This weekend we lost some of the toughest guys around. Hot Shot Fire Fighters. For those of you that have not heard of them they are the best of the best when it comes to Wildland Firefighting.
It really hits home how dangerous it really is. I never even thought about the danger for the years that I was one. It is a small tight knit community and only so many are able to make it to that level. It was not only the best job ever, but also the most physically and mentally demanding job I have ever done. To this day whenever I think I cannot finish something or go any longer at a task I just sit back and remember how hard that was to keep going 40,50,60, or even 80 hours straight with no sleep, humping a 50 pound pack an 35 pound chain saw up a steep hill in 110 degree heat, all to save a patch of land in the middle of nowhere. Man I miss it.......
There is piece in knowing they died doing what they loved to do. When your a Hot Shot you do not do it for the money, to be a hero, or for the status symbol. The money sucks pay wise. Nobody gets called a hero for the most part for saving a tree, and the vast majority of the population do not even know they exist. All you really get is when your all done and you are sitting on top of the world ( or mountain) knowing what you just did was incredible. That is more than enough.
You guys are in our thoughts and will be deeply missed.
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/07/01/19224279-perfect-storm-wildfire-raging-in-arizona-claims-19-men-in-elite-unit?lite>1=43001