Brett Smyth is pretty quick up a ladder.
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The Dubbo firefighter is one of the fastest in the state in the one-man championship event and, until recently, held the record of 7.13 seconds.
Like the famed 10-second barrier in the 100-metre sprint, at the Firefighting Championship no one has ever scaled a ladder in under seven seconds.
Bega firefighter Clinton Towill came close at the regional championships with a 7.01 second climb, but Brett is determined to get the better of him on Thursday.
“It’s normally me and him … so come down and have a look,” he said.
Brett has been a firefighter for eight years, starting at Narromine before moving to Nyngan and then Dubbo.
He has been involved in Firefighter Championship events for about three years.
“Just good mates, you get a good bunch of mates,” Brett said.
“It’s not just men either, we’ve also got ladies in our fire brigade here in Dubbo, it’s a mixture which is good … We all get along, no bickering, we do our job, we do what we have to do to make it happen.
“[The Championship] gives you more skill, gets you going a bit faster and harder. And keeps your skill level up which is good. I recommend any firefighter to do this … it just enhances you.”
Brett’s teammates have backed him to crack the seven-second barrier in Thursday’s ladder-climbing event, which is set to get underway about 1pm, after the opening ceremony at 11am.
He urged people to attend Ollie Robbins Oval to watch.
“Come and support us,” he said. “The more you support us, the better! Get to know us, we’re not scary people … we just love what we’re doing!”
“You actually see what we’re doing, not at an actual fire where we barricade you away. Here you can get as close as you can.”
