Shelby electrical lineman Hayden Campbell could be found on Thursday morning outside of Cleveland Community College, hanging off the side of a pole some 40 feet off the ground. The only things keeping him from falling were a simple harness and a pair of spikes attached to his boots, firmly planted in the side of the pole.

The lineman was tasked with replacing a piece of insulation which connects electric wires to the pole. All around him, linemen from more than dozen other municipal electrical departments were simulating other daily tasks — replacing insulators, swapping pins and connecting cables — each lineman aiming to show how quickly and safely they can do their jobs.

On the ground, each was supported by a cadre of fellow linemen and coaches, offering advice and encouragement while they worked, and an veteran line worker, taking notes on their performance and timing their work. 

"This is a lot like what we would be doing every day. But this is way more fun than being at work," said Dalton Kendrick, a Shelby electrical lineman and teammate of Campbell in the 2022 Lineman's Rodeo.

The rodeo, hosted by the North Carolina Association of Municipal Electric Systems, saw 54 linemen from across the state meet in Shelby to compete in a variety of tasks, including simulations of daily operations, as well as a simulation of an injured lineman stuck on a telephone pole and an obstacle course.

The event is part of a two-day conference held by NCAMES. The 2022 gathering is the first time it has been held in Shelby. 

"Our conference had over 300 people. We talked this year about mutual aid and how to prepare for and respond to storms," said Julie McMurry, director of energy services at the city of Shelby and a member of the NCAMES board of directors. "When cities at the coast have hurricanes, we can be called to go and help them. Just like when we have an ice storm, cities on the coast send people to come help us."

While the conference is a chance to talk about how city departments can cooperate during an emergency, the rodeo fosters a different kind of cooperation, according to Jordan Wacaster, coach of the Shelby rodeo team.

A journeyman lineman, Wacaster said he enjoyed the Linemen's Rodeo for what it can teach younger linemen about their job.

"When you are out here you get to talk to people from different cities, learn their tricks, see the tools that they use. I have definitely learned how to be faster and be safer from some of these people," said Wacaster. "And climbing poles is kind of a lost art. We don't do it as much as the older generation used to. So it is fun to see what they dealt with and how they did it."

While he could have competed among the journeyman linemen this year, Wacaster said he chose to coach a group of younger linemen in this year's event. He, along with Campbell, Kendrick and Christian Keller, worked twice a week for over a month to train for the event.  

"I want them to come up and enjoy this like I did. They have all been excellent for their first time competing. I'm very proud of them," he said.