46 Years Ago
The July 17, 1979 Golden Transcript reported that a team of Golden Firefighters would be participating in the Firemen’s Hose Cart Race–one of the events planned for Buffalo Bill Days.
Before the advent of firetrucks, Golden’s firefighters used man-powered equipment, including heavy two-wheeled hose carts. They required several men and considerable physical strength to haul to the site of a fire. Fire departments often held races to see who could pull the carts most quickly.
The 1979 Hose Cart Race was a reenactment of this tradition. Several fire department teams planned to compete, including Idaho Springs, DuMont, Evergreen, Fairmount, Georgetown, Buena Vista, and Empire. Each team would dash 300 feet down 11th Street, then unspool the hose, attach it to a hydrant, and blast a stream of water.
Golden’s team included Pat Madison, Dan Abbott, Dave Granquist, Ross Engstrom, Matt Finley, Jim Hinkle, Dave Middleswartz, Don Angell, Bob Ensminger, John Dillon, and captain Jerry Schoech. The July 23, 1979 Transcript revealed that Golden’s team won first place, with a time of 17.8 seconds!
