The fire brigade belonging to the C.W.S. Boot Productive Works at Rushden, of which Mr. J. Wildman has been the captain for 25 years, won premier honours at the seventh annual inspection and competition held at the Wheatsheaf Works ground, Leicester, on Saturday. Rushden sent eight men to the contest. There were seven competing teams.
Rushden, having the lowest aggregate times for the various contests, won the shield, and the captain was awarded a gold medal. Individual prizes were also won by members of the Rushden brigade. Mr. George Dean won the one-man hydrant drill. This operation consisted of running to the equipment, fixing standpipe, running out a 50ft. length of hose, connecting to branchpipe, running back and turning on the water, and returning and picking up the branchpipe. Time, 24seconds, a fifth-of-a-second quicker than the next best. Mr. Dean’s prize was a silver teapot. Mr. R. Smith won the one-man dressing and hand-pump drill. In this the competitors had to run to dressing rack and get into fireman’s tunic, etc., run and pick up hand-pump, run another 50 yards to bucket of water, which had to be used in the pump and directed on to a fixed target. Mr. Smith did the drill in 29. 4-5 seconds, the second being Leicester Cranbourne-street Brigade entrant with 30. 4-5 seconds.
Second place was won by Rushden in the four-men dressing, hydrant, and ladder drill, the team being Fireman R. Smith, E. Smith, T. Ladds, and G. Robinson. The time was 43.25 seconds. Leicester Wheatsheaf, the winners, did the test in 1.35 seconds shorter time. The remainder were many seconds longer than the Rushden team’s time.
After the contests tea was served to the various brigades in the dining-rooms of the C.W.S. Wheatsheaf Works.
