Another year, another pack test, another 3 miles in 45 minutes wearing 45 pounds. (The pack test is the fitness test wildland firefighters have to pass each year as part of their qualifications to go to the fireline.) As of yesterday that makes 14 years of pack tests under my belt. Rooky wildland firefighters often ask those of us who’ve taken it before what they should expect. My reply goes something like this, “It’s totally doable but it’s going to hurt. It’s an unnaturally fast pace. Expect shin splints by the first half mile but by the end of the first mile they should be numb. After that you’ll have different aches each quarter mile or so but they’ll come and go. It’s mostly a mental game.”
Each year I take the pack test, I wonder why I do this to myself. Then again, you would think after so many years it would get easier. Mentally it has gotten easier; I know what to expect and how to deal with what’s coming. The caveat to that is the knowledge that my job depends on passing it which makes it somewhat terrifying and knowing that if I fail, there are a lot of people who will be there to witness it. So really it isn’t that easy mentally. Physically it’s easier because I know how to train for it and I know what level of pain to expect; the whole good pain versus bad pain thing. But this year, at 4.5 months post-baby with only a so-so month of training to prepare I wasn’t even sure I was up to the challenge.
One day later I find myself a little sore (probably soon to be a lot sore!) with another red card in hand. (The red card, or Incident Qualification Card, is the card we receive when we have passedour refresher training and pack test each year. Without it you aren’t allowed onto the fireline.) Fear of failure does amazing things to move these legs around the track. I’m glad it’s over. I’m glad that I’ve got another year on the books. I’m very glad I’ve got another year to train and who knows, maybe next year will be the year that 3 miles in 45 minutes wearing 45 pounds gets easier.