Barry Electric team places in
Lineman’s Rodeo, raises funds for international program
Barry Electric’s Team is pictured above, from left to right: Tim Thompson, Brian Robbins, Kevin Holloway and Craig Moeller, of AMEC.
September 5, 2018
The Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives hosted its Second Annual Lineman’s Rodeo Aug. 28-29 at the association’s headquarters in Jefferson City. The event — designed to let linemen show off the skills they use on the job — also raised funds for future projects that send Missouri linemen to developing nations to build power lines for people living without the benefits of electricity.
Gov. Mike Parson visited the event Wednesday morning and spoke with the linemen on the importance of their work abroad.
“It truly does make a difference,” said Gov. Parson, who is a member of Southwest Electric Cooperative. “When you hear those stories, it makes you proud to know that we are doing things for a higher cause than just those of us back home. We’re trying to help other people across the country who don’t have the utilities that we take for granted every day.”
The governor also commented on workforce development, an initiative he plans to make central to his administration. He told the linemen there is a critical need for more workers to fill a growing number of technical jobs in Missouri.
The two-day event consists of team and individual competitions in the apprentice and journeyman divisions. Some of the challenges include the Hurt-Man Rescue and Modified Pole Climb. Linemen were also faced with a 100-question knowledge test and mystery events they had little time to prepare for, such as changing out transformer arrestors. Competitors are judged on how safely they complete each challenge. Individual times are only used in the case of a tiebreaker.
“Safety is always the first concern for co-op crews when they head out to work,” said AMEC’s Craig Moeller, who organized the event and also leads Missouri’s International Program. “The Lineman’s Rodeo is a great opportunity for them to practice the challenges they face every day and reinforce the training they need to get home safely.”
The AMEC Lineman’s Rodeo is a fundraiser for international electrification projects sponsored by Missouri’s electric cooperatives and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. Over the last three years, lineworkers from Missouri’s electric co-ops have traveled to developing areas in Bolivia to help rural communities see their lights turn on for the first time.
You can find more information about the trips on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MissouriElectricCoops.
Eleven teams and a total of 43 linemen from eight cooperatives in Missouri took part in the safety, skills and knowledge competition. They braved brutally hot temperatures Tuesday afternoon and dealt with wet weather Wednesday morning, similar to their real-life work environments.
This is Barry Electric Cooperative’s second year competing and they sent three journeymen linemen: Kevin Holloway, Tim Thompson and Brian Robbins. They released a statement, “We are extremely proud of their performance and thankful to have such skilled linemen out maintaining our service lines.”
“I had a great time and enjoyed the competition,” said Holloway. “It’s always great visiting with linemen from other cooperatives and to be able to take things back that will improve our cooperative and member service.”
Thompson, who brought home the Individual Journeyman Trophy, for the second year in a row, had this to say, “I am very proud of how our team performed and the fact that we’re bringing home two trophies this year exceeded our expectations.
“There are so many great linemen competing and it is a huge honor to win the Individual Division again. I know all of us are looking forward to competing again next year.”
Racking up the fastest time in the individual transformer arrestor change-out event and also in the team pole-top rescue event, Brian Robbins said, “It’s just an awesome time spent with other linemen, great competition and it’s all for a great cause.”
Winners in the competitions were:
Team Division
1st Place - Barry Electric Cooperative: Tim Thompson, Brian Robbins and Kevin Holloway
2nd Place - Boone Electric Cooperative: Tim Gilbert, Josh Turner and Adam Bauer
3rd Place - Boone Electric Cooperative: Matt Cope, Anthony Atkins and Jason Toalson
Individual Journeyman Division
1st Place - Tim Thompson, Barry Electric Cooperative
2nd Place- Mark Visnosky, White River Valley Electric Cooperative
3rd Place - Brad Mick, Platte Clay Electric Cooperative
Individual Apprentice Division
1st Place - Jake Mebruer, Boone Electric Cooperative
2nd Place - Jacob Kumm, Laclede Electric Cooperative
3rd Place - Travis Meyers, Boone Electric Cooperative.
The Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives hosted its Second Annual Lineman’s Rodeo Aug. 28-29 at the association’s headquarters in Jefferson City. The event — designed to let linemen show off the skills they use on the job — also raised funds for future projects that send Missouri linemen to developing nations to build power lines for people living without the benefits of electricity.
Gov. Mike Parson visited the event Wednesday morning and spoke with the linemen on the importance of their work abroad.
“It truly does make a difference,” said Gov. Parson, who is a member of Southwest Electric Cooperative. “When you hear those stories, it makes you proud to know that we are doing things for a higher cause than just those of us back home. We’re trying to help other people across the country who don’t have the utilities that we take for granted every day.”
The governor also commented on workforce development, an initiative he plans to make central to his administration. He told the linemen there is a critical need for more workers to fill a growing number of technical jobs in Missouri.
The two-day event consists of team and individual competitions in the apprentice and journeyman divisions. Some of the challenges include the Hurt-Man Rescue and Modified Pole Climb. Linemen were also faced with a 100-question knowledge test and mystery events they had little time to prepare for, such as changing out transformer arrestors. Competitors are judged on how safely they complete each challenge. Individual times are only used in the case of a tiebreaker.
“Safety is always the first concern for co-op crews when they head out to work,” said AMEC’s Craig Moeller, who organized the event and also leads Missouri’s International Program. “The Lineman’s Rodeo is a great opportunity for them to practice the challenges they face every day and reinforce the training they need to get home safely.”
The AMEC Lineman’s Rodeo is a fundraiser for international electrification projects sponsored by Missouri’s electric cooperatives and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. Over the last three years, lineworkers from Missouri’s electric co-ops have traveled to developing areas in Bolivia to help rural communities see their lights turn on for the first time.
You can find more information about the trips on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MissouriElectricCoops.
Eleven teams and a total of 43 linemen from eight cooperatives in Missouri took part in the safety, skills and knowledge competition. They braved brutally hot temperatures Tuesday afternoon and dealt with wet weather Wednesday morning, similar to their real-life work environments.
This is Barry Electric Cooperative’s second year competing and they sent three journeymen linemen: Kevin Holloway, Tim Thompson and Brian Robbins. They released a statement, “We are extremely proud of their performance and thankful to have such skilled linemen out maintaining our service lines.”
“I had a great time and enjoyed the competition,” said Holloway. “It’s always great visiting with linemen from other cooperatives and to be able to take things back that will improve our cooperative and member service.”
Thompson, who brought home the Individual Journeyman Trophy, for the second year in a row, had this to say, “I am very proud of how our team performed and the fact that we’re bringing home two trophies this year exceeded our expectations.
“There are so many great linemen competing and it is a huge honor to win the Individual Division again. I know all of us are looking forward to competing again next year.”
Racking up the fastest time in the individual transformer arrestor change-out event and also in the team pole-top rescue event, Brian Robbins said, “It’s just an awesome time spent with other linemen, great competition and it’s all for a great cause.”
Winners in the competitions were:
Team Division
1st Place - Barry Electric Cooperative: Tim Thompson, Brian Robbins and Kevin Holloway
2nd Place - Boone Electric Cooperative: Tim Gilbert, Josh Turner and Adam Bauer
3rd Place - Boone Electric Cooperative: Matt Cope, Anthony Atkins and Jason Toalson
Individual Journeyman Division
1st Place - Tim Thompson, Barry Electric Cooperative
2nd Place- Mark Visnosky, White River Valley Electric Cooperative
3rd Place - Brad Mick, Platte Clay Electric Cooperative
Individual Apprentice Division
1st Place - Jake Mebruer, Boone Electric Cooperative
2nd Place - Jacob Kumm, Laclede Electric Cooperative
3rd Place - Travis Meyers, Boone Electric Cooperative.