…It used to be very family orientated, I had my Uncle, Pappy Oates and Jackie had his father. There were so many different things that changed, outsiders came in and the feeling wasn’t the same. It did not bother me that much, they stopped when ‘98? I stopped racing in 1981 so I was 18 years out of the game at the time.

Dan: What is your favorite color?

Bump: Blue, that is our company color.

Dan: How did you feel about the Flukes’ B-Truck going to another team?

Bump: It is one of the better B-Trucks ever made, it was very reliable and built right. There is no mistaking it. I am glad it is still on the track, it’s a part of racing.

We’d like to thank Bumpy for taking the time to sit down with us and we’d also like to wish all our readers, fans and friends a safe and happy Thanksgiving!

Recap of the Point Pleasant Drill on 08/27

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

Recap of the Spencerport Drill on 08/08

by Scott Magin

(This drill took place on August 6th at the Spencerport track. Full results of the drill can be found at www.NYSDrillTeams.com)

The Spencerport drill started on an overcast day, with the chances of thunderstorms moving in. Even with rain in the forecast, the north side of the track had pick-up trucks backed up to the fence and the south side had lawn chairs anywhere they could go. People came out and were looking for a good drill.

The host drew the #1 position again this week and put up a 7.44 in their first 3-Man run of the season. Sea Breeze ran second with an 8.00, followed by Main-Transit and a 7.09. Sheridan Park put up a 12.41, Henrietta came in with an 8.60, Point Pleasant ran a 9.51 and North Greece ran last with an 8.02. The Slo-Pokes took 5 points, Red Onions 4, Indians 3, North Greece 2 and Ol’ Henries 1 point.

Spencerport still does not have a motorized ladder team running and Sheridan Park is participating in the foot races only. B-Ladder was set up for all the other teams to get points…we just didn’t know where they would go. Sea Breeze took fifth with a 7.39, North Greece took fourth with a 7.16, Main-Transit took third with a 6.63, Point Pleasant took second with 6.07, and the Ol’ Henries from Henrietta took first place with a 5.62.

Sea Breeze did some work on their C-Truck through the time off between drills. Because the work was not complete, and the truck was not 100% ready, the Indians made a safe choice by leaving the truck at home. Now with three teams out of the C-Truck races, the top four positions were up for grabs. Main-Transit went first and ran a 12.49 (third place) followed by Henrietta. The Ol’ Henries came in and were dropped too deep and unfortunately the spikes touched the safety line and they received a No Time. The Pea Pickers saw the door open and they came in aggressively and put up a 10.38 (first place), while North Greece ran a 10.98 (second place).

Total points after three events:

Main-Transit – 11 Pts.

Point Pleasant – 9 Pts.

North Greece – 8 Pts.

Henrietta – 6 Pts.

Sea Breeze – 4 Pts.

Spencerport – 4 Pts.

The water was set at 4.66 and the C-Hose event began. The Red Onions came to the line for their first motorized hose race of the season and raced a 15.93. Main-Transit followed with a smooth 14.74 and then Henrietta experienced the fast water. Eddie got blown off at the nozzle and every time he tried to put it on, the water was turned on, blowing it off again. Finally the nozzle made it on the hose and they finished in fifth place with a 33.19. Although it was embarrassing for the team, they knew that 1 point is better than nothing. Point Pleasant put up the fastest time with a 14.46 followed by North Greece with 15.16. Point Pleasant took 5 points, Main transit 4 points, North Greece 3 points, Spencerport 2 points and Henrietta took 1 point.

B-Hose started off on the wrong foot for a couple teams. Spencerport started out with a good drop at the hydrant; however, the donut-roll may have been dropped too early because it was not able to unroll. Instead, it bulked up at the hydrant and put the nozzle behind the 125’ line, resulting in a No Time. Sea Breeze then ran a good run however the B-Truck stopped too soon, so not all of the dummy length was out of the hose bed when the target was tripped, also resulting in a No Time. The point spread was open again and Henrietta took first place with a 9.01 followed by North Greece with a 10.44, Main-Transit with 10.76 and Point Pleasant taking fourth place with a 13.71.

Total points after 5 races:

Main-Transit – 18 Pts.

Point Pleasant – 16 Pts.

North Greece – 15 Pts.

Henrietta – 12 Pts.

Spencerport – 6 Pts.

Sea Breeze – 4 Pts.

Efficiency brought all seven teams back to the starting line. About now, the possibility of rain is irrelevant because the sun is starting to peak through the clouds. Spencerport started it off and set the pace with a 10.90 (third Place) and Sea Breeze ran an 11.93 (fifth place.) Main-Transit has won Efficiency all year, so why should this drill be any different? The Slo-Pokes ran a 9.86 (first place), followed by Sheridan Park with a 12.13 and Henrietta with an 11.33. Point Pleasant ran what looked to be a smooth run; however, the target was not reset which got them a re-run. In the midst, the Henrietta Ol’ Henries put in a water protest and claimed it was out of tolerance. It seems that every year a team will protest the Spencerport water and each year they are regretful that they did so because since they have had T.J. Sercu operating the pump no protests have been allowed. The water was tested and was only off by 0.03, so the protest was disallowed and the race continued. North Greece ran a 10.80 (second place) and Point Pleasant was ready for their re-run. The hydrant was missed, delaying water to the nozzle and they missed out on points with a 12.84.

Motor pump started with only 4 points separating the leader, Main-Transit, and North Greece. Spencerport started out and led the pack for a while with an 8.27 followed by an 11.31 from Sea Breeze and an 8.40 from Main-Transit. Henrietta stepped up and ran a 6.59 only to be followed by a protest from Main-Transit that the target was not straight and out of tolerance. After review and measurements by the General Judges, the target was within tolerance and the protest was disallowed. Point Pleasant ran into a safety overtime call and North Greece ran a 13.61. The results of the Motor Pump contest was Henrietta in first, Spencerport second, Main-Transit third, Henrietta fourth and North Greece in fifth.

Main-Transit has won Buckets all season and with another win, they could lock up the yearly trophy. Sea Breeze started the event off with a short-handed team but they still ran buckets and put up a 43.68 (fifth place.) Main-Transit ran their smooth 21.64 (first place) and then Sheridan Park with a 47.23. Henrietta finished with a 29.34 (fourth place), Point Pleasant with a 27.66 (second place) and North Greece finished the day with a 28.70 (third place.)

At the end of the day, the weather never ended up playing a role and that made for a great race and a lot of happy racers and fans. The final results of the drill were as follows:

Main-Transit – 31 Pts.

North Greece – 23 Pts.

Henrietta – 21 Pts.

Point Pleasant – 20 Pts.

Spencerport – 13 Pts.

Sea Breeze – 8 Pts.

Recap of the Main-Transit Drill on 07/08

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.

Looking for Reader Submissions for State Drill

Hi racers and racing fans,

This is the first State Drill that the blog has been in existence for and we want the write up to be the best it can be. We need YOUR help. If you have any insights or stories about this years state drill to add please email them to the blog. If there is a specific event you would like to write about please do. If you want to write about just your team please do that too. I can write the whole thing just as I did for the Central Islip Invite on 7/30 but we want to try something different. Any person that contributes will be given full credit.

It is possible that the write up for the State Drill might be published in a major publication. The deadline for a submission is this Friday at 12:00PM.

I would like to thank everyone in advance for any and all assistance you may provide in this endeavour.

Dan Laverty

Editor In-Chief

The Drill Team Blog

DrillTeamBlog@gmail.com

Recap of the Central Islip Invitational Drill on 07/30

by Dan Laverty

(This drill took place on July 30th at the Central Islip track. Full results of the drill can be found at www.NYSDrillTeams.com)

The 49th Annual Central Islip Invitational Tournament started off without a cloud in the sky. With the addition of temporary bleachers by the arch and larger than usual bleachers by "The Shack" the crowd seemed sparse. The addition of numerous bleachers in "The Bullpen" area had the opposite effect on the south side of the track. All of these improvements are in preparation for the New York State Championship Drill to be held at this track on Saturday August 20th. I am sure on that day all viewing areas will be at full capacity to watch the always impressive Hoboes defend their State Championship title on their home track.

3-Man Ladder started off with a bang. The host team of the drill led off the competition with a time of 6.20. This time also instantly became the fastest run in this contest for 2011. The Roslyn Highlanders were next to place, coming off their win at the TONH/TOB drill were also looking to make a mark on this day ran a 6.56. East Islip – with friend of the Drill Team Blog, Josh Kasin running third man – completed the event with a time of 6.46. The Islip Wolves who recently re-acquired their motorized climber and third man Billy Moon ran a 6.71. The Hempstead Yellow Hornets and their new line up of JoJo Simone, Kevin Rugg and Twan put up a time of 6.32 which put them in second place. The only Old Fashion Drill Team to participate was the Miller Place Extinguishers. The team co

nsisted of Chris Lall, Matt Muller and student of our sport Rob Bruccoleri. Rob grasped the top rung

to stop the clocks at 6.97 which at the time was fifth place. Their hopes of placing in this event were crushed when The North Lindenhurst Piston Knockers ran a 6.63 taking fifth place away from the Extunguishers. The North Baylon Taildraggers put up their best time of the year with the time of 6.71 and should definitely be proud of that run.

Results of the 3-Man Ladder contest:

1st - Central Islip

2nd - East Islip

3rd - Hempstead

4th - Roslyn

5th - North Lindenhurst

Motor Hook and Ladder Class-B did not begin as exciting as the 3-Man contest. The first team to run a 5 was the Sayville Blue Jays, who put up their best time of 2011 with a time of 5.77. The Copiague Yellowbirds, who had a disappointing 3-Man Ladder run put up a time of 5.13. It was said by the radio crew that Billy "Mr. Happy" Hothan is determined to get his team in the 5.0 time range. The East Islip Guzzlers who had 4 points coming into this event ran a 5.28. Glenwood was in the 5's with a 5.94 but did not place. The Bay Shore Redskins' thrower layed the ladder in nice and gentle and helped them achieve a time of 5.44. Islip had their veteran climber Billy Moon back on the rail and looked like he never skipped a beat helping the Wolves run a 5.21. Even with a very uncharacteristic slip on the ladder by 8-time state champion Michael Marra, The West Sayville Flying Dutchmen ran a 5.41.

Results of the Motor Hook and Ladder Class-B contest:

1st – Copiague

2nd – Islip

3rd – East Islip

4th – West Sayville

5th – Bay Shore

Motor Hook and Ladder Class-C was expected to be an event with some impressive times, but due to the misjudgments by some drivers on this newly paved track caused the C-Cars to slide under the arch. Central Islip ran first and put up a time of 9.19. The only 8 was run by the crack racing team from East Islip who put up a time of 8.89. You could almost hear the day’s competitors say “Uh-oh, boys” as they realized that they had better find their ‘A’ game come the hose events if they wanted to compete. Bay Shore put up a time of 9.61 while Islip added onto the 4 points from the previous contest, taking second place with a 9.11. Hempstead rounded out the top five with a 9.34. Copiague, Glenwood and North Babylon all had nice runs in the 9’s, barely missing out on scoring in the contest.

Results of the Motor Hook and Ladder Class-C contest:

1st – East Islip

2nd – Islip

3rd – Central Islip

4th – Hempstead

5th – Bay Shore

Motor Hose Class-C started out with the second uncharacteristic run of the day. This one was by the Hoboes who got an OT. St. James almost ran the same time as they did at The Suffolk County Drill but were off by 1/100ths of a second with a fifth place time of 13.04. The tournament leaders from East Islip and their nozzle-man Eric Flynn came down the track and took third place with a time of 12.40. This added to their 3-point lead over Islip and Central Islip. Bay Shore's always exciting Paul Susskind coupled the hydrant in an expeditious fashion and due to the quick work of the nozzle-man they scored second place with a time of 12.37. The Westerners from West Hempstead scored their only points of the day by running a 12.33 for first place. West Sayville rounded out the top five with a 12.56 for fourth place.

Results of the Motor Hose Class-C contest:

1st – West Hempstead

2nd – Bay Shore

3rd – East Islip

4th – West Sayville

5th – St. James

Motor Hose Class-B only had one run in the 7-second range. Once again East Islip took 5 points by running a 7.94 and giving them an even greater total point lead on the competition. West Sayville ran an 8.01 for second place and Hempstead – utilizing the skills of the experienced team of JoJo Simone, Ralph Fraile Jr., Billy Falk and Matt Spinelli – ran an 8.25 for second place and 3 more points. North Lindenhurst's 8.27 bested Copiague’s 8.30 and the Taildraggers, running last, ran an 8.28 pushing the Yellowbirds just out of the points.

Results of the Motor Hose Class-B contest:

1st – East Islip

2nd – West Sayville

3rd – Hempstead

4th – North Lindenhurst

5th – North Babylon

Always able to compete at the top level in the Efficiency contest, the ever-ready team from Central Islip ran a 9.05. Port Washington obtained their first points of the day by running a 9.42 for fifth place. Bay Shore, who are always on the hunt for more points, ran a 9.29 for third place. West Sayville – who have been competing in Firemen’s Tournaments since the 1800's - attempted to best Central Islip but came up short with a time of 9.16. North Lindenhurst rounded out the top five with an energetic run of 9.38 gaining the Piston Knockers fourth place. St. James, North Babylon, Hempstead and Copiague were all just outside the top five with runs that were only off by a few hundredths of a second.

Results of the Efficiency contest:

1st – Central Islip

2nd – West Sayville

3rd – Bay Shore

4th – North Lindenhurst

5th – Port Washington

Motor Pump was by far the most exciting contest of the day. Central Islip came through the timing lights, ran a 5.88 and kicked off the event with a fervor. A few teams received OT’s and a few 9's were run before tournament leader East Islip came to the line. Nozzle-man Eric Flynn came bolting off the back of the truck with his eyes fixed on the target. What else can I say but the truck revved, the water came out and the target tripped. A boisterous "TIME!" came out of announcer Bill Rowse's mouth and everyone in attendance perked up...

“Five! (dramatic pause) point EIGHT!! (even more dramatic pause) SIX!!!"

This gave them a .200ths of a second faster run than Central Islip. Bay Shore and their 71-year old Class-B truck performed like the day it began its racing career propelling the Redskins to first place with a time of 5.76. When West Sayville came up to the line they not only took first place in Motor Pump but they also put themselves in second place for the day. At this point, the tournament win was sealed for the East Islip Guzzlers. The Drill Team Radio crew of Artie Susskind, Pat Cooke and Scott Magin began to hand out congratulations to the team.

The top five for the day with one contest to go, looked like this:

East Islip – 22 pts.

West Sayville – 16.5 pts.

Central Islip – 15 pts.

Bay Shore – 13.5 pts.

Hempstead – 9 pts.

Now a battle for second through fifth place was “ON.” Central Islip ran a 21.96 to the delight of the “Hoboe Nation” who had set up shop in the new bleachers right next to the arch. Bay Shore ran their best Bucket time of the year with a 22.48. West Sayville ran a 21.47 while Hempstead ran a 21.28 and North Lindenhurst ran their third 21 of the season with a 21.34. These four 21's were just giving us a preview of what's to come at the State Drill where it is possible that a 22 in buckets will not be enough to secure any points.

Results of the Bucket contest:

1st – Hempstead

2nd – North Lindenhurst

3rd – West Sayville

4th – Central Islip

5th – Bay Shore

With 22 points, the East Islip Guzzlers became the third different team to win a Suffolk County Points Drill this year. It took the combination of three third-place and two first-place finishes to put the them in the overall top five for the fourth time this season. Rounding out the top five for the day were West Sayville (19.5), Central Islip (17), Bay Shore (14.5) and Hempstead (14.)

Photos courtesy of Mike Heller from Fire News

We are all looking forward to a return trip to the Central Islip track on August 20th for the State Drill. This drill further proved that there are plenty of teams with the potential to take over for a day and bring home the win. It’ll be exciting to see who brings their ‘A’ game when it’s time to battle for the top prize in the sport.

We’ll see you all there…can’t wait!

Interview with Willy McCarthy

On July 13th, Dan Laverty met up with 5-time State Champion Willy McCarthy from The Central Islip Hoboes. Here’s how it went.

Dan Laverty: How are you doing tonight? Thank you for taking the time to be interviewed.
Willy McCarthy: Ok.
DL: What year did you join the Fire Department?
WM: 1964
DL: Did you have family members in the department already when you joined?
WM: My brother
DL: Was he the reason you joined?
WM: Yeah, basically. That, and these racing trucks.
DL: For those who do not know, who is your brother?
WM: John Fagan McCarthy
DL: When you first joined who were some of the people you looked up to?
WM: I just watched everybody. Back in them days it was Harry Penny, Bobby Spillman, Wilbur Young…
DL: Did you grow up around/watching racing?
WM: I had a neighbor who was on the drill team and when I was around eleven or twelve I used to go to all their practices.
DL: This neighbor was on The Hoboes?
WM: Yes
DL: When you first joined what positions did you run?
WM: I started out running the discharge in Pump (suction), dragger in Efficiency, and back then we ran the big 12 on Labor Day and I got a chance to run. I ran a snap coupling in Motor Hose Replacement. That was the first time of getting off the back of the truck.
DL: As the years went on what positions did you come into running?
WM: Well, the second year I was running about five guys got drafted for the Vietnam War. We came down and we had like nine guys. I ended up spiking on the left side and I did that for 25 years.

DL: You knew this question was coming. When did the hats start?

WM: Really the kickoff of the hat to the way everyone knows it now is like 2001, 2000. Chris Murphy found this stupid looking, raggedy hat we call "Roadkill" now and he bet me I wouldn’t wear it. He bet me five dollars I wouldn’t wear it to start him in 3-Man and that was the start of it. And basically what it ended up doing is taking the pressure off my 3-Man team when they got to the line. They were more worried about the damn hat than their climbs.

DL: How many hats do you think you have?

WM: I still got about 35 or so and 95 made it to the garbage when we didn’t win those days.

DL: Who buys you the hats? The kids on the team or is it anybody and everybody.

WM: Everybody and anybody.

DL: Do you have a special room for the hats? Do you have hat keepers?

WM: Nah, they are just around the house, in one room. The wife won’t let them go anywhere else. The one that has the history is the sombrero. Part of the show here in C.I. is me and that stupid sombrero. Everybody looks forward to it now so…just having fun with it.

DL: You started in 1964 and you said you actively jumped for over 20 years. So in the mid-80’s is when you stopped jumping?

WM: 1993

DL: And the last time you jumped was in what event?

WM: C-Ladder

DL: You mentioned camaraderie…

WM: The thing that you have to love about this sport is the camaraderie of it. Basically, you cut each others’ hearts out from the first man on the line in 3-Man ladder till the last bucket is dumped. We’d cut out each others’ hearts for a point. And after the last bucket is dumped, we sit and drink a couple beers together. In the week between tournaments (Willie calls them TURN-a-ments) at a fire you are liable to lay your life on the line for this guy and next Saturday you wanna cut his heart out again for seven hours.

DL: Teams come and go in cycles. Have you seen a cycle with the Hoboes? Were there rebuilding years?

WM: Oh, we’ve had them for years. It took us 17 years between 1993 and 2010, with a couple rebuilding processes in there. Then we got this group of Murphy’s, Ricky McCarthy, (Jay) Newhoff, Justin Correira, Jason Correira and they stayed through it and took their lumps. They paid the price out here. They never quit. They kept working to get better and better and now we are reaping the benefits of it. But this team got together and got to the point of “stop the nitpicking, shut up and race.” That is the mentality right now.

DL: Who might you say resembles yourself on the current team?

WM: There are a couple of them who can walk the walk and talk the talk but they can’t last all night after it. Nah, basically these kids are in much better shape - better equipment, faster equipment - but we had to get off hotter. You know when you were young…you know I could live to be a hundred and these kids could never carry the boots of the guys I ran with. But I know deep in my heart they are actually better.

DL: Do you feel that what a team gives out good vibes and positivity comes back to them?

WM: Yes, the fact is you have to believe in yourself, but damn, you gotta go out on Saturday and put it on the line. It’s put up or shut up time, especially the State Tournament. Basically the two proudest things I got out of racing was my son being the captain of the 2010 team and having my number retired by the team.

DL: Your son is Ricky McCarthy?

WM: Yes

DL: And your number is?

WM: 14

DL: Your number is 14 and your brother’s number is 17 which is retired also. Would you like to

talk about your brother a little bit?

WM: I would be a little prejudiced you know, because the saying goes "Forever our Coach" and he was that. He could push you to the limit. Push you to almost want to kill him. All he was trying it do was get the best out of you possible. I was on the receiving end of a lot of ‘em. And when I had like 10 years spiking, he was telling me stuff I’m doing and how to correct it. And being the wise-ass I always was I said, “You tell me what I am doing wrong and I will know how to correct it." He said, "Fine, you got a week to correct it or I will get somebody to replace ya." This is love I say, there was only one person he loved between those lines and that was the winner. As far as my brother goes, he was hard-headed and thick but everybody who ever laced up a sneaker and got on that track was like one of his sons.

DL: What do you think your brother would have thought of all the new innovations that have happened in racing recently: the scoreboard, Drill Team Radio and now the Drill Team Blog?

WM: Chris (Murphy) was getting to him where he could understand Chris, because him and Chris could go at it but they had a mutual love and respect for each other. Chris Murphy, not only for Central Islip but for this whole sport of racing, has almost revived the whole thing - the whole interest in the sport. Basically what Chris did, whether he meant to do it or not, is put a lot more fun back into this game.

DL: Is there anything in particular that you want to talk about that we have not touched on?

WM: Well, I think one of the biggest things was that State Tournament in ’78 when we showed up without a C-Truck. We got a couple of breaks early and made a couple of breaks late. We ran all day long with no one ever mentioning a C-Truck. No one ever mentioned it…it was “shut up and race.”

DL: That tournament in ‘78 was where?

WM: In Hempstead

DL: With what team did you battle with during that day?

WM: The Hempstead Flukes

DL: So you guys ran the hardest you could that day with what you had?

WM: Well you figure after C-Hose was over and we were still around, we still had four contests to go. We weren’t in bad shape.

DL: How did you do in those last four events?

WM: Fourth in B-Hose, I believe, third in Pump, won Efficiency and won Buckets.

DL: Do you think that The Flukes thought that this was their day?

WM: They still think it was their day. Honestly and truly, we had a lot of fun with it and some of it was taken out of context but I love Albie Cooke because he went through a hell of a lot of abuse from not only us but from some other people. But Albie still has his head up high and smiles. He’s one of those guys I just loved racing with.

DL: Out of all the State Drills the Hoboes won that you were a part of, ‘78 is the one that sticks with you the most?

WM: Not really, each and everyone one of ‘em has a history of them own if you want to read into ‘em. You have whole years and the one thing I miss the most about this sport at all is…

(Points at photos on the wall of the Hoboes Shack)

Look back there at 1970 and 1976, and realize how many guys are not still here. That hurts. After 2010, we rode down the track and I went in the back of the truck, looked up and remember those guys and it hurt.
DL: That’s the one thing people can never understand: firemen are like brothers…

WM: Not like brothers…we are brothers.

The Drill Team Blog would like to thank Willy for taking the time to talk to us.