Merry Christmas!

Editor Letter
“If you build it, they will come”
I want to talk about a personal project of mine. It is something I have been working on for years. The idea started with keeping track of all the Lineman Rodeos for the Magazine. Over the years I will see the same names come up over and over and I started thinking how cool it would be if we could keep track of and follow these Linemen throughout the year so that when the International Rodeo rolls around, we can know “who’s who” out at the field. We could do a little feature story telling who the top contenders are leading up to the big competition, you know, give it some Hype. Draw a crowd to watch the performance from the best of the best...
Some time back my IT guy John Pishotta let me know that it is now possible for an individual to own their own Social Media platform. Long story short, John developed such a platform, and I am now the owner of a fully functioning, secure, Social Media Platform very similar to the ones you are already using. My first thought was that this could work for the Lineman rodeo idea. Have the Linemen of the local rodeos post their profiles and then they form their own groups like the Utah Lineman Rodeo or the SoCalEd Lineman rodeo team. When we see their name on the winners list, we can go to that group and see their profiles. Build up some interest leading up to the ILR. The vision is something like a “Pro Bull Riders” association but for Linemen.
Another feature we developed is a “membership map”. When you sign on, the system puts a pin in your zip code so other members can see your general vicinity. It doesn’t show your address, just that you live in that zip code. This way if you are interested in something in another place you can message other linemen who live around there to ask about it. I was talking to some of my friends, and they thought this would be a great way to network for the retired guys and those who are traveling or on vacation to find contacts with other Linemen in an area. If you are having car trouble or looking for a place to park your camper overnight, you can contact other members.
This new thing is at linemanfellowship.com. It is free to all Linemen in the power industry. I am not doing this as a business venture so there is no advertising. Ultimately, I am trying to create a Charity. That is what this is about. A membership of nothing but Linemen and women giving back while having some fun doing it.
So, here is the catch. The only way to gain membership into this Fellowship is to be invited by an existing member. You may well be proud of the fact that you are being invited! That your Bud vouched for you as being a Lineman. It’s an easy thing if you qualify… right? … Impossible thing if you don’t. I have invited all my close friends and at least a hundred more at the rodeo so I am about tapped out. It will have to be up to those of you who are existing Members of the Fellowship to help me out with this because I can’t sponsor everybody. If I invited you into the fellowship at the ILR, please do go back and accept the invite. If you are a competitor, make a group and get your team on there. To request membership, email me at byrond@powerlineman.com.