Folks in Casper, Wyoming love a good competition and they turned out for one this weekend. The 2011 Firefighter Combat Challenge Downtown Throwdown also brought the citizenry together to remember and to honor.

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The second day of firefighter competition in downtown Casper Sunday opened with a September 11th commemoration. Casper Fire-Ems hosted the event and the combat team members were grateful for the opportunity to do so on such a significant day.

Also before the action started, local firefighter Criag Kidder was honored with the Medal of Valor for his efforts in a river rescue earlier this year.

Fire fighting teams from across the country came to compete.

And just to the north of all that action a miniaturized version of the Combat Challenge was under way…It was the Downtown Throwdown for kids.  I spoke with some of the competitors.

(Here's a transcription but it looses a lot in the process.)

“Whats your name?  Chance.  How do you think your course went?  I thought it was pretty good. I was way ahead of my brother.

You guys brothers? Yeah.  Was it fun to compete against your brother? Yeah.

Whats your name?  Dixie Honeycutt.  How do you think your time on the course went?  I think it was kind of cool, although I did squirt everybody.

Have you run the course? Yeah. How’d it go? Good. What was the hardest part. Doing the hammer thing.

We do this every year and it gets easier and easier for everybody.

So do you know why today is a special  day for firefighters?

Yes,  it’s the day the terrorists hit the Twin Towers, and the Pentagon and the ground.

What were the firefighters doing?  They were trying to save people, but they didn’t come out. And they risked their lives."

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