College Lineman Rodeo draws students from across the Midwest

April 25, 2023 | Terry Zank | OPPD employees, T&D

Students from across the Midwest competed in the 2023 College Lineman Rodeo.

Nearly 100 students competed April 21 in the 2023 College Lineman Rodeo at Metropolitan Community College’s Applied Technology Center.

Through its Utility Line Technician program, MCC trains students to enable them to join an electric utility or a utility contractor as an apprentice line tech.

The rodeo was held at MCC’s Applied Technology Center.

The competitors came from postsecondary schools across the Midwest.

They showcased their skills while competing in events that simulated many tasks line technicians perform, including framing, changing out cross arms and scaling 40-foot poles.

The students competed in a variety of events that simulate the work done by line technicians.

More than a dozen OPPD Transmission & Distribution employees served as judges for the rodeo. They also watched for outstanding competitors who might eventually end up working for OPPD.

“It was a great opportunity to bring everyone together,” said Sean Lane, T&D field supervisor at the Papillion Service Center. “For us judges, it was a great way to give back to our local line school and see the upcoming talent.”

Several OPPD employees who work in Transmission & Distribution were on hand to judge the competition.

Photos by Lindsey Liekhus and Jaclyn Arens

About Terry Zank

Terry Zank is a contributor to The Wire and senior digital channel specialist at OPPD, where he has worked for 30 years. He and his wife have three sons. Terry enjoys bike riding, playing racquetball, hiking, watching college football, watching great movies from years’ past, and citing quotes from those movies, much to his family’s chagrin.

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