LUKE AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. -- A team of 56th Logistics Readiness Squadron fuels management Airmen won the 2018 Petroleum, Oil, and Lubricants “Roadeo” competition hosted at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., from April 8-9, 2018.
The competition pitted teams of POL Airmen from Luke AFB, Ariz., Davis-Monthan AFB, Ariz., and Nellis AFB against each other in a series of challenges related to driving and maintaining a fuel truck.
“The competition was great and I was just happy to be a part of it,” said Airman Johnny Jackson, 56th LRS fuels operations distributor and Luke competitor. “It took a lot of work to win.”
The annual competition allows Airmen from bases across the Southwest United States to demonstrate their technical prowess and vehicle operations skills.
“This is a tradition we’ve had in our fuels career field for decades now,” said Master Sgt. Jason Champagne, 56th LRS fuels operations manager. “It’s a good event and it’s a good opportunity for the Airmen to spend time with their peers, to network, and to learn and find out how other shops operate.”
The first two challenges required crews to maneuver a truck through traffic-cone courses without exiting the track or hitting any cones. The third challenge required crews to race to change their truck’s tires.
“The first event was a slalom where we had to quickly back up into a coned area at an angle without hitting anything,” Jackson said. “The next one was a figure-eight where we had to drive around it in the fastest time, and the last event was a tire change with teams of four.”
The 56th LRS team, composed of Jackson, Senior Airman Adam Ingerman, Airman 1st Class Andre Uzila, and Airman 1st Class Jaymon Gick, won both the figure-eight and tire change events and edged out the overall victory. Jackson attributes the 56th LRS team’s success to training and preparedness.
“We practiced for about three months on and off, and when the time got closer, we went for about two weeks straight,” Jackson said. “For Airman Uzila, Gick, and I, it was our first time competing, and we didn’t know if we had what it took since everyone else had done it before, but we won. It felt good to get back what we put in.”
Next year, Luke will host the competition as the reigning champions.
“It’s a tradition in the POL career field to compete against each other and have that rivalry with other flights,” Champagne said. “Now, since we got to take the trophy home, everyone wants to come to Phoenix,”
Jackson is confident the 56th LRS fuels management flight’s success will be replicated.
“Our chances are already great,” Jackson said. “It’s going to be our second time, we’re going to practice, and we have the home field advantage.”