GVEC Brings Home Honors From Lineman’s Rodeo

Special to The Inquirer

The Guadalupe Valley Electric Cooperative (GVEC) recently received honors from the 27th Annual International Lineman’s Rodeo held in Bonner Springs, KS.

Two linemen teams, including Scott Brown, David Hernandez, and Ronnie Luensmann, in addition to Ricky Varela, Zeke Ybarra, and Christopher Laake, competed in the rodeo along with Apprentices James Hunter and Derek Ranft. Honors went to the team of Brown, Hernandez, and Luensmann, who took third place in the Cooperative Division and 9th place overall.

Additional awards included:

· 11th place in the Cooperative Division and 64th place overall for the lineman team of Laake, Ybarra, and Varela

· 11th place in the Cooperative Division and 66th place overall for Apprentice Derek Ranft

· 14th place in the Cooperative Division and 86th place overall for Apprentice James Hunter

The International Lineman’s Rodeo is an annual event attracting the best linemen from around the world to compete in events based on traditional lineman tasks and skills. The first Lineman's Rodeo was held in September 1984, with 12 participating teams from Kansas and Missouri.

The rodeo has grown to over 200 teams and 250 apprentices. Among the 2010 participants were teams and individuals from electric cooperatives, municipalities, and investor-owned and military and contractors from across the United States, Canada, Brazil, and England.

The primary purposes of the event then as now are to help maintain a focus on safety and safe work practices, to provide a forum for the public to better understand and recognize the technical craft skills the linemen have, and to provide an opportunity for the professional craftspeople in line work to receive recognition for their skills. One other purpose has always been for the participants to have fun while sharing work knowledge with others in their trade from different companies and different parts of the country.

During the rodeo, linemen teams competed in events such as hurtman rescue, pole climb, and two mystery events, while apprentices competed with a written test, hurtman rescue, CPR with AED, and one mystery event.  

GVEC Engineering and Operations Division Manager and Chief Operating Officer Bobby Christmas said, “The work of a lineman is unique and is truly a brotherhood. A forum such as this gives our lineman and apprentices the chance to showcase their skills, but also to form bonds with their team members and others just like them around the world.”

“It is truly an honor to have these men on the GVEC team both here and working for our members at home. Without the skills of a lineman, GVEC members would not get the service they need, expect and deserve.”

“Competing is about showing who they are at work, but also the personal dedication and level of quality they place on themselves,” Christmas continued. “I couldn’t be more proud of all of the GVEC participants.”