On June 30, 2013, nineteen members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots firefighting team tragically lost their lives while fighting a fire in Yarnell, Arizona.
The Granite Mountain Hotshots started as a fuels mitigation crew for the city of Prescott. They transitioned to a type 2 hand crew by 2004. However, after becoming frustrated about the crew’s role on numerous fires, Superintendent Eric Marsh fought for the team to earn an evaluation to become certified as a Hotshot crew. In 2008, after a lot of hard work and politicking, the crew earned the distinction as the first municipal hotshot crew in the nation.
Hotshots are small crews of elite wildland firefighters trained to fight fires directly in remote backcountry terrain with shovels and chainsaws. Often, they have limited support from other resources. Subsequently, they often work in steep rugged terrain with hot and dry conditions. They dig lines, cut down trees and light backfires to help contain fires to a planned perimeter.
More information on the Granite Mountain Hotshots, the Yarnell Hill incident, and lessons learned can be found at https://wlfalwaysremember.net/2013/06/30/yarnell-hill-19/
Hotshots 19
To honor the Granite Mountain Hotshots, CrossFit Inc. created the “Hotshots 19” Hero WOD (workout of the day). Hero WODs are meant to motivate athletes to push through their own struggles by bringing awareness to the sacrifices of others. These workouts often have round and rep schemes inspired by the individuals and/or incidents. They are often extremely grueling, arduous and mentally challenging.
To further commemorate the fallen and raise money for their surviving family members, Crossfit HQ hosted a charity event at Captain CrossFit in Prescott, AZ. The event on August 31, 2013 raised over $300,000 as a result.
Additionally, every year on the anniversary of the incident, countless Crossfit gyms across the country repeat the Hotshot 19 hero WOD. Many continue to raise money for charities such as the https://wffoundation.org/ and the https://ericmarshfoundation.org/.
Always Remember
Please join members of the RedZone staff as we remember the fallen and celebrate their lives with this workout.
“Hotshots 19” Hero WOD
Six rounds for time of:
30 Squats
135 pound Power clean, 19 reps
7 Strict Pull-ups
Run 400 meters
Scaling options can be found here.
Please keep the 19 Granite Mountain Firefighters and their friends and families in your thoughts as you do the workout.
Jesse Steed, 36
Wade Parker, 22
Joe Thurston, 32
William Warneke, 25
John Percin, 24
Clayton Whitted, 28
Scott Norris, 28
Dustin Deford, 24
Sean Misner, 26
Garret Zuppiger, 27
Travis Carter, 31
Grant McKee, 21
Travis Turbyfill, 27
Andrew Ashcraft, 29
Kevin Woyjeck, 21
Anthony Rose, 23
Eric Marsh, 43
Christopher MacKenzie, 30
Robert Caldwell, 23
