On July 26, 2008, Apple Valley Fire Explorer Post #257 participated in the Annual Inland Empire Fire Explorer Association Muster where Explorer Posts from San Bernardino and Riverside Counties gather together to compete. This year, the muster was hosted by Apple Valley Fire Protection District and w...

On July 26, 2008, Apple Valley Fire Explorer Post #257 participated in the Annual Inland Empire Fire Explorer Association Muster where Explorer Posts from San Bernardino and Riverside Counties gather together to compete. This year, the muster was hosted by Apple Valley Fire Protection District and was held at Brewster Park.

Twenty-eight teams from 16 different fire departments participated, including Riverside City, Rialto, San Bernardino, Victorville, Big Bear City, Adelanto, Yucca Valley, Ontario, Moreno Valley, Hemet, and Lucerne Valley. Many Posts have multiple teams which can enable the same Post to place more than once in an event.

The muster consisted of three competitive events. In the "Make and Break" competition, teams are tasked with connecting three pieces of fire hose together, attaching the hose to a hyrant, and then spraying water to knock down a cone 25' away. The "Bucket Brigade" entails passing water-filled buckets from one team member to the other until the buckets reach the last team member who pours the water on the fire. The third event was "Water Ball" which is pictured above. It's rather like tug-of-war only the goal is to blast water at the ball to move it down the rope to the competitors' side before they blast it over to your side.

This year, Apple Valley Fire Explorer Post #257 won 2nd and 3rd place in the Make and Break competition; with 1st place going to Adelanto. Teams from Riverside, Rialto, and Adelanto placed in the other events. A good time was had by the Explorer Post Teams, the Post Leaders, and the general public who came to watch the competition. If you missed the event this year, try to attend next year. You'll be showing support to the young men and women who are training to become future firefighters; and you'll have a lot of fun at the same time.