Te Puke firefighter Jodi Purdie joins elite Firefighter Challenge club

Te Puke's Jodi Purdie, right, competing alongside Claire Jones, from Queenstown at the national UFBA Firefighter Challenge. Photo / Derek Quinn-111Emergency

Te Puke volunteer firefighter Jodi Purdie has joined an elite club with only nine other members worldwide.

At the recent UFBA national Firefighter Challenge her time in what has been dubbed “the toughest two minutes in sport” was inside the threshold to qualify for Lion’s Den status.

The gruelling challenge starts with competitors carrying an 18kg hose up six flights of stairs. They then pull up another 18kg hose to the top of the tower, before making their way back down where they must hit a 70kg weight with a rubber hammer.

Next comes the slalom, around markers shaped like fire hydrants to a charged fire hose. They must drag the hose through barn doors, shoot a target, and finish by dragging an 81kg dummy 30 metres to the finish line. It’s all done carrying a cylinder and wearing breathing apparatus.

Each age group has its own threshold to beat to secure the elusive Lion’s Den status. In Jodi’s over 40 female group, it’s 3m 30s. She came home in 3m 14s, and became only the 10th woman in the world to beat the time.

There are only 51 other New Zealanders in this “club”, 12 of them women, and only Tanja Grunwald in the same age category.

Jodi now has a chance to compete at the world championships in Florida in October.

“The funny thing is I still want a better time and I think I can achieve a better time. I’ve now got a personal trainer, someone who’s competed for years and who’s prepared to take me on and get me there at the world event.”

Jodi achieved her Lion’s Den time at the national championships in Wellington after clocking 3m58s at the North Island championships three weeks earlier.

She had set her previous personal best of 3m 28s when she was 39.

“Ever since then, people have said ‘you can get Lion’s Den because you’ve achieved that time before’.”

After the North Islands she pulled out all the stops to shave off the additional time.

She travelled to Te Awamutu, where there is a track set up for the volunteers to train on, and Auckland to train with other firefighters from the Devonport brigade where Dan Brady has agreed to help Jodi as she prepares for the worlds.

The Covid-19 pandemic interrupted the annual event and Jodi says that left her doubting herself.

“Then I had a DNF a couple of years ago when I was on track to get Lion’s Den. It was raining and the dummy slipped out of my hands and it was all over - and that’s the whole thing, your mindset.”

The next time she competed, she focused on finishing to regain her confidence, and says her confidence has been given another shot in the arm because of the recent training she has done.

“In practice I’ve felt more confidence to push harder because it’s not like everybody’s watching, so I could see where I sat when I pushed myself.”

She also reached out to Norwegian world champion May Tømmervold.

“I sent her a message the week of nationals and she responded and we communicated daily in the lead up to it. She told me what she does to warm up and I used that.”

On the start line, it was time for the final psyche-up.

“I said to myself, ‘if you want this, work now, right now - not tomorrow, not next year - if you want it right now, you’ve got to work right now’.”

Jodi Purdie with her Lion's Den time in the UFBA Firefighter Challenge. Photo / Derek Quinn-111Emergency

Two firefighters take on the challenge at the same time and, unlike previous events, Jodi was drawn with another woman - Claire Jones from Queenstown.

“We had a neat conversation beforehand, and I knew I had to stay with her - or do my best to. I think she came in 15 seconds ahead - but neither of us were competing against each other - we both wanted our best time.”

Claire too achieved Lion’s Den for her age group so they celebrated together.

“That moment couldn’t be relived.”

Although he has been with her on much of her journey, Jodi’s son Cooper couldn’t be in Wellington - but he sent her an inspirational video featuring Usain Bolt which inspired her to replicate his famous pose at the end of the run. All being well, Cooper will be with Jodi when she competes in Florida.

Jodi now hopes she can inspire other firefighters to take up the challenge and compete in the various UFBA events, and also be a wider inspiration to younger people, especially females.

“It’s so neat that women are starting to feel confident to come out and do these things.”

This weekend Jodi will trade the short sharp effort of the Firefighter Challenge for the stamina needed for the Sky Tower challenge, running to the top of Auckland’s Sky Tower with a steel cylinder on her back.

Te Puke Volunteer Fire Brigade deputy fire chief Dale Lindsay says the brigade is immensely proud of what Jodi has achieved.

“She’s talked about it for a few months and the training she has done is huge.

“Even without the latest achievement as she has trained incredibly hard for these events, often on her own and without the benefit of having an actual course to accurately replicate the event.”

Jodi says competing is all part of helping her be the best firefighter she can be.